Hello. I took Buddy for a grooming appointment this afternoon and the groomer allowed Buddy to fall out of the tub after opening its door. I rushed him to the ER vet, because our regular vet across the street refused to make room for him. (Grrrr.)
He pulled an ACL in his knee and cannot walk or stand without assistance.
Please pray for his recovery.
The vet said 20% of dogs can recover, but 80% will require surgery. Because of Bud’s age, the vet would prefer not to operate.
Buddy likes to keep me within sight, even though he may not desire interaction.
I’m currently reading a nonfiction book that I highly recommend: Stolen Focus, Why You Can’t Pay Attention—and How to Think Deeply Again, by Johann Hari. You can probably find it in your library system, as I did.
This statement really stood out for me, quoted by the author interviewing the magician called Tristan:
“How does a magician do their work? It works because they don’t have to know your strengths—they just have to know your weaknesses. How well do you know your weaknesses?”—page 108
Do you think Satan attacks your strengths?
Of course not. Like any enemy, he’s searching your life for any unintentional opening to breach your protective wall.
“Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”—1 Peter 5:8
Now most of us aren’t important enough to attract Satan’s attention, but a third of the angelic host fell into disobedience and works for the devil.
So, please consider in prayer, asking Jesus to open your eyes to anything in your life that is giving the enemy of your soul an opening to take a bite out of you.
Take heed of CS Lewis’ oft quoted warning:
“There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight.”
What are your weaknesses?
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
To be fair, I’ll admit one weakness I am working on. I hate being treated as if I’m stupid or a liar. I’m neither and can quickly become defensive if I feel someone has attacked my intelligence or honesty. I have to learn to listen before responding without allowing my “hackles” to rise up and overwhelm my reason. Proverbs 18:13
I love Buddy with all my heart, but some mornings I’m tired and want to be left to myself. But I have to get up and walk Buddy, as we live in a condo with only a balcony. Then I prepare his breakfast and pills before my own. Some days I just don’tfeel like doing it, but Buddy is my responsibility.
Similarly, there’s times when our feelings don’t match up with God’s commands. As Christians we’re under grace and not the Law, but God’s rules still work to help us lead happier and more prosperous lives. We’re also commanded not to grieve the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30), and we do that by not listening to Him and disobeying His leading.
One area people are particularly susceptible to disobey God and follow their feelings is in the area of sexual relationships. God’s commands demand one behavior, but our feelings pull us strongly toward a relationship, or behavior, we know displeases God.
“For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God…Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit.”—the Apostle Paul, 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5, 8
Now as Christians we can still choose to disobey God and, thereby, grieve the Holy Spirit; since He indwells the believer, we’ll be miserable till we repent. We still have free will as believers.
But we are supposed “to walk by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7).”
Do we please God by following our passions? Because feelings are not only fleeting but changeable.
Or by obeying His Word, the Bible?
God promises that we’re blessed when we obey Him:
“But without faith it’s impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”—Hebrews 11:6
I’m thinking about this because in the past I tried so-called Christian dating sites and the majority of the men wanted to engage in premarital sex, which God expressly forbids (Hebrews 13:4). So I left the sites.
Every day, as believers, we can choose to disobey God and be miserable—or defy our feelings, obey God, and be blessed.
It’s all a matter of whether we trust God more than our feelings.
He loves us. And wants to lead us in the paths of righteousness (Psalm 23:3).
God forgives our sin. We can always confess our sin and choose to repent and get back onto the right path.
It’s all a matter of: Do you want to be miserable?
Or content, knowing God is in control and not your feelings?
It’s all up to you—and me.
And the Holy Spirit. We’re not left alone in our struggle.
“Blessed be the Lord , because He has heard the voice of my supplications! The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in Him and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoices, and with my song I will praise Him.”—Psalm 28:6-7
Prayer, honest conversation, and singing praises helps a lot.
And maybe a brisk walk.
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
If you do what you know is is wrong, but don’t feel God’s Holy Spirit convicting you, then you should truly examine your heart whether you actually believe Jesus is God in the flesh (Matthew 1:23), died for your sins (1 Peter 2:24), and rose bodily from the dead (Romans 10:9).
Please don’t let pride get in the way of recognizing the truth about yourself. God loves you and wants to be your Lord and best friend. Jesus promises never to leave nor forsake His followers (Hebrews 13:5). But you must submit to His authority to be saved. The demons believe that Jesus is God and rose from the dead, but they aren’t saved.
Don’t be like the demons. Choose life obeying Jesus instead.
If you’re ready to receive Jesus, please pray the following, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for grieving You and ask for forgiveness of my sins. I also ask Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. I believe that He is God, died for my sins, and rose bodily from the dead. Please fill me with your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. And show me how much You love me. Thank you for hearing my prayer. In the mighty name of Jesus, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. And please start reading the Bible as it’s your soul food and the main way God speaks to you. And please join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized.
If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these two ministries, which also have apps, if that‘s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message).
May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.
God bless you as you start your new life in Christ.
Buddy looks like a giant Yorkie. He’s even oversized for a Silky terrier. But despite his larger breed style, he’s incapable of protecting himself; he’s totally dependent upon me for his needs.
The Old Testament prophet, Jonah, preached the lamest sermon ever. Most people, even if they’ve never read the Bible, have heard the story about Jonah and the Whale, about how he was swallowed and lived within the giant sea mammal for three days and nights.
However, most people don’t know that Jonah was swallowed by the whale because he disobeyed God and hopped a ship going into the opposite direction of the city of people God wanted him to preach to. After his horrendous incarceration, Jonah obeyed God and traveled to the Assyrian city of Nineveh to preach repentance.
Jonah hated the Ninevites and wanted God to kill them, not save them.
Although Jonah finally obeyed God, his attitude sucked. He preached the lamest sermon ever!
“And Jonah began to enter the city on his first day’s walk. Then he cried out and said, ‘Yet forty days, and Nineveh will be overthrown!’
“So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them…”—Jonah 3:4-5
The king made a decree that everyone was to fast, even their animals, and “turn from his evil way and the violence that is in his hands (vs 3:8).”
Because the people of Nineveh repented in faith, God relented and did not punish them.
My point is: Just as Buddy is totally dependent upon me, Christians are totally dependent upon the Almighty God and His power. We cannot change a person’s heart nor can we force anyone to believe in Jesus.
Because repentance doesn’t depend upon our charisma or powers of persuasion—or even how knowledgeable we are.
On the other hand, it doesn’t matter how weak or pitiful we think our testimony or words are.
Our responsibility is merely to obey and tell people about Jesus.
And the power of the Holy Spirit will do His work.
Cone on! You cannot preach a worse sermon than Jonah did!
And because God’s power was already working on the hearts of the people, they repented anyway.
God bless.
Thanks for reading.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
PS. Please check out my latest Friday blog post if you have time. Thanks!
Life is simple for Buddy. Take walkies. Snooze. Eat treats. Beg for food. Occasionally pay attention to your human.
Actually, human life is similarly simple. All of life boils down to one simple answer.
Want to know what it is?
What life really is all about?
Enough suspense yet? Here’s the answer:
Our life here on earth is all about choosing which god you’re going to spend eternity with.
That’s it in a nutshell.
The secret to this chaotic, rollercoaster, sometimes thrilling, sometimes awful life.
“I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness.”—Jesus, John 12:46
Every day a person can choose to remain in Satan’s “domain of darkness” and “perish in their sin” (Colossians 1:13, 2 Thessalonians 2:10,) or choose to spend eternity with Jesus.
“For He (God) rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”—Colossians 1:13-14
The choice is yours.
Jesus hung on the Cross between two thieves. One continued to hurl insults at Jesus, demanding that He come down from the Cross and rescue them from crucifixion.
The other humbled himself, admitted he was a sinner, and asked that his soul be saved. And Jesus answered him, saying:
“‘Truly, I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.’”—Luke 23:43
Eternity with Jesus or Satan.
Everyone makes that choice.
It’s truly what life is really all about.
Thank you for reading!
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
PS. So next time someone asks you, “What’s life all about?”—you have an answer.
***
Maybe you’re unhappy because you’re trying to be your own god instead of submitting your life to the Lord and trusting in His guidance.
Jesus is omniscient and omnipresent. He sees the future. What seems the right course of action to a person may actually be leading toward disaster. Only God knows where a chosen path will lead.
Jesus died to pay for your sins. He lived a perfect life as a human being so that He could pay for the sins of others, having no sin of His own to be punished for. After His crucifixion, He rose from the dead to prove that He is also God, that He has the power over death.
You don’t have to continue living a life of regret and defeat. But becoming a Christian doesn’t guarantee health and wealth, as false preachers claim, but does set you onto a new path leading away from self-destructive behavior.
A new Christian is like a baby: You’ll crawl, then totter on wobbly legs till you learn to walk steady. I’m encouraging you to give your life to Jesus, because it’s wonderful to be in relationship with God. But I also want you not to get discouraged after doing so. It takes time to learn about God’s love for you and how He works.
Are you ready to make Jesus your Savior from sin and your Lord, the God Who rules your life? If so, please repeat the below prayer, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin and ask for Your forgiveness. I call on Jesus to be both my Savior and Lord, my moral authority. I give my life to You. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. And teach me how much You love me. I want to learn to trust You. Thank You for hearing my prayer. In the mighty name of Jesus Christ, the Lord, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. You should begin to experience new attitudes and a desire to obey Jesus as you’ve been given a new heart by the power of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. You’re starting to walk a new path in life, so please be patient with yourself as you learn and grow in the knowledge of the Lord.
Please start reading the Bible daily. And join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I recommend these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be misled by legalism or false teaching until you know what the Bible teaches fairly well.
God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.
I felt badly recently when I became impatient with Buddy and yelled at him as he kept whining when I was trying to solve a problem. His wince made me realize that words, just like a fist, can punch and hurt.
“Life and death are in the power of the tongue.”—Proverbs 18:21
Our words can inspire people to try harder or to accomplish great things.
Or our words can discourage people and drive them to despair.
Great leaders are often remembered, not just for their great deeds or accomplishments, but also for their inspiring oratory.
“Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.”—JFK
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only love can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”—Martin Luther King Jr
“Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”—Abraham Lincoln
Sometimes it can be discouraging to blog regularly, yet not many people read what took hours to create. But does that make my words or message any less worthy? Do numbers or recognition determine the value or a person or thing?
Or do we all have intrinsic value apart from recognition or financial success?
YES! We’re all made in God’s image, therefore we all have value as He created each of us for His own purposes (Genesis 1:27, Philippians 2:13).
“The pen is mightier than the sword.”—British playwright Edward Bulwer-Lytton
Is one of the most famous quotes of all time, outside of Biblical quotes.
Yet, this same playwright and novelist is also remembered for penning one of the most wretched opening lines to any novel:
“It was a dark and stormy night.”—Opening line of his novel Paul Clifford
This same man who is lionized for one amazing line is also lampooned as an atrocious novelist. In fact, there’s even a contest to write the worst novel opening in Mr Bulwer-Lytton’s honor, the Bulwer-Lytton competition:
Ironically, the site uses the same word: “atrocious”.
Guess what I’m saying is what the Apostle James admonished:
“But no one among mankind can tame the tongue… from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing.”—James 3:8,10
So, in summary, no one is perfect. Don’t beat yourself up for saying stupid or hurtful things. Ask forgiveness, if necessary. But we must all be careful to guard our words. They can inspire revolutions or success, save or destroy lives.
And don’t despair, either. You may not be remembered just for foolish talk…
But also be loved for being that one person who makes one life better by encouraging them not to despair and give up.
Or to use your words to pray for them and God to move mountains for the spread of the gospel.
Just be faithful.
“For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man…”—James 3:2
Thank the Lord for His grace which covers all our sins.
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
Jesus said: “But the things that come out of the mouth, come from the heart…”—Matthew 15:18
That’s why the Apostle Paul states:
“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”—Romans 10:13
If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is the Christ, the Lord Who came in the flesh to die for your sins, and rose bodily from the dead, your words reflect faith is in your heart.
Please call on Jesus to save you. There’s no neutral ground: You’re either in the kingdom of darkness, dead in your trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1) or in the kingdom of Light, spiritually alive.
If you call out to Jesus, He will enter through the door of your heart to give you new, and eternal, life.
If you’re not ready to take this step in faith, please ask the Lord to help you. Or please remember to call on Him when you’re ready for a life change.
If you’re ready now, please repeat the following prayer, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I believe that Jesus is the Lord God Who died for my sin and rose bodily from the grave. I’m sorry for my sins and ask You to save my soul and forgive me. Please grant me Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Please teach me how much You love me. In the name of Your holy son, Jesus, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily and join a Bible believing church or Bible study so that you can understand your salvation and get to know Who God is.
If that’s not possible right now, I recommend these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: Leading The Way and The Grace Message at the below links:
When I was a teenager, I’d walk my poodle, Penny, and talk to God for at least an hour. Sometimes poor Penny sat on the bed with me as I poured out my teen angst and concerns to the Lord. Although I wasn’t born again nor understood who Jesus was yet, I believed there was a God Who heard me.
That poor dog!
Over a decade later I became born again. And although I accepted Christ was the Lord God in the flesh (Matthew 1:23), I then started talking to God like a holy person was supposed to: interceding for people and making other mighty requests that an Almighty, caring God could answer.
And expressing thanks, of course, trying to focus on the silver lining of life and its events.
But over the years I’ve had one problem after another. My pastor talks about the valley every Christian will have to go through eventually. But I’d like to get out of the valley once in a while! Some of us just seem to stay there in the desert without understanding why and if we get out of the valley, we’re right back in another with little rest!
Even when not engaging in any willful disobedience.
So this past holiday season I asked God: “What’s up with that? Why can’t I get a break from things going awry?”
Psalm 55:17 provides an answer:
“Evening and mourning and at noon, I will complain and murmur, and He will hear my voice.”
What, Dawn? Have you lost it?
I sensed that God was trying to pull me back into a true friendship with Him. To not see Him just as The Big Guy Who answers prayers, but also as my friend Who wants to hear from me. Who wants to be the Heavenly Father Who listens to his child talk about her day, her feelings, her concerns, and her worries.
To engage with Him and not just talk to Him.
So I think God trying to coax me into opening up my heart to Him once again as I used to as a teen. After all, when everything’s going great, I don’t have much to complain or murmur about.
God wants a true relationship with us, to be a friend and not just a Guy Who Answers Prayers.
Now it’s OK to make requests. In the verse before, 16, David cries out:
“As for me, I shall call upon God, and the Lord will save me.”
But I have to remember that He’s also my best friend Who knows me more intimately and completely than anyone else ever could, Who understands me better than anyone else ever could, and is always there to call out to when no one else can always be there for me.
“I will never leave you nor forsake you.”—Hebrews 13:5, Deuteronomy 31:6
Please say “hello” to your best friend every day.
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
Even though I spoke for hours upon hours to the Lord as a teenager, pouring out my heart to Him, it was a one-way conversation as I was not yet born again, filled by God’s Spirit.
Only His sheep hear His voice (John 10:27).
If you’re unsaved, generally the Lord will have only one message for you to hear: Follow Me. Become born again by My Spirit. Come to Me for life (Matthew 16:24, John 3:3, 5:40).
God wants to be your Heavenly Father and best friend. Will you please accept His invitation to enter into relationship with Him?
“Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”—Apostle Paul, Romans 10:13)
The Lord’s name is Jesus, the God Who came in human flesh (Mathew 1:23) to die for your sins so that you don’t have to, and rose bodily from the dead to give you resurrection life through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Do you believe this?
If not, will you ask Him for the faith to believe?
If you’re ready to enter into a love relationship with God, please repeat the below prayer, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I call on Jesus to be my Savior and God Who died for my sins. I’m sorry for my disobedience and humbly ask for Your forgiveness. Please be my friend and Father and constant companion, my Good Shepherd Who will lead me and guide me now and forever. Please give me Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Thank you for hearing my prayer. In the name of Jesus, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily as it’s your soul food. Just as your body needs daily nourishment to be healthy, so does your soul. I suggest starting with the book of Matthew as it’s easy to understand, and reading forward.
Also, join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message).
God bless you as you start your new life in Christ.
What movies or TV series have you watched more than 5 times?
Still from The Mummy, 1999, photo from Imbd.com
I’ve watched the 1999 version of The Mummy many times as it’s one of my favorite movies, yet I didn’t enjoy it that much in the theatre.
I was expecting a scary movie, not an action adventure film.
So the film wasn’t the issue but, rather, my expectations.
When I watched it a second time on a movie channel, I became entranced: It’s a perfectly written movie with a great mix of humor, action, romance, and good-looking people.
It makes me wonder, sometimes, if having false expectations in other areas of my life might be coloring my viewpoint of people or events.
My other favorites that I’ve nearly overdosed on:
Jurassic Park
Independence Day
Planes, Trains & Automobiles
John Carpenter’s The Thing
Alien and the sequel Aliens
Camelot
My Fair Lady
Fiddler On The Roof
Pride & Prejudice (Kiera Knightley version)
and
It’s A Wonderful Life.
For anyone who knows me personally, my favorite, lifelong TV show should come as no surprise:
the original Star Trek.
Yes, I love musicals, scary monsters, comedy, and action adventure.
Thanks for reading.
Please check out my latest Buddy Brief:, my mostly weekly blog posts:
If you read my blog regularly, you know Buddy was rescued out of an abusive situation. Because he was so terrified of me, I didn’t enroll him in an obedience class.
Now he sometimes acts like a spoiled little brat. For instance, demanding I give him my chicken lunch through continual whining and fussing, even after gobbling down his own portion in his dish.
I was thinking about this verse recently, something Jesus said, recorded in Matthew 10:16:
“‘Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves.’”
There seems to be an expectation in the Christian community that every leader, even politicians, should always be sweet and loving.
Lovey dovey.
But the Bible has multiple examples of leaders who were quite outspoken, bold, loud, even obnoxious at times.
The Old Testament prophets Elijah and his successor Elisha, and John the Baptist in the Gospels, were fiery, aggressive orators; definitely not men you’d call sweet and kind.
Elijah mocked and taunted the false prophets of Baal and even ordered to have them slaughtered (1 Kings 18:40).
Elisha cursed the “youths” mocking him and calling him names, so he “pronounced a curse on them in the name of the Lord. And two female bears came out of the woods and mauled 42 of the youth (2 Kings 2:24)”. Because you don’t show disrespect to God’s appointed prophets!
And John the Baptist “saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, ‘Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?’ (Matthew 3:7)”
Even Jesus overturned the tables of the money changers in the Temple in Jerusalem, and took a whip of cords and chased the money changers and their animals out of the building.
There seems to be a theme here:
Sometimes you gotta act “not nice” when confronting evil.
In summary, God uses all sorts of personalities to accomplish His will.
Please don’t discount someone as a servant of God because their manner is more brash or forceful than yours.
Acting like a dove means avoiding sin but, also, sometimes knowing when to show grace to a sinful person.
But, in my opinion, sometimes being shrewd means knowing when to stand up and confront evil with strong words and actions.
Because some hearts are too hard; evil’s strong grip on a soul may require a good yank.
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
PS. Please check out this great sermon by pastor Dr Charles Stanley. It’ll bless you.
Buddy was unhappy about being confined to the loft, so he pouted by staring into the mirror. He is losing his depth perception and must wait for me to pick him up and carry him down the staircase to the main living area. He would rather roam freely in our condo, doing what he wants when he wants.
The ancient Jewish religious leaders–the Pharisees, Sadducees, and scribes–rejected Jesus because they believed that their own works made them righteous in God’s sight. Although they diligently searched the scriptures about the coming Messiah, they missed recognizing Him when He stood in front of them, although He’d performed many miracles and fulfilled over 300 Old Testament prophecies. They were awaiting a Messiah Who would rescue them from oppression by the Roman Empire; they weren’t looking for a Savior Who would rescue them from their sins.
Their pride prevented from realizing they weren’t righteous enough to earn their way to heaven. God’s standard for holiness is perfection (Matthew 5:48). They believed that because they kept the Laws of Moses, they had God’s favor.
But they didn’t.
Their self-righteousness caused them to reject the very Messiah they eagerly awaited.
“For not knowing about God’s righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God.”–Apostle Paul, Romans 10:3
Today it’s still pride that keeps people from recognizing their own need for a Savior. They think they can earn their way into heaven by being good enough, whatever “good enough” is. They create their own moral code, neglecting to realize that they aren’t little gods who get to write the laws of the universe.
Satan also believed that he could replace god and write his own rules of behavior. Because he wanted to be worshipped and make the rules, he rebelled against God, falsely believing that He could knock the Almighty off of His throne (Isaiah 14:12-17).
It surprises me that people believe they can reject God’s rules, create their own moral code, and live however they want, then believe God must accept them into heaven to live with Him for eternity when they’ve rebelled against Him their entire lives. They don’t realize that the rules they hate still apply in Heaven, and the people they despise who follow the Lord and attempt to obey His rules will be in Heaven.
In other words, Heaven would be Hell for people who think they’re good and can create their own moral code. And don’t need to listen to some Almighty God telling them what to do.
Satan must’ve been a great speaker as he persuaded a third of the angels to rebel against their Maker.
Similarly, our postmodern Western culture has persuaded many to believe that there is no Almighty Creator and that they can make up their own rules of what good behavior is, what’s right and wrong.
We’re seeing right now how poorly that’s working out as our culture continues to disintegrate and technology increasingly threatens our liberty and freedom to move freely, to think and speak freely, and to protest against corruption and tyranny.
Just as the ancient religious leaders rejected Jesus as a Savior from their sins, sadly, many also do the same today.
But this lesson also applies to Christians in this way:
You can never be good enough through your own works righteousness. You need to remind yourself frequently that Jesus has clothed you with His robe of righteousness (Isaiah 61:10). It’s never about how good you are, but how good He is. Jesus loved us so much that He died for our sins–all of them–because we can never be good enough to please Him. We want to please Him because our spirit is united with Christ through the Holy Spirit, and we now have an undying love for Him (Ephesians 6:24). But thinking we have to be perfect keeps us running on the hamster wheel of works righteousness till we exhaust ourselves emotionally; therefore, physical and spiritual exhaustion follows. He wants us to rejoice in how sweet, kind, and gentle He is.
“For My yoke is comfortable, and My burden is light.”–Jesus, Matthew 11:30
Rejoice today in how much Jesus loves you.
It’s not about being perfect, but how much He loves you by wanting to live with you forever. And to hear your prayers. He’s the only friend Who always has time to listen.
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
Maybe you’re unhappy because you’re trying to be your own god instead of submitting your life to the Lord and trusting in His guidance.
Jesus is omniscient and omnipresent. He sees the future. What seems the right course of action to a person may actually be leading toward disaster. Only God knows where a chosen path will lead.
Jesus died to pay for your sins. He lived a perfect life as a human being so that He could pay for the sins of others, having no sin of His own to be punished for. After His crucifixion, He rose from the dead to prove that He is also God, that He has the power over death.
You don’t have to continue living a life of regret and defeat. But becoming a Christian doesn’t guarantee health and wealth, as false preachers claim, but does set you onto a new path leading away from self-destructive behavior.
A new Christian is like a baby: You’ll crawl, then totter on wobbly legs till you learn to walk steady. I’m encouraging you to give your life to Jesus, because it’s wonderful to be in relationship with God. But I also want you not to get discouraged after doing so. It takes time to learn about God’s love for you and how He works.
Are you ready to make Jesus your Savior from sin and your Lord, the God Who rules your life? If so, please repeat the below prayer, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin and ask for Your forgiveness. I call on Jesus to be both my Savior and Lord, my moral authority. I give my life to You. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. And teach me how much You love me. I want to learn to trust You. Thank You for hearing my prayer. In the mighty name of Jesus Christ, the Lord, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. You should begin to experience new attitudes and a desire to obey Jesus as you’ve been given a new heart by the power of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. You’re starting to walk a new path in life, so please be patient with yourself as you learn and grow in the knowledge of the Lord.
Please start reading the Bible daily. And join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I recommend these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be misled by legalism or false teaching until you know what the Bible teaches fairly well.
God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.
I felt like it had to do with me, not life itself.
At that time we had a limited number of TV channels, and on one of the local channels was the Billy Graham Crusade, live.
I called the number on the screen to speak with one of their counselors, a kind woman, who listened to me, explained who Jesus was, and led me in a prayer of faith.
Shortly after hanging up, I was praying and a spirit swooped into my body near my sternum.
Scared the crud out of me, until the Holy Spirit told me Who He was.
This is one reason I emphasize that becoming saved is more than forgiveness of sin.
It’s also being given new life through the resurrection of Christ from the dead.
Christians never told me what becoming born again meant. I’d hear one gal say that her “body was the temple of the Holy Spirit,” so she would keep herself sexually pure.
But no one explained that being saved meant being given new life.
I was taught by the false religion I was raised up in, that the Holy Spirit was just a force in the universe,…
…but not God Himself, the third person of the Trinity.
In any case, I’m so thankful that Jesus never gave up on me.
CS Lewis claimed that God dragged him kicking and screaming into His Kingdom.
Jesus just kept prodding me along till I finally woke up.
I feel happy when my beloved Buddy smiles. It shows that he enjoys living with me. After three years of being abused by his former owner, he’s loved sharing thirteen-and-a-half years with me now, someone who loves and dotes on him.
God is called “Our Heavenly Father (Matthew 6:26, 32),” yet sometimes Christians are presented with a solemn, joyless image of Jesus in movies and pictures as if being miserable or unhappy is the preferable Christian personality.
Does your earthly father want you to be miserable? (If mentally healthy, he doesn’t.)
Or, too often, pastors tell us that joy is independent of circumstance, meaning that you’re not supposed to feel or be happy, as if a smiling countenance means you’re not thoughtful or taking your faith seriously. That you can be cognitively happy, but to actually be happy is an unrealistic expectation.
Please ask yourself: Does a happy, energetic joyful person attract you more or less than a solemn, frowning person?
Jesus told His disciples:
“I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.”—John 15:11
I believe Jesus wants us to be authentic people. To be honest with Him when we talk with Him. To cry when we’re suffering, to smile when we’re happy, to laugh when we think something’s funny.
Jesus said:
“I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”—John 10:10
After all, who invented laughter?
As the Bible says, and modern scientific research continually confirms:
“A cheerful heart is good medicine.”—Proverbs 17:22
Go ahead and enjoy life.
Giving thanks to our loving Father Who has created a beautiful world full of wonders.
After all, who should be the happiest people on earth than Christians who know that all these worldly sufferings are temporary and in no way comparable to the eternal joys of heaven (Romans 8:28) prepares for us by a loving God?
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
PS. I realize pastors are trying to deal with human suffering, but is that how God wants our lives to be? Nothing but suffering without overcoming? To focus only on unhappiness? Even cops use gallows humor to defuse stressful situations.
I can totally relate to Buddy not wanting to be awakened at 10am this morning. After all, he woke me up at 6:30am to take a walkie and to do his business.
Similarly, one benefit of not being raised in the Christian religion is that I have an understanding of the outsider’s perspective. And I have not had dogma drilled into my mind without questioning it.
Not that the dogma is necessarily incorrect, but when you’re used to hearing something for many years, it’s usual not to mull over it much.
And sometimes we should.
There are two questions that would be very helpful to unbelievers if Christians could answer them.
1. Why did Jesus have to die?
2. Why is Jesus the only way to heaven?
The usual response to number one is: He had to die for your sins because, as God in the flesh, only Jesus could live a perfect, sinless life. Having no sin of His own to die for, He could die for the sins of others.
Great response. But then the unbeliever asks: Why do I need my sins forgiven?
Because God cannot inhabit a dirty vessel!
We require sanctification, to be declared righteous, wiped clean of our sins, for the Holy Spirit to indwell a person as God cannot tolerate sin in His presence:
“Because it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’”—1 Peter 1:16
The second question has a similar answer: Jesus is the only way to heaven because only Jesus can give a person new life. A person is spiritually dead until they become born again through the power of the Holy Spirit. Only Jesus can give a person new life by resurrecting their dead spirit and freeing their spirit from bondage to sin.
Generally, the Church understands how to get saved, but not what happens when a person gets saved.
A saved human spirit is transformed, crucified with Christ on the Cross andresurrected with Christ.
Not just crucified with Christ.
But also resurrected into eternal life with Christ.
Before becoming born again:
A person sins because they’re a sinner.
A person isn’t a sinner because they sin.
The sin comes out of an unredeemed heart.
The unbeliever is:
“Darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart.”—Apostle Paul, Ephesians 4:18
In summary, the nonbeliever needs to understand that they are spiritually dead and need to repent of their sins. Eternal life only comes when a person accepts Jesus as their Lord and Savior, that He is “God in the flesh (Matthew 1:23),” died for their sins, was crucified on the Cross, and rose bodily from the dead.
Jesus warned the religious leaders in ancient Israel that pride in their good works was blinding them to the truth of their need for a new heart, an internal spiritual transformation:
“You are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life.”—John 5:40
So dear reader, please be prepared to answer these two questions.
Because it’s a matter of eternal life or death.
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
Do you have eternal life? You cannot earn God’s favor; it’s impossible to meet His perfect standard of behavior (Matthew 5:48). It’s a gift. You need to ask for it, however, as Jesus won’t force you to accept Him as your Lord. He wants you to voluntarily invite Him into your life.
Are you willing to ask Him now? If so, please repeat the following prayer, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sins and want new life. Please forgive me. I ask Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Please give me your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. And reveal to me how much You love me. In the mighty name of Jesus, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations: You’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily as it’s your soul food. Just as your body needs daily nourishment to be healthy, so does your soul.
And please join a Bible believing church or Bible study, and get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I recommend these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message).
When I first left Buddy to stay for a few days with my parents, I was concerned he’d become their pet and not return home with me to our condo.
Turns out that he stares at the front door for hours, waiting for my return. Buddy does not forget that he’s my best pal.
My parents love Buddy and he’s fond of them, but he loves me the “mostest”.
The Apostle James reminds Christians not to forget who they are:
“For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.”—James 1:23-24
Once you were “dead in your trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1),” “slaves to sin (Romans 6:20)” and “the powers of darkness (Colossians 1:13),” until you believed in the Gospel and became born again.
You were a sinner who sometimes did good deeds.
But now you are a saint who sometimes sins!
“You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.”—Apostle Paul, Romans 6:18
You are no longer a dirty worm. Nor a reformed sinner.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”—Apostle Paul, 2 Corinthians 5:17
You are a saint! You want to act saintly.
Or you grieve the Holy Spirit within you and become miserable.
It’s vitally important that you remember who you are! What is now your natural bent!
You were dead; now you’re spiritually alive!
The author CS Lewis got it correct in his Narnia book series:
You are now a prince or princess. You now wear the royal garments of Christ Jesus.
Look into the mirror which reflects back “Christ in you, the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27).”
Buddy can rest in the privacy of his cube knowing that he is loved and cared for. When he became my fur pal, it was for life.
I want to return to the prodigal one more time and milk a new point that I haven’t heard from preachers before.
You might be familiar with this parable Jesus told: A father had two sons. The younger son asked for his inheritance early; although such a request was dishonorable in that culture, his father honored the request. The younger son ran off to waste his money on “loose living (vs 13).” After impoverishing himself to the point of near starvation and demeaning, employment, he returned home, expecting to be treated by his father as a hired employee and disowned.
However, the father was so overjoyed that his son repented of his wicked behavior and showed new respect, that he threw his once wayward son a party.
The older son had been laboring away in his father’s field, not living it up; he was building up his father’s estate and his future inheritance. In anger he refused to accept his father’s invitation to the party to celebrate his brother’s return home.
“But he answered and said to his father, ‘Look! For so many years I have been serving you and I have never neglected a command of yours…but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.’”—Luke 15:29-30
Get to the point, Dawn! We already know the story!
The older son believed he was more worthy of his father’s love because he worked for it. He believed he had earned his father’s love, but his younger brother hadn’t measured up. This passage is often preached on as a contrast between the legalistic believer who thinks he earns his salvation through good works, verses the person who realizes his salvation is through grace alone and cannot be earned, and that our Heavenly Father loves those with repentant hearts.
But also…
The older brother wasn’t the only one hard at work in the fields. He wasn’t taking care of his father’s estate and property by himself: The father had “hired men (vs 17).”
The older brother was equating his hard work with his worth in his father’s eyes.
But there were other men laboring hard for his father, also.
But the difference in the workers wasn’t how hard they were laboring, but their status in the father’s eyes.
You see, my dear reader, your value in the Heavenly Father’s eyes isn’t dependent on how hard you labor in his field.
You’re valuable to the Father because you’re His child,…
regardless of how you think your work is measuring up compared to those “superior” older brothers.
“See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are.”—Apostle John, 1 John 3:1
Hope you find this message encouraging.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
Maybe you’re unhappy because you’re trying to live life apart from the loving embrace of your Heavenly Father who has rules of living to protect people. After all, He’s the one Who created us and knows the instruction manual.
Jesus is omniscient and omnipresent. He sees the future. What seems the right course of action to a person may actually be leading toward disaster. Only God knows where a chosen path will lead.
Jesus died to pay for your sins. He lived a perfect life as a human being so that He could pay for the sins of others, having no sin of His own to be punished for. After His crucifixion, He rose from the dead to prove that He is also God, that He has the power over death.
You don’t have to continue living a life of regret and defeat. But becoming a Christian doesn’t guarantee health and wealth, as false preachers claim, but does set you onto a new path leading away from self-destructive behavior.
A new Christian is like a baby: You’ll crawl, then totter on wobbly legs till you learn to walk steady. I’m encouraging you to give your life to Jesus, because it’s wonderful to be in relationship with God. But I also want you not to get discouraged after doing so. It takes time to learn about God’s love for you and how He works.
Are you ready to make Jesus your Savior from sin and your Lord, the God Who rules your life? If so, please repeat the below prayer, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin and ask for Your forgiveness. I call on Jesus to be both my Savior and Lord, my moral authority. I give my life to You. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. And teach me how much You love me. I want to learn to trust You. Thank You for hearing my prayer. In the mighty name of Jesus Christ, the Lord, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. You should begin to experience new attitudes and a desire to obey Jesus as you’ve been given a new heart by the power of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. You’re starting to walk a new path in life, so please be patient with yourself as you learn and grow in the knowledge of the Lord.
Please start reading the Bible daily. And join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I recommend these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be misled by legalism or false teaching until you know what the Bible teaches fairly well.
God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.
When Buddy ran off last year, he was too quick to capture. I couldn’t run fast enough. Fortunately, he stopped to sniff a bush and I was able to convince him to jump into the car for a ride.
The Lord Jesus told His disciple, Peter, during the Last Supper before His arrest that:
“Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.
“But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail;…”—Luke 22:31-32
If Jesus prayed that Peter would not lose his faith after falling away for a brief time, do you think He isn’t willing to do the same for you?
Indeed, there are two clear promises regarding the faith of God’s children.
For Jesus is:
“the author and finisher of our faith.”—Hebrews 12:2
And:
“He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”—Philippians 1:6
Rest assured that the Good Shepherd doesn’t bring sheep into His pasture and then allow them to wander away.
He’s going to continue His sanctifying work within His children till the Return of Christ, His Second Coming.
As you all know by now, Buddy is a bit of a spoiled brat because I was reluctant to discipline him after his adoption as he had spent three years in an abusive situation. But no matter how big of a stinker he is at times, I still adore my furpal and would never give him up.
Pastor Andrew Farley has been speaking quite a bit this year about how the modern church is treating the gospel as a “self-improvement program,” focusing Christians’ attention on themselves, rather than on their Savior.
So that got me thinking.
Concurrently, I started reading a book from the library on the perfectionism epidemic in modern Western culture called, The PerfectionTrap, by Thomas Curran.
Mr Curran discusses the research of the past few decades into the exploding, and rapidly rising, trend in perfectionism. It’s particularly difficult for the generations growing up under the influence of social media.
Culture, and families, are pushing unrealistic expectations onto people to be more, do more, accomplish more, excel more. It’s creating depression, stress, and anxiety.
There’s pressure to look better, be more fit, be more healthy, be more relaxed, be more confident, be more educated, be more organized, be more cosmopolitan—just always striving to be more!
You cannot just relax and be yourself.
Enough is never good enough!
You must always be improving!
People are manifesting this pressure in several different ways: overwork, or trying to be like someone else, or not trying, or procrastinating out of fear of failure.
Parents want their kids to be all stars and get into the best colleges, even if it means bribing people. Kids want to be influencers and make lots of money on social media.
And, it seems to me that the modern Church is mirroring our culture by putting the same expectations on people, turning the Good News into Bad News.
Many new Christians hear the message: The Law of Moses showed you that you were incapable of meeting God’s righteous standards, so, congratulations, you’ve realized your need for Christ. Now that you’re born again, the Holy Spirit will help you keep the Moral Law.
Now you can, dear Christian: be more, do more, excel more.
But what did the Apostle Paul write to the Church in Ephesus:
“…He chose us in Him (Jesus) before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His Grace, by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved.”—Ephesians 1:4-6
The Apostle Paul was highly educated and can sometimes create massive sentences, but did you catch his conclusion?
That Christians are “accepted in the Beloved.”
After I prayed to give my life to Christ, the Holy Spirit told me three things, and I surely wish I’d meditated these past 33 on the third much more: “Although I know every sin you’ve ever committed, I still love you very much.”
I was so thrilled that God was real and loved me that I was smiling with excitement nearly 24/7. At that time I worked with the public, and nonbelievers would ask me, “Why are you so happy?” And I’d respond, “Because Jesus loves me!”
Knowing me for some time, they wouldn’t criticize, but mumble, “OK,” and walk away.
Then I heard two legalistic sermons the same day that stole my joy. Since Jesus declared that “the truth sets you free (John 8:32),” I should’ve figured something was wrong with the teaching. But I was a new Christian, so who was I to question these two preachers with massive audiences and worldwide influence?
What was that false teaching that stole my joy and placed the chains of legalism around my heart for decades?
That some Christians were more acceptable to God than others. Christians who worked hard enough and met a certain standard (whatever that is) got to sit at the banquet table with Christ.
And those who didn’t meet that standard—lesser Christians—got to heaven but weren’t seated at the table with those superior Christians.
So I fell out of the joy of knowing Jesus loved me…
…and hopped onto the hamster wheel of trying to be acceptable to God through works.
In other words, the gospel of: do more, be more, achieve more.
And then, we’re saturated with examples of the super Christian, the one who makes us feel we’re failing because we aren’t as good, or kind, or humble, or doing enough amazing works like this phantom superstar.
So, some give up, walking away from Christ and the Church because they can’t meet THE STANDARD.
When they were already humble enough to admit they couldn’t meet God’s STANDARD of righteousness and gave their lives to Him.
You see, Pastor Farley is correct: the Church has Christians focused on themselves and their performance,…
…instead of…
…on Jesus and His performance,…
…His finished work on the Cross.
Dear Readers, Jesus said, “It is finished (John 19:30).”
King David, of the ancient kingdom of Israel and Judah, understood this truth. He was forgiven the sins of murder and adultery because he understood the grace of God.
“Oh my soul, you have said to the Lord, ‘You are my Lord, my goodness is nothing apart from You.’”—NKJV Psalm 16:2)
Relax. Focus on Jesus and His righteousness…
…on God and His unbelievable love and kindness.
He loves you so much that “even the very hairs of your head are all numbered (Jesus, Luke 12:7).”
And, please, pray for the grace to follow the Holy Spirit’s guidance.
And don’t stress about your focus!
You are totally “accepted in the Beloved.”
And the joy of the Lord will begin to bubble out of your soul.
“Praise the Lord!”—Psalm 147:1 (and others!)
“Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.”—Psalm 136:1
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
The gospel about Jesus really is Good News.
God loves you and sent His Son to die for your sins, so that you don’t have to meet His standard of perfection to enter heaven (Matthew 5:48).
No one can meet God’s standards, not even the kindest and most sacrificial of Christian teachers.
What God wants is for you to humble yourself enough to admit that you’re a sinner and need a heart change, to submit to His moral authority.
If you realize you want to experience God’s marvelous love and acceptance by becoming one of His children, please pray the following, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, please forgive my sins. I ask Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. I believe He died for my sins and was resurrected bodily to give me new life. Please give me Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Please reveal to me how much You love me. In the wonderful name of Jesus, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily as it’s your soul food; just as your body needs daily food to be nourished, so does your soul.
And join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message).
You can see that Buddy wasn’t feeling cooperative when I asked him to pose with a lightbulb. Since he’s totally dependent on me for his welfare, you’d think he could do this little favor for me.
Nope.
Why is Jesus the only path to eternal life and heaven (John 14:6)?
An easily understood metaphor is to see everyone as a lightbulb.
Lightbulbs exist but are not fully functional until they’re connected to an electrical power source.
They can be in boxes, on a self, and even screwed into a light socket…
But as long as the electrical switch is turned off, or the fuse in the electrical box isn’t functioning properly, then the bulb won’t shine with light.
There’s no power to come to life!
The potential to come to life is present in the bulb, but it needs electricity to shine.
Likewise, every person needs to be plugged into the power of the Holy Spirit to operate properly spiritually.
A person may appear to be plugged into that spiritual socket, attending church or expressing “spirituality” by following some other teacher than Jesus, but there’s no spiritual life flowing through their soul, resurrecting their dead spirit.
After Adam and Eve rebelled against God’s authority over their lives, every person has been born spiritually dead.
And the Holy Spirit is only sent to indwell a person after they accept Jesus as their Savior, Who died for their sins and was resurrected bodily to give them life.
This spiritual electricity, the Holy Spirit, is free!
You don’t have to pay a power company to provide this spiritual electricity.
But we are all totally dependent on God to give us spiritual rebirth.
You gotta ask for it.
Jesus said:
“If you, then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”—Luke 11:13
Don’t be a dead bulb. Ask Jesus into your life.
And if you’ve already become born again, trust that your heavenly power source, the Holy Spirit, will help you shine.
Hi. I try to post the regular longer blogs on Friday evenings, but I had a big project due this Tuesday (Am I crazy to go back to school and worry about getting my homework in on time?) and was feeling exceptionally cranky Friday night. I’m still not proficient in some popular graphic arts programs and miss being able to draw mostly by hand.
So, I’m just as human as everyone else. And have days I feel great, or not so great. Am joyful, thankful, and elated—or am crabby, worrying, and critical.
Thank goodness, just as I love my spoiled and demanding Silky terrier, Jesus still loves me—even on my bad days.
Just as the love Buddy and I have for one another is unconditional, so is the love of my God and Savior.
“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called the children of God! And that is what we are!”—the Apostle John, 1 John 3:1
I write these posts, not because I think I’m holier than others or the most knowledgeable, but because the best thing that’s ever happened to me is to become born again by the love of Jesus.
I want that same wonderful relationship for everyone.
I know my furpal. If another dog walked into my home who wasn’t Buddy, I’d immediately wonder why and who its owner was.
Because that dog does not belong in my home.
But we don’t use that same discernment in the church. We just assume that everyone who sits in the pews is a born again believer or is interested in knowing more about Christ, or that anyone who preaches has the Spirit of the Lord.
But there is an event in the Bible that warns this is not necessarily true.
“Then He (Jesus) went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and was teaching them on the Sabbaths….Now in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon. And he cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!’ But Jesus rebuked him,…”—Luke 4:31, 33-35
Not only was there an opponent and enemy of God hanging around in the congregation of sincere followers of God, but who also wanted nothing to do with Jesus.
The demonically possessed man was also perfectly capable of speaking openly and emphatically within a group of believers gathered together.
This is a warning not to assume everyone knows, loves, and obeys the Lord who attends or teaches in a church. Always use discernment and evaluate their teaching. If they disobey, or reject Jesus’ clear teachings, do not follow them. And do not allow them to influence you to disregard what God teaches in the Bible.
Please be respectful, as everyone is made in God’s image and He loves them.
But there might be a time to reprove or bring false teaching to the attention of leadership.
And if it’s the leaders who disobey God’s Word, leave the church.
Not everyone who walks through the doors of a church building is owned by Jesus.
What’s the thing you’re most scared to do? What would it take to get you to do it?
I’ll never forget when my mother and I visited the Yucatán peninsula. I don’t recall if it was Chichen Itza or Uxmal, but I ascended into the inside of a windowless pyramid up a narrow staircase with narrow steps. There was no handrail and when I looked downward to descend, the bottom looked way too far away. And my feet seemingly wouldn’t fit on the stairs with my bulky sneakers.
I sweat so badly in the sweltering humidity in the pyramid, that my hands slid off the walls. So I sat on my butt and slid down each step while bracing myself against each wall to prevent a fall.
And violently shaking with fear.
A line of people backed up behind me.
I’ll never forget someone yelling from the ceremonial room at the top: “Who’s holding up the line?!!!”
It was my mother!
So, there’s absolutely, positively no way I’d ever climb up a sheer cliff or rock.
And zero chance I’d ever rappel down a sheer cliff or rock.
Unless I accidentally slipped off or was tossed off.
I feel anxious even thinking about it!
PS. I had nightmares for decades after visiting the observation deck at what was formerly called The Sears Tower in Chicago.
For a few years Buddy started knocking things over to get my immediate attention. I’ll never forget when he knocked the top off of my shredder onto the tile of my dining room; my friend must’ve jumped two feet in the air off her chair. Buddy likely loved the loud slamming sound.
Buddy stopped knocking things over for about a year. Then, above, he pulled my fleece jacket off the back of a high chair to the floor. No loud slam, but it elicited a laugh—and my attention.
I’ve recently returned to school to improve my design skills. However, there’s a lot of intense homework this semester; I’ve been stressing out and my severe insomnia has returned. I’ve realized that my focus has been on the time crunch and worrying about not doing well—my focus has been negative, rather than positive.
So I’m trying to focus on the fact that the school allows older adults into their certificate programs, I’m already learning useful and valuable information helpful for my artistic goals, I only need to pass and not get perfect scores, etc.
OK. My mind goes in different directions sometimes. But this experience has prompted me to consider how Satan works: he wants our attention focused on the negative, rather than the positive, to discourage and depress us.
The devil lives “to steal and kill and destroy (John 10:10)”, Jesus declared. He can only tear down and create chaos; he doesn’t want us focused on the beauty, creativity, and kindness of God—enjoying the Lord’s world. Satan wants us focused on his world of darkness, evil, and depravity.
As always, Satan wants to be the center of attention, rather than submitting to our Lord and Creator.
Satan’s self-centered desire to replace God in worship and attention never changes.
“You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly….I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’”—Isaiah 14:13-14
So, please, just like I need to, keep your focus on the blessings of the Lord.
Bud is admittedly spoiled. Which greatly concerns me as he’s willful and doesn’t like to listen to me. A family member let him slip out the front door this afternoon, so I panicked, knowing that Buddy wouldn’t listen to me call for him to return to the house. However, he was more interested in following me back through the doorway to safety than running away.
If Bud ran off, he’s too quick for me to catch him.
Some people won’t like this post. But if I’m only repeating what’s already posted out there on the internet ad nauseam, then why bother? I could just post links directing people to other material.
Many Christians have memorized Psalm 23; some have even read the excellent book, “A Shepherd Looks At Psalm 23” by W. Phillip Keller; and many follow the Shepherd of our souls; but how many “sheep of His pasture (Psalm 100:3)” actually trust Him?
“The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want… He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His namesake.”—King David, Psalm 23:1, 3
Jesus made it clear several times what His attitude toward His flock is.
1. If they wander off, He goes in search of them:
“What do you think? If a man had a 100 sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the 99 and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? And if he souls find it, assuredly, I say to you , he rejoices more over that sheep than over the 99 that did not go astray?”—Matthew 18:12-13
Jesus doesn’t just wave goodbye when one of His children stray away from the faith. He takes action and goes in search of that Christian to return them to the fold.
2. The Good Shepherd leads His sheep in the paths of righteousness for “HIS namesake” (Psalm 23:3).
Jesus takes action to correct His wandering sheep because His reputation is at stake when someone claims to be born again but is willfully, or deceived by Satan, disobeying.
3. Jesus promises that we’re united with Him through the Holy Spirit once we’re born again. As a result, He will never abandon us to evil nor can anyone or anything separate us from Himself.
“And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, Who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”—John 10:27-28, 30
“I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word (the Apostles); that they may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me…I in them, and You in Me…”—John 17:20-21, 23
So, if you believe you can lose your salvation, you may not either understand what being born again means and your salvation—or you are trusting in your own works and efforts to maintain your relationship with Him. You are not trusting Him to seek his wandering sheep and return those sheep back into the safety of His flock.
You don’t have temporary life until you die. You are promised eternal life if you are in Christ Jesus (John 3:16, John 10:27).
Apostle Paul strongly admonished the Galatians about this teaching in his letter, Galatians 3:1-3:
“O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your eyes Jesus was clearly portrayed as crucified? I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?”
Christ’s crucifixion put to death all human self effort. You’re either one with Christ or not, trusting in Him or yourself.
So you have a choice, dear brother and sister in Christ: standing on sifting sand or on the rock of Jesus Christ; trusting in Him to keep you—or in your own shifting, unstable efforts and moods (Matthew 7:24-26).
Your salvation is not at stake.
But, rather, your ability to rejoice in your salvation and truly feel grateful for being delivered out of slavery in the kingdom of darkness to becoming a sheep in the kingdom of light. (Colossians 1:13).
You can exhaust yourself with fear on the hamster wheel of insecurity or…
Dance with joy, little sheep, trusting in His work on the Cross, not your works.
He promises to “never leave you nor forsake you (Hebrews 13:5)”.
So who is your shepherd?
You?
Or Jesus?
***
Please trust in Jesus for your eternal life. Only He can send the Holy Spirit to indwell you and resurrect your dead spirit into eternal life. Other religions can teach you how to behave better, or experts can guide you in self-improvement programs, but only Jesus can give you life (John 5:40).
I spend the time to write these blogs because I waited till I was twenty-eight-years-old to give my life to Jesus. I only regret not doing it sooner. Becoming born again is the most wonderful experience—to know that God is real and loves you—and I want this for you too.
Please, heed my plea and give your heart to Jesus now.
Tomorrow is never guaranteed to any of us.
Repeat the following prayer out loud, if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin and for being my own worst enemy. I call on Jesus Christ to be both my Lord and Savior. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Please change my heart and teach me how much You love me. Thanks for hearing my prayer. I ask in the mighty name of Jesus, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily as it’s both your soul food and God’s letter to you. Just as your body needs daily nourishment to be healthy, so does your soul.
And join a Bible believing church or Bible study, and get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message).
There are other godly ministries out there, but it’s easy to be misled by legalism or false teaching till you know the Bible fairly well.
God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.
Buddy has been my fur pal for over thirteen years now. I almost always know what each unique look communicates, even when Buddy is not making any sound to emphasize his point.
I grind my own beans since I have the time to do so. I dipped some fresh grounds into the paper sleeve of my coffee machine Monday afternoon but still had some residual left in the grinder. I swiped my fingers around the inside and tipped the machine over the coffee filter, but didn’t hear anything. Did the grounds drop into the filter?*
I looked inside the grinder and the grounds were gone, so apparently they dropped into the filter but I didn’t hear anything.
God doesn’t usually shout that He exists. The Apostle Paul said everyone is without an excuse not to believe there’s a God, because everyone can see the evidence of a Grand Designer in nature (Romans 1:20).
“The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.…There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard.”—King David of ancient Israel, Psalm 19:1, 3
When I’ve recently read about how complex the human heart is or how many functions the liver performs, it shocks me that there’s still people in our modern world who deny God’s existence.
If you could make your pet understand one thing, what would it be?
Buddy was abused for three years before I adopted him. Because of his past, he won’t snuggle: won’t sit on the couch with me, won’t sleep on my bed next to me, won’t sit on my lap, won’t allow me to hold him for more than half a minute.
But I suppose, if he did snuggle, it would be too hard to part from him one day after thirteen years together.
Buddy has this cute habit of placing a front paw on one of my feet when he wants my attention. He’s making sure that I’m aware he’s there or wants to ensure that he’s not forgotten.
I had a disturbing conversation of a sort with a blogger who claims that being in union with Christ means that we are God. And had a twisted interpretation of what Christ meant below:
“Now He was questioned by the Pharisees as to when the Kingdom of God was coming, and He answered them and said, ‘The Kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed…For, behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst.’”—Luke 17:20-21
The Pharisees believed that the Messiah would usher in a physical kingdom by vanquishing all of Israel’s enemies and freeing them from bondage to the Roman Empire.
But Jesus was declaring that the kingdom of God was a person Who was standing in front of them, right in their midst.
Just like Buddy places a paw on my foot so that I won’t miss seeing him, Jesus wanted the religious leaders to recognize Who was speaking to them: their long awaited Messiah.
And though the Pharisees knew the Old Testament Scriptures and prophecies thoroughly, they weren’t able to get beyond their own interpretation to understand the truth.
Many people nowadays mix New Age mysticism with Christianity. This error is illustrated by a comment made in the movie, “Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade,” by Indy’s sidekick, Marcus Brody:
“The search for the Grail is the search for the divine in all of us.”
This comment both captured my attention and greatly bothered me, because too many people believe it, even those claiming to be Christians with a knowledge of the Bible’s teachings.
1. We are born spiritually dead, separated from our Creator by our sin until we repent and give our lives to Jesus. The “divine” or “divinity” does not exist within every person.
“But God, Who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)…”—Apostle Paul, Ephesians 2:4-5
2. When we become born again, we become spiritually alive, no longer in bondage to Satan, the world, and the flesh, but are now members of God’s kingdom:
“For He rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of His beloved Son,…”—Apostle Paul, Colossians 1:13
Until Christ’s Second Coming, the manifestation of God’s kingdom is a spiritual one.
3. This kingdom is God’s kingdom, not our kingdom. Jesus paid the price in His blood to take authority back over His kingdom. He rejected the devil’s temptation to skip the Cross and redeem it back, claiming the Father’s promise in Psalm 2:7-8:
“‘The Lord has said to Me, “You are My Son, today I have begotten You. Ask of Me, and I will give You the nations for Your inheritance and the ends of the earth for Your possession.”’”
We dwell in God’s kingdom through faith in Christ, but we’re under His authority. We do not kick God off His throne.
4. Lastly, it is a mystery how we can be united with Christ and part of His body, but He is still the head of the body. We are not coequal with God. We do not become a god nor are we God.
We are created “in the image of God (Genesis 1:27),” but are not gods. We cannot “manifest” reality not speak it into being, like God can. He is the Creator, not us.
Jesus, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, created the heavens and the earth, but are distinct from creation. He spoke the universe into being; it didn’t arise out of His own essence.
To declare that a person is divine and a god is to fall for Satan’s lie to Adam and Eve that they could be like God (Genesis 3:5).
When you repent of your sins and declare Jesus to be your Lord and Savior, you’re reversing the effect of the Fall in your life by rejecting the devil’s deception: declaring that the Creator is your moral authority and Lord of your life—your boss—and that Jesus died for your sins and is your Savior, because you’re helpless to atone for your own sin.
“He is also the head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He will come to have first place in everything.”—Colossians 1:18
This will always be true:
“The Lord has established His throne in heaven and His kingdom rules over all.”—Psalm 103:19
You are not God and never will be.
Becoming born again doesn’t mean you’ve become a god.
Please do not believe Satan’s lie.
The devil never changes his tactics because they always work on those unwilling to submit to the truth.
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
Maybe you’re unhappy because you’re trying to be your own god instead of submitting your life to the Lord and trusting in His guidance.
Jesus is omniscient and omnipresent. He sees the future. What seems the right course of action to a person may actually be leading toward disaster. Only God knows where a chosen path will lead.
Jesus died to pay for your sins. He lived a perfect life as a human being so that He could pay for the sins of others, having no sin of His own to be punished for. After His crucifixion, He rose from the dead to prove that He is also God, that He has the power over death.
You don’t have to continue living a life of regret and defeat. But becoming a Christian doesn’t guarantee health and wealth, as false preachers claim, but does set you onto a new path leading away from self-destructive behavior.
A new Christian is like a baby: You’ll crawl, then totter on wobbly legs till you learn to walk steady. I’m encouraging you to give your life to Jesus, because it’s wonderful to be in relationship with God. But I also want you not to get discouraged after doing so. It takes time to learn about God’s love for you and how He works.
Are you ready to make Jesus your Savior from sin and your Lord, the God Who rules your life? If so, please repeat the below prayer, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin and ask for Your forgiveness. I call on Jesus to be both my Savior and Lord, my moral authority. I give my life to You. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. And teach me how much You love me. I want to learn to trust You. Thank You for hearing my prayer. In the mighty name of Jesus Christ, the Lord, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. You should begin to experience new attitudes and a desire to obey Jesus as you’ve been given a new heart by the power of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. You’re starting to walk a new path in life, so please be patient with yourself as you learn and grow in the knowledge of the Lord.
Please start reading the Bible daily. And join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I recommend these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be misled by legalism or false teaching until you know what the Bible teaches fairly well.
God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.
On Thanksgiving Day 2022 a black labradoodle escaped out of a neighbor’s home at my parents’ development and insisted on attacking and killing Buddy. Fortunately, neighbors ran out to assist. After our escape, I rushed Buddy over to the veterinarian across the street in Mesa the next day to patch his wounds.
The veterinarian’s staff said they wouldn’t help Buddy without an appointment and none were available that day, so I drove back to his usual doctor in Scottsdale who happily made accommodations to treat him without much notice.
So when, a few months later, Buddy injured his shoulder by ramming into a table doing zoomies at my parents’ home, I took him to the ER vet further away instead of the much closer office across the street.
The ER vet not only recommended arthritis chews, besides pain meds, but also a medication called Azodyl for Bud’s ailing kidneys.
Buddy had his annual physical last week at his usual doctor in Scottsdale, which included a blood test.
The test showed that Buddy’s kidneys stabilized and stopped deteriorating.
I don’t know why Bud’s usual vet didn’t recommend the Azodyl, because he was the one who told me about the prior concerning kidney test results during his 2023 annual physical. But those pills will likely extend his life for several more years.
The timeline:
Dog attack.
Vet across the street refused to treat Buddy.
Buddy taken to the ER vet when he injured his shoulder because the closest Mesa vet “sucks rocks.”
ER vet recommends kidney pills.
Annual visit with regular doctor shows pills worked.
Ironically, the dog attack led to Buddy getting put onto lifesaving medicine that is extending his life.
Truly, “all things work together for good to those who love God.”—Apostle Paul, Romans 8:28
Thank you, Lord, for taking care of my furever pal.
I was excited about Buddy’s new feathered tiara. I pictured him smiling joyfully toward the New Year with hope.
Nope. Instead, he looked just as miserable as portrayed in last year’s photo with his Happy New Year’s hat.
Often I have great hopes that don’t become reality. Or others that I’m still hoping will come true, but I’m waiting on God’s timing and blessing. As the Apostle Peter stated, our incredible Creator lives outside of time:
“With the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”—2 Peter 3:8
What seems like a long wait to me may not even be a blink of the eye to Jesus.
I’ve been rereading a marvelous book by Pastor John Ortberg: “If You Want To Walk On Water You’ve Got To Get Out Of The Boat.” In Chapter Nine, “Learning To Wait,” he states that waiting on God to answer our prayers demonstrates both our Christian maturity and humility, because trusting in God’s timing is “the opposite of arrogance and boasting, a humble recognition of my limits (page 183).”—ie. I am not God: omnipotent and omniscient.
And, also, “When we wait for something, we recognize that we are not in control… Lower-status people always wait on higher status people (page 183).”
After pondering this material, I immediately thought about the many videos popping up on my YouTube recommended list advising how to manifest reality: your dreams, material goals, etc. Some are posted by supposed Christians and many by unbelievers.
These people are promoting an unbiblical worldview of achieving your goals.
1. Only God “calls things into being things that do not exist (Romans 4:17).” God spoke creation into existence (Psalm 33:9).
To believe that you can manifest reality into existence is similar to the practice of witchcraft, believing that you can cast spells or curses through the power of words or by manipulating the forces of nature or the universe.
2. This practice also demonstrates a lack of humility, trust, and submission to the Lord.
GOD WILL NOT BE RULED OR MANIPULATED BY ANYONE.
If we “pray according to His will,…we know that we have what we asked of Him (1 John 5:14-15).”
If we trust that God “causes all things to work together for our good (Romans 8:28),” then we can bring our requests before God and know that He’ll answer for our benefit; sometimes that answer is to wait till He works things out or “No” because it’s not good for us or He has a better plan in mind.
Satan fell because he wanted to be in control and worshipped. He wants to be his own god and not submit to the will of his Creator.
3. Our prayers are requests, NOT demands.
God is the Lord, not us:
“Know that the Lord Himself is God; it is He Who made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture (Psalm 100:3).”
In Matthew 25:14-30, Jesus told a parable about three servants who were “entrusted” with talents “according to their ability,” then he left town. The servant he rebuked after his return was the servant who didn’t trust in his master’s good character but feared him, arrogantly stating that he failed to multiply the money he was given because he viewed his master as “a hard man,” who benefited from the work of others.
When we fail to trust God’s goodness, we’re basically slandering Jesus, thinking that He gives us gifts out of improper motives.
Psalm 90 is a marvelous expression of trust in God’s good character, a humble acknowledgement of how transient human life is and that we’re dependent upon Him for reversing unfavorable circumstances:
“Satisfy us in the morning with Your graciousness, that we may sing with joy and rejoice all our days. Make us glad according to the days You have afflicted us, and the years we have seen evil…May the kindness of the Lord our God be upon us; and confirm for us the work of our hands; yes, confirm the work of our hands (Psalm 90:14-15,17).”
Please, don’t follow the teachings of those who preach and teach that you can manifest your dreams into reality. Instead, humbly wait upon and trust in the Lord’s good character to answer your prayers.
You want the Lord Jesus to bless and guide your life.
Not the enemy of your soul. For Satan told Jesus that he could give the kingdoms of this world to those who worship him (Matthew 4:8-9).
Trust that Jesus loves you.
“He has shown you, mortal one, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”—Micah 6:8
God bless.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
Maybe you’re unhappy because you’re trying to be your own god instead of submitting your life to the Lord and trusting in His guidance.
Jesus is omniscient and omnipresent. He sees the future. What seems the right course of action to a person may actually be leading toward disaster. Only God knows where a chosen path will lead.
Jesus died to pay for your sins. He lived a perfect life as a human being so that He could pay for the sins of others, having no sin of His own to be punished for. After His crucifixion, He rose from the dead to prove that He is also God, that He has the power over death.
You don’t have to continue living a life of regret and defeat. But becoming a Christian doesn’t guarantee health and wealth, as false preachers claim, but does set you onto a new path leading away from self-destructive behavior.
A new Christian is like a baby: You’ll crawl, then totter on wobbly legs till you learn to walk steady. I’m encouraging you to give your life to Jesus, because it’s wonderful to be in relationship with God. But I also want you not to get discouraged after doing so. It takes time to learn about God’s love for you and how He works.
Are you ready to make Jesus your Savior from sin and your Lord, the God Who rules your life? If so, please repeat the below prayer, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin and ask for Your forgiveness. I call on Jesus to be both my Savior and Lord, my moral authority. I give my life to You. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. And teach me how much You love me. I want to learn to trust You. Thank You for hearing my prayer. In the mighty name of Jesus Christ, the Lord, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. You should begin to experience new attitudes and a desire to obey Jesus as you’ve been given a new heart by the power of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. You’re starting to walk a new path in life, so please be patient with yourself as you learn and grow in the knowledge of the Lord.
Please start reading the Bible daily. And join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I recommend these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be misled by legalism or false teaching until you know what the Bible teaches fairly well.
God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.
Having been fur pals with Buddy for almost 13.5 years, I’ve gotten pretty good at interpreting his whines, looks, and woofs.
But the most insistent are his signs of impatience.
When I’m not walking fast enough, he’ll bump my legs from behind to prod me to walk faster. Or if he wants a walkie RIGHT NOW! he’ll keep staring at me or will begin to stand in front of me and block my path until I put my shoes on.
It’s not uncommon for people to ask me, “What sign were you born under?”
I know they expect me to respond with a horoscope symbol, but I answer, “The Cross.”
I was born again by the power of Christ’s shed blood on the Cross and resurrected into eternal life by His bodily resurrection from the dead.
The Cross is the sign that determines the direction, path, and destination of my life.
Not some man-made collection of star patterns.
If you’re a Christian and answer honestly, that the sign you were born under is the Cross, you don’t know what doors of witness might open up to you.
But then again, maybe not.
But at least you didn’t deny your Savior.
“And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory.”—Jesus, Matthew 24:30
Buddy wasn’t too thrilled to get a bath this afternoon, but he was starting to get stinky. No one wants to be around a stinker.
Sometimes I have a stinky attitude; the only thing that can wash it away is to remind myself about God’s love and power toward me.
“But You, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. I cried aloud to the Lord, and He answered me from His holy hill.”—King David, Psalm 3:3-4
Reminding myself to call out to my Lord when I feel distressed or sad gives the Holy Spirit the opportunity to work on my attitude.
And He will lift my attitude skyward, to rise above my circumstances, to remember that He is with (me) always, even to the end of the age,*” to grant me the courage to face the day.
Nobody enjoys the company of someone with a stinky attitude. Instead of wallowing in self pity, it’s best to call out to Jesus, just like the ancient King David did.
Buddy always looks like he’s being tortured when I dress him in his Christmas outfit. But that’s OK, as long as he cooperates long enough to take a few photos. He remained amazingly still this year–till he ran out of patience.
The Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians, as recorded in 1 Corinthians 13:13:
“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
Last Wednesday I discussed the topic of hope. Today I’d like to discuss faith.
What is faith, really?
Faith cannot be mere knowledge of who God is or a fact. Because the Apostle Paul also tells us:
“You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that–and shudder.”–James 2:19, James the brother of Jesus, (NIV)
The demons also acknowledged that Jesus Christ is God and had the authority to cast them into Hell and torment them (Matthew 8:28-29). So faith must be more than just knowledge that there is a Creator God and that Jesus is His Son, the incarnate God (Matthew 1:23).
2. Faith must be more than just obedience to rules of good behavior.
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,… For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not as a result of works, so that no one can boast.”–Apostle Paul, Ephesians 2:4-5, 8
Good behavior doesn’t save us, the Apostle Paul states, but faith.
This mysterious faith.
Jesus made it clear to the religious leaders of that day, the Pharisees, that although they obeyed the Laws of Moses, they didn’t make the mark to get into heaven:
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead man’s bones and all uncleanness. So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.”–Jesus, Matthew 23:27-28
Jesus also emphasized this point that acting good and looking good to others didn’t mean that your heart was right with God. You can do all sorts of good deeds, but still not be right in God’s sight.
The Sixth (or Seventh)* Commandment given to the Jewish people through the prophet Moses is:
“Thou shalt not commit adultery.”–Exodus 20:14
Yet, Jesus said that committing adultery was not just an outward action, as the Pharisees believed, but was also an attitude of the heart and mind:
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery’; but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”–Matthew 5:27-28
3. So is faith an attitude? Because apparently actions don’t save or make you right with God?
Yet the Apostle Paul says that faith is what saves, and is a gift from God.
The Book of James both clarifies, and sometimes confuses, this point:
James echoes both Jesus and the Apostle Paul that actions alone do not save.
Jesus taught, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”–Matthew 5:48
Which must’ve made His hearers despair as no one can be perfect.
And James echoes this in James 2:10:
“For whoever keeps the whole law yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all.”
The Apostle Pau also strongly declared to the Galatian Church, who were trying to keep their salvation through good works:
“The Law is not of faith.”–Galatians 3:12
4. So what is saving faith?
I think the argument can be summarized as:
Receiving Jesus as both Lord and Savior.
Satan demonstrated that he knows the Bible (Luke 4:9-11) when He tried to trick Jesus into proving He was Lord by twisting the Scriptures. Demons also attend religious services, as Jesus cast out a demon:
“Just then there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, ‘What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who You are–the Holy One of God!”–Mark 1:23-24
So knowing what the Bible teaches or attending church isn’t enough to prove that you’re a Christian who has saving faith. The devil and his demons know that Jesus is Lord; apparently that’s not enough for saving faith.
Acknowledging Jesus as Lord, God in the flesh, is one half.
The other is submitting to His authority as Savior.
The devil and his demons don’t submit to God’s authority. They clearly cannot repent. Satan wants to be worshipped as God and the demons follow Satan as their leader and obey him.
When a person repents of their sin, they are admitting that they are unable to live life by their own rules and must submit to the authority of God to define right and wrong. There are a lot of people in our modern Western Culture who claim to be Christians, yet do not submit to God’s moral authority. These are not their exact words, usually, but they say that the Bible’s moral rules are old-fashioned and we need to change with the times. They follow what the culture says is right or wrong, or what the individual perceives to be truth or defines truth to be, not what the Word of God says is the truth and what is morally right or wrong.
Disciples of James confused the Galatian church. They believed that they were saved by faith, as the Apostle Paul taught, but had to keep their salvation through works. The Apostle Paul rebuked these disciples who confused this church and his teaching that we are saved and maintained by faith, not works (Galatians 3).
So the teaching of James can confuse.
Desiring to obey God demonstrates that you have a changed heart. You’ve put your trust in Jesus to save you and submit to His authority.
If you claim to be a Christian, but have zero desire to obey God, there’s something seriously wrong. You cannot be born again and still desire to sin and disobey Him. A sincere believer may stumble and fall and disobey, but he/she doesn’t want to sin. Sin no longer is their master (Romans 6:14). A true believer is a “new creation. The Old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”–Apostle Paul, 2 Corinthians 5:17
To summarize James: If you’ve truly put your trust in Jesus as your Lord, you will act differently. Your behavior will demonstrate what you truly believe. Because Abraham learned to trust God, he was willing to obey what God told him to do, even if it meant sacrificing his own son, because “Abraham believed God (James 2:23).” He was concerned about people forgetting who they were in Christ and not setting an example to the world by their behavior (James 1:22-24).
The centurion demonstrated that he had “great faith (Luke 7:9)” because he asked Jesus to heal his servant, but felt unworthy for Jesus to enter his home. He believed that Jesus could heal from afar and didn’t need to be physically present to perform the miracle. He knew Jesus was the Lord and had the authority to declare his servant healed. The centurion’s behavior backed up what he truly believed in his heart.
A modern example is an experience I often had with my beloved grandmother. She’d often say that “she trusted me,” yet would often doublecheck. Her actions demonstrated that she didn’t really trust me.
A saved person has a new heart, is one with Christ (John 17:22), and desires to obey God. They have cast off their filthy rags of works righteousness (Isaiah 64:6) and been clothed with the clean, white garments of the “righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 3:22).”
James was concerned that someone who claimed to be saved backed up their words with actions, as he clearly taught in the first chapter that it was impossible to be made right with God through the Law. So something else was needed.
So this is why I emphasize in my call to faith at the end of my weekly posts that a person asks Jesus to be both their Lord and Savior.
A person proves that they have a new heart–saving faith–by becoming a different person.
NOT a perfect person.
But they’ve entered the “paths of righteousness for His namesake (Psalm 23:3)” and have a heart to obey the Lord, rather than serve the world, the flesh, and our culture.
They have started their journey of sanctification.
I hope this helps clarify.
And then again–maybe not.
But that’s how I understand it. And why someone who claims to be a Christian may only be deluding themselves. I don’t anyone who reads my blogs to be one of the people that Christ casts away from His presence on Judgment Day because they thought they were right with God–but aren’t.
God bless you this Christmas Season (or whatever time of year you read this blog post).
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
*Different denominations parse the Commandments differently.
***
Most religions try to teach you how to be good.
But cannot give you the power to BE good.
Only a change of heart through the power of God’s Holy Spirit can change your behavior–and thus your life.
We’re all born spiritually dead, because our first ancestors rejected God’s authority in their lives. They believed Satan and his lies, rather than trusting that God is good and obeying Him because He had their best interests in mind.
And, therefore, every person is born without the Holy Spirit since Adam and Eve. (This Creation story is extremely important to understanding our need for God.)
Humans were created in God’s image; just as He is triune in nature–Father, Son, and Holy Spirt–we are supposed to be triune beings, also: body, soul, and spirit. But every person is born into this world without the Holy Spirit indwelling them. Everyone is born with just a body and soul, without union with God. That’s why you need to be born again.
“Truly, truly I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”–Jesus, John 3:3
Do you feel like something’s missing in your life? Like there is an empty space on your soul that can never go away, despite how hard you try to fill it with things or relationships you think should make you feel happy—but don’t.
Your soul was created to be united with God’s Spirit. If you feel empty, it’s because the Holy Spirit isn’t filling that space in your heart where He is supposed to dwell.
If you don’t have the Holy Spirit,you do not having saving faith.
If you haven’t yet, please consider asking Jesus to be both your Lord and Savior. He died for your sins, so that you don’t have to, and was resurrected bodily on the Third Day to prove that He is God and can give you supernatural, eternal life.
Please repeat the below prayer, out loud, if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin. Please forgive me. I call on Jesus to be both my Lord and my Savior. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. And please teach me how much You love me. In the mighty name of your Son Jesus Christ, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily. Just as your body needs daily nourishment to be healthy, so does your soul. The Bible is your soul food.
And attend a Bible-believing church or Bible study, and get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I recommend the following two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) or http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be deceived by bad teaching or legalism until you know the Bible fairly well.
God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.
We all say, “I hope this happens, and I hope that happens,” because it’s usually a circumstance beyond our control. We cannot say, “I will make this happen” in those circumstances.
Buddy is saying above, “I hope my human gets this suit off of me soonest as I’m being tortured.”
I’m saying and praying, “I hope God will give me at least two more years with Buddy,” as he’s sixteen and Silky terriers can live to at least twenty-one.
I also hope that Jesus will return and rapture Buddy and I, so that I don’t have to suffer the sorrow of being separated from him or experience the rise of the Antichrist.
But those are ardent hopes beyond my control. I can give Buddy special enzymes to assist his kidneys, but ultimately his lifespan is decided by Jesus, not me.
But there is one hope that born again Christians can count on: eternal life.
“For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.”—Romans 8:25-25
“He who believes in the Son has eternal life;”—Jesus, John 3:36
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
“Now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”—1 Corinthians 13:13
Ah, Christmastime. The time, once again, to torment our furpals with costumes as part of the holiday season traditions.
Just as Buddy isn’t too keen to put on his Christmas outfit, there is a group of Christians who seemingly refuse to enter into the joy of the season and put on their happy faces.
They self-righteously proclaim several reasons for not participating in the Christmas spirit:
Jesus wasn’t born on Christmas Day. He was likely born in Springtime as the shepherds were sleeping outside in the field.
Christmas is a pagan holiday, since it takes place on, and replaces, the pagan holiday of Saturnalia, traditionally celebrated around December 25th.
They claim that the Christmas tree is a pagan symbol, so we shouldn’t put up a tree in our homes.
And a couple other highlights worthy of Dickens’ Scrooge:
You shouldn’t be celebrating with your family on Christmas Day. You should be out serving and helping the poor.
You shouldn’t waste your money buying gifts for family and friends who already have too much. Give your money to charity, instead.
I remember something a Counseling Pastor’s wife once said: “Christians need to stop shoulding on other people.”
About a week ago I attended a Christmas Party with fellow authors. One dour-faced woman announced that she’d just received her license as a pastor (the denomination surprised me).
She scowled through the entire party, her small, bear-like eyes never sparkling with joy or gratitude. Not even a forklift could lift up the corners of her mouth to resemble anything like a smile.
I would never want to be her friend, let alone listen to her preach. As an unbeliever, I’d probably run the other direction if I saw her heading my way.
I remember walking to a church service one night with a group of students from the dormitory when attending college. I wasn’t a Christian then and appreciated that they wanted me to accompany them.
But, the pastor preached that you should never joke or be jovial, but always “sober-minded (1Peter 4:7, 5:8).” As an aspiring comic strip cartoonist, this lecture was a big turnoff to ever joining that denomination. After all, isn’t it the Scriptures that advise: “A joyful heart is good medicine. But a broken spirit dries up the bones (Proverbs 17:22).”
The Christian spoilsports always seem to rear up their legalistic heads during any holiday.
The Christmas tree actually has its origins during the Protestant Reformation. Supposedly Martin Luther began the tradition in Wittenberg, Germany, while walking beneath an awe inspiring, starry sky: “This wondrous sight inspired him to set up a candle-lit fir tree in his house that Christmas to remind his children of the starry heavens from whence their Saviour came.” The tradition supposedly was imported into Great Britain by Queen Charlotte, December 1800. (See article by Alison Barnes, 2006: https://www.historytoday.com/archive/history-matters/first-christmas-tree). Some scholars say that the traditional star atop the Christmas tree represents the Star of Bethlehem.
OK. Jesus likely wasn’t born on December 25th. But the early church planted the holiday tradition on this date to turn people’s attention away from worshipping a false god to worshipping the true God, Jesus Christ. Just as they built many churches upon the ruins of pagan temples.
Isn’t it wonderful to have festive Christmas lights and beautiful carols and family celebrations during the darkest time of the year?
Instead of being focused on the Winter Solstice, a traditional tine for pagan celebrations during the shortest day of the year, people are instead preoccupied with parties, gift giving, remembering the poor, baking delicious goodies, decorating their homes, and celebrating loving relationships.
If someone wants to be a Christmas Scrooge and scowl their way through the “happiest time of the year (see below video)” that’s OK. God’s unconditional love shines also upon his cranky children; they’re recipients of God’s grace too and deserve our love and compassion.
But don’t feel obligated, please, to heed their joy-killing admonitions.
Even the angels took a break to joyfully announce the birth of the Savior to lowly shepherds one dark night:
“Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.
“And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.
“Then the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.
“‘For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, Who is Christ the Lord.
“‘And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.’
“And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
“‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.’”—Luke 2
Enjoy the holiday season.
Merry Christmas from Dawn and Buddy
Don’t worry; be happy!
***
Knowing Jesus Christ is good news. It’s wonderful to discover that God is real and loves you immensely.
But too many Christians only preach half the gospel, so it sounds like bad news, instead of the Great Good News that it really is.
Through Moses, God brought the Law, His rules of right and wrong, to show us how sinful we are and in need of abandoning our right to rule our lives and submit to His rule and authority.
But too many legalists stop there.
God makes you feel bad to announce the way to eternal happiness.
Jesus died for our sins on the Cross so that we don’t have to suffer the punishment for rebelling against a holy God (Colossians 2:13-14).
But followers of Jesus are saved, given eternal life, through His resurrection (1 Peter 1:3).
Too many focus on the Cross and forget why He was resurrected. He rose bodily, not spiritually, and walked amongst His followers for 40 days till he rose heavenward with his apostles looking on.
We are all born spiritually dead. No one is holy enough to deserve to be saved, to become born again. Everyone must repent.
But we must repent so that we can be given spiritual life by the Holy Spirit.
Other religions or leaders can tell you how to be good. But only Jesus can give you spiritual life. That’s why He claimed to be:
“The way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.”—John 14:6
EVERYONE needs to repent to receive eternal life with God in Heaven. There’s no sliding scale where someone does enough good deeds to get in.
Jesus said that the standard to enter heaven through good works is “perfection (Matthew 5:8).”
No one is perfect, even if they think they are.
EVERYONE is on the same level, and fall short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23). It’s the most fair religion there is.
NO ONE can earn their way into bliss. EVERYONE must humble themselves before the Almighty Lord.
Are you ready to become a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17) in Christ Jesus? If so, please repeat the following, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin and ask for Your forgiveness. I realize that I can never be good enough or do enough good deeds to earn your love and forgiveness. I call on Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. And teach me how much You love me. Thank You for hearing my prayers. In the mighty name of Jesus Christ, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily. I suggest starting with the Book of Luke this Christmas Season as it tells the most complete story of the first Christmas. The Bible is your soul food. Just as you need to eat daily for your body to be properly nourished, so does your soul.
Also, please join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message) and http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be misled by false teaching or legalism till you know the Bible fairly well.
God bless you as you celebrate your first Christmas, united with God through Christ Jesus.
Every time I look at Buddy, I smile because I love him so much.
Now many preachers claim that joy is independent of circumstances, but happiness is based upon circumstance. In other words, you can be joyful even when life sucks.
But I think joy is more than an attitude, but also a wonderful feeling. When I focus on the Lord, how magnificent, creative, intelligent, patient, and kind He is, it’s more than an intellectual exercise: I feel gratitude and thankfulness and love.
So, if you’re feeling down or under spiritual attack, please start praising God and singing His praises.
“Nehemiah said, ‘Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.’”—Nehemiah 8:10
It’s Christmas time, when God sent His greatest gift, the incarnation of His Son, Jesus Christ, “God With Us (Matthew 2:23).”
Go and enjoy great food, gift giving, and loving relationships this Christmas Season.
God actually encourages celebrating His goodness.
As artist Sandra Boynton made famous: Don’t let the turkeys get you down.
The thought of losing Buddy one day makes me want to cry. But he won’t ever truly be lost, just separated from me until I join him in heaven one day. He’s been my fur pal for over thirteen years now.
Yet, I’m still hoping to be raptured together. Although he’s 16 years old, he’s still pretty spry,so I am hoping for a few more earthly years with him.
The following is a bit harsh, but want to challenge you to consider something, if you haven’t already.
Don’t deceive yourself. If you don’t have the courage to speak up now for what is right and to defend your liberty, then you definitely will NOT do so when the AntiChrist arises. You will take the Mark of the Beast.
This sounds awful, but it’s the truth: If you’re a coward now when the stakes are lower, you’ll be a coward then.
Yes, if you stand for Jesus and godly values, it’s possible that evil people will attack you. They’ll slander you, maybe try to financially bankrupt you or take away your liberty.
Or even take your life.
For me, the hardest thing would be to witness my loved ones suffering, particularly if the abuse is aimed at them because of me.
But there is something the devil and his servants can never take from you: your soul.
“For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”—Apostle Paul, Romans 8:48-39
Now I’m not sure if I will have the courage then that I have now. Indeed, the stakes are lower now.
So I occasionally pray that the Lord will give me the strength to stand strong On That Day, if the “abomination of desolation (Mark 13:14)” arises and desecrates the temple of Jerusalem (Daniel 11:31) during my lifetime.
Because when it comes to Jesus and spiritual matters, it’s only by the power of the Holy Spirit that I can walk in triumph.
For it is only through Christ “I can do all things through Him Who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13).”
For “thanks be to God Who always leads us in triumph in Christ (2 Corinthians 2:14).”
If you’re feeling afraid, please remember Christ will strengthen you, if you will ask Him.
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy.
***
There’s something way more scarier and awful than being a coward: It’s dwelling in the kingdom of Satan, rather than walking in the kingdom of light in Jesus Christ.
Because being called bad names may hurt our egos, but the devil is damaging souls under his power.
You see, there IS NO neutral territory: You’re either living in the kingdom of Satan or in the kingdom of Christ.
Do you feel like something’s missing in your life? Like there is an empty space on your soul that can never go away, despite how hard you try to fill it with things or relationships you think should make you feel happy—but don’t.
Your soul was created to be united with God’s Spirit. If you feel empty, it’s because the Holy Spirit isn’t filling that space in your heart where He is supposed to dwell.
If you haven’t yet, please consider asking Jesus to be your Lord and Savior. He died for your sins, so that you don’t have to, and was resurrected bodily on the Third Day to prove that He is God and can give you supernatural, eternal life.
Please repeat the below prayer, out loud, if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin. Please forgive me. I call on Jesus to be both my Lord and my Savior. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. And please teach me how much You love me. In the mighty name of your Son Jesus Christ, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily. Just as your body needs daily nourishment to be healthy, so does your soul. The Bible is your soul food.
And attend a Bible-believing church or Bible study, and get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I recommend the following two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) or http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be deceived by bad teaching or legalism until you know the Bible fairly well.
God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.
What did Martin Luther write on this topic, the guy who started the Protestant Reformation in 1517?
“No one should use Christianity as an excuse for not wanting to hold a job or hold public office, as certain religious people do. They’re only trying to avoid serving others. But by avoiding this, they’re ignoring God’s command to love Him and to love other people…
“We should carefully consider God’s laws and Abraham’s example. Abraham didn’t concern himself only with religious matters. He was a prophet of God, but he also dealt with matters relating to the government and his own household. So we need rulers in the world, as well as in the church.”
The Protestant Revolution lifted Europe out of the superstition of the Medieval World, ushering in the Age of Science and Reason.
As Jesus commanded, Do not hide your light in a basket (Matthew 5:15).
Go forth and bring the light of Jesus into all corners of our dark culture.
If you’ve read my blog for any length of time, you know that I adore Buddy—even though he sometimes acts like a brat. At times he’s being willfully disobedient—like when I’m calling him to come and he keeps on walking away and sniffing—but some of the time he’s not aware that his behavior is inappropriate. He’s dependent upon me training him to know the distinction between proper and improper behavior.
Adam and Eve sinned against God because THEY wanted to determine right and wrong for themselves, not have God define it for them. They rebelled against God’s authority over their behavior and chose to be their own moral compass.
Satan, speaking through a serpent, persuaded Eve that God had ulterior motives for His rules and she should desire to make her own decisions:
“And the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will surely not die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’”—Genesis 3:4-5
Eve wanted to decide what was good or evil, moral or immoral, for herself. And Adam was standing nearby listening in, not intervening to disrupt the temptation (vs 6).
Unfortunately, many modern Christians are rebelling the same way our first ancestors did.
1. Like Buddy, they don’t realize sometimes that their behavior is wrong because they are not reading the Bible regularly to know what the Triune God teaches. The Bereans verified what the Apostle Paul taught by “examining the Scriptures daily, to see whether these things were so (Acts 17:11).” They wanted to be certain that he was teaching the truth.
The Bereans didn’t consult with experts or their neighbors or friends or religious leaders: They consulted God’s Word.
2. But, also like Buddy won’t heed my voice, some Christians refuse to heed and obey the Lord’s voice.
When a moral issue comes up, they form their opinions based upon the culture, media figures, newscasters, performers, and other people—instead of what God’s word says about the topic.
There are some gray areas in Scripture that are open to debate and sometimes fuel the flames of legalism, but some modern cultural dilemmas are clearly condemned in Scripture without any obscurity.
Yet Christians decide to follow the opinions of people whose minds are blinded by Satan and who do not acknowledge Jesus as their Lord and moral authority (2 Corinthians 4:4). They are willfully committing the same sin as Adam and Eve. Instead of being lights in the darkness of this world, they hide their light so as not to stand out.
And Jesus clearly taught that we are NOT to do this, but to be bold in following Him as our Lord and Savior:
“Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the household.”—Matthew 5:15
3. Then many Christians are not wise like the Bereans to verify that what their pastors teach coincide with the Bible. Too many church leaders are more interested in numbers. Fearing to offend, they encourage conformity with a culture of people walking blindly into the pit of Hell. Rather than teaching Christians to walk by the light of the Word of God, they encourage them to rebel against it.
The Biblical Scriptures are described as the means to walk the path of life safely:
“Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”—Psalm 119:105
Regarding following those with minds devoid of God’s guidance through the Holy Spirit, Jesus commands:
“Leave them alone; they are blind guides of blind people. And if a person who is blind guides another person who is blind, both WILL fall into a pit.”—Matthew 15:14, (emphasis mine)
Every day each one of us has a choice: Make moral decisions based upon what the Word of God teaches.
Or what prominent people in our world and culture teaches.
We all have a choice: Be light that helps dispel moral darkness.
Or walk in line with our culture, leading the people following you into a pit of rebellion.
It’s your choice.
I’ve made wrong choices in the past and the consequences suck.
Please make the right choices and help spread the light.
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
God never forces anyone to follow Him. In fact, when many of His disciples grumbled because they didn’t understand what He was teaching and decided to abandon Him, Jesus let them go. He didn’t pursue them and try to persuade them to return (John 6:60-66).
It’s always best to choose Jesus as your Lord before you screw up your life. But if you have, He’ll still welcome you into His Kingdom with open arms if you’re willing to let Him be your God and moral authority.
It’s my opinion that the sooner you give your life to Jesus, acknowledging that He died for your sins and rose bodily from the grave, proving that He is God Who came in the flesh, the fewer life messes you’ll have to deal with.
You can take a chance and come later, but the future is uncertain. Tomorrow is never guaranteed.
I write these blog posts because the best thing that ever happened to me was giving my life to Jesus. I want everyone to have that hope in their lives and love that I’ve found.
If you’re ready to leave the path of darkness to follow the light of Jesus, please pray the following, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin and ask for Your forgiveness. I’m tired of wandering in the darkness and seek Your light of Truth. I call on Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. I believe that He is Your Son Who died for my sin and rose from the dead to prove that He came in the flesh. I give my life to You. Please grant me Your Holy Spirit to give me new life. And teach me how much You love me. In the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please be like the Bereans and start reading the Bible daily. Just like your body needs nourishment every day to be healthy, so does your soul. The Bible is your soul food. I suggest starting with the book of Matthew and reading forward, as it’s easy to understand. And to learn for yourself what Jesus actually taught. Please ask the Holy Spirit to guide you as you read.
Also, please join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message).
God bless you as you begin walking on the path lit by the love of Jesus and the truth.
I’ve never tested this out, but I’d guess that if I called out “Buddy!” to a crowd of dogs, only my Buddy would respond, even though the name is common. (I didn’t get to name him as he was adopted as a three-year-old.) The other Buddys would be listening for the unique voice of their own master.
I was hoping that my dad’s neighbor would lead him to Christ one day, as they get along so well that you’d swear it was the same guy talking but duplicated. They have a great, budding friendship.
But when speaking to this neighbor a week ago, I was distressed that he claimed to be a Christian, yet likely is not.
Jesus spoke about people who believed they would enter heaven but would be surprised to be denied entrance, as His disciple Matthew recorded in Matthew 7:21:
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,” shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father in heaven.’”
Sadly, there are going to be many people who will have an unpleasant surprise on Judgment Day.
Now, it’s between a person and Jesus to know what’s in their heart.
And what is the Father’s will in order to be saved? Jesus explained this, also, as recorded by the Apostle John in John 6:28-29:
“Therefore, they said to Him, ‘What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?’ Jesus answered and said to them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.’”
The people denied entrance into heaven, as described by Jesus in Matthew, protested that they had done good deeds and performed many wonderful works in His name (Matthew 7:22). They deserved to enter heaven!
How did Jesus respond to their protestations and justifications of good works?
“I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.”—Matthew 7:23
God is so holy, there is not one person who can meet His standard to enter His presence in Heaven, which is perfection (Matthew 5:48).
God doesn’t grade on a curve. The cutoff point is perfection to enter heaven or not perfect to go to Hell.
Pretty harsh, right?
But think how unfair it’d be if He did grade on a curve? For instance, say a person lies 99 times and is admitted into Heaven, but another lies 100 times but is sent to everlasting Hell. Is that fair? Out by one lie?
My dad’s friend alarmed me because he believes there are other ways to heaven than through Jesus; you just have to be a good person.
But that’s not what Jesus taught.
“I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me.”—John 14:6
If you could earn your way into Heaven by being good, then how good do you need to be? How do you know where the cutoff point is? How can you ever have the peace Jesus promises to give His followers (John 14:27) that eliminates fear?
You couldn’t.
And if you could earn your way into Heaven, then why would Jesus need to die for our sins? He could’ve avoided the excruciatingly painful death on the Cross and just let us try to be good, with His guiding principles.
Jesus declared Himself to be “the life,” because it’s only through Jesus that your dead, sinful spirit can be resurrected to supernatural life through the power of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit alone is your ticket into Heaven.
And He gives His supernatural resurrection life to those who ask.
Because it’s impossible to be good enough to meet the Father’s standard of perfection.
“For all of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment;”—the prophet Isaiah, Isaiah 64:6
One ticket to enter Heaven.
And freely available to everyone who is humble enough to ask, whether a toddler or a man dying and gasping out his last breaths.
As the thief on his own cross, crucified next to Jesus, who acknowledged his sin and declared his faith in Jesus as he was dying. And Jesus promised he would be in Paradise that day with Him (Luke 23:43).
If you’re running on the hamster wheel of good works, trying to earn God’s love: relax. You already have it if you’ve confessed your sins and acknowledged Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Rest and rejoice in His love as one of His children.
If you think you can earn your way into heaven—you’re deceived. You can never be good enough. Which is good news, because you don’t have to clean up your act first to get saved. Just pray the prayer below the ***.
Don’t cross that great divide thinking you’re good enough. Not even Job met the standard, and God declared him to be the most righteous man on the earth (Job 1:8). When Job tried to justify himself before God, claiming that he didn’t deserve such punishment, the Almighty rebuked him.
In summary: There is only one ticket to heaven.
Not good deeds.
But the Holy Spirit, given freely to those who ask.
“If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how more will your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”—Jesus, Luke 11:13
God bless.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
To receive resurrection life you must:
Admit you are a sinner.
God is the boss, not you.
Jesus is your Lord, God in the flesh, who died for your sins and was resurrected bodily from the grave on the third day to give you life.
If you’re ready to start a new path in life, please pray the following, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, Please forgive my sin. Thank you for sending Jesus to take the punishment that my sin deserves. I call on Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Please fill me with the Holy Spirit. I give my life to you. Show me how much You love me. Thank you for hearing my prayer. In the name of Jesus, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily; it’s your soul food. Just as your body needs daily nourishment to be healthy, so does your soul.
Also, please join a Bible-believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I recommend these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to get misled by bad teaching or legalism if you don’t know what the Bible teaches fairly well.
Recently Buddy has begged to go outside, but doesn’t want me to put on his harness firstly. He wants to run free and not be leashed up.
Many people believe they are free to make their own choices—but they’re not. It’s a lie of the devil that there’s neutral moral ground—there isn’t. Every human being is under the authority and influence of Jesus Christ—or the god of this world*.
Adam and Eve were born triune beings made in God’s image. But they were given a choice whether to obey God or not, and they chose poorly. God warned that:
“The Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.’”—Genesis 2:16-17
The ancestors of the human race didn’t die physically, but they died spiritually. The Holy Spirit, His authority in their lives rejected, fled the human race.
What occurred is that Adam and Eve chose Satan to be the spiritual and moral authority of the human race.
It’s important to remember this so that we have mercy on unbelievers. Every person is born in bondage to Satan.
“The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.”—2 Timothy 2:24-26
Nonbelievers are not only spiritually dead and influenced by Satan, but the Apostle Paul also reminded the Corinthian Church in 2 Corinthians 4:3-4:
“And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world* has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, Who is the image of God.”
I can verify the Apostle Paul’s comments about being spiritually blind. I had read the Bible many times but somehow was not convinced that Jesus was God in the flesh (Matthew 1:23). It was if there was a fuzzy mental block keeping me from understanding who Christ was. But once I became born again, I see Christ’s and His apostles’ claims that He is God all over the New Testament. Yet, somehow, I couldn’t “see” it before.
Jesus declared that He came to “release the captives, (give) recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed,”—Luke 4:18
When we become Holy Spirit indwelt Christians, we become bond slaves of God. In other words, we still have the capability of sinning, but it’s no longer fun. It feels like we’re wearing a ragged, itchy and dirty garment that no longer fits us anymore. Sin stinks and we feel badly afterwards. At some point we finally give in to the Holy Spirit’s conviction and repent.
“But thanks be to God that though you WERE slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart…and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness…now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God…”—Romans 6:17-18, 22
To summarize: Before people give their lives to Christ, they are spiritually dead, captives to sin and the devil’s influence. Even as we shake our heads in sadness at their self destructive behavior, we need to remember that we are all born dead till given new life through the mercy of God. It’s a gift no one has earned or deserves.
As I too, sometimes need to remind myself how I was once captive till Christ gave me new life. And to try my best not to react with anger at their foolishness and wickedness and, instead, offer to help lead them into the light of God’s love through Christ Jesus.
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
Many people think they’ve sinned too much to ever earn God’s mercy. Well, here’s why the Gospel is called good news:
“There is no one righteous, not even one…For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”—Apostle Paul, Romans 3:10,23
No one is good enough in God’s eyes to earn or deserve His mercy. He doesn’t grade on a sliding scale. In fact, would that be fair? Where would the cut-off point be? Someone who told one more lie than somebody else goes into hellfire but the person who told one less lie goes into eternal bliss?
So God makes the entrance to Heaven a free gift of love, bought with the blood of Christ. Jesus died on the Cross “once for all (Hebrews 10:10)” people for all their sins committed and then rose from the grave on the third day to prove He is God and gives resurrected life.
It’s a gift that cannot be earned (Ephesians 2:5). Every single person needs to accept that gift, however.
When you ask Jesus to be your Lord, you’re doing the opposite of what Adam and Eve did: You’re rejecting the authority of Satan over your life and accepting the moral authority of God in your life. It’s up to you to decide which Spirit you want to follow in your life—and spend eternity with.
“If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;”—Romans 10:9
If you’re ready to enter God’s kingdom of truth and love, please repeat the following prayer, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin and ask Your forgiveness. I invite Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. I believe He is God Who loves me so much that He died to take the punishment for my sin so that I don’t have to. I believe that He rose bodily from the dead. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Please teach me how much You love me. In the name of Your Son Jesus, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily as it’s your soul food. Just as your body needs daily nourishment, so does your soul. I suggest starting with the Book of Matthew as it’s easy to understand.
And please join a Bible believing church or Bible study. It’s difficult to stand alone in an ungodly culture. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I recommend these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be misled by false or legalistic teaching till you know the Bible fairly well.
God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.
Buddy can be impatient about getting his needs met. Sometimes it’s a good thing: He’s learned to bark when he wants into the house, important on a hot day. But he can be insistent on getting walkies, not wanting to wait to get his harness on. But the harness is critical to keep him safe from harm while we take our walks.
Multiple times I’ve heard famous preachers refer to this Biblical verse:
“Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage; yes, wait for the Lord.”—Psalm 27:14
Christians hear many sermons about “waiting on the Lord,” but not how to do that.
Some make the error of thinking you send up a prayer and then go about your business, hoping God arranges things or changes minds to answer the prayer.
Sometimes we think it means doing what you can and then let God work out the consequences, directing where “the chips may fall”.
Or just going with the flow of events in your life, floating downstream without any resistance and hoping the current takes you where you want, that God is directing the river along a desirable pathway. The old “Let go and let God,” mantra.
But after several decades as a Christian, I believe this is really what is meant by waiting on the Lord: Acting toward desires and goals following God’s ways of doing so.
The ancient King of Israel, David penned Psalm 27 in a time of great personal distress. According to BibleStudyTools.com, there is no agreement amongst scholars when David wrote the psalm, before or after he became king.
But I think the time period before he ascended the throne of Israel provides an excellent example of waiting on God.
The following events are chronicled in the Old Testament Book of 1 Samuel, chapters 15 and following.
The Lord rejected the first King, Saul, as ruler over His people because Saul’s heart wasn’t totally devoted to fully obeying Him (1 Samuel 15:26). Although the prophet Samuel loved Saul and was grieved by God’s rejection, he obeyed the Lord and anointed a young shepherd boy to be the next king.
But after David was officially anointed as Saul’s successor, he never stirred up rebellion nor went to war to claim his right to rule. He submitted to King Saul’s sovereignty until forced to flee when the jealous king sought to kill him to prevent his ascension to the throne, displacing his own selected successor, his son Jonathan. David fled to the wilderness to preserve his life, instead of planning to assassinate the king, prompting civil war.
Many disaffected men over a period of years joined David, accepting him as their leader. But David didn’t recruit his servants: They came willingly. King Saul was determined his family would inherit the kingdom, although he knew it was not God’s will. Saul forgot that Israel was not his personal kingdom, but the Lord’s; he was supposed to be a steward over the people, acting under God’s authority, which he rejected. He continued seeking to murder David, even though David had never made an attempt to seize the throne or murmur against the current king’s rule.
Twice, during his pursuit of David, King Saul unknowingly put himself in a vulnerable position, where David or his followers could have killed him. David was even encouraged to do so by his men. But on both occasions, David refused to murder the king.
On the second occasion, David rebuked his top commander, Abishai, for encouraging him to assassinate Saul:
“‘As the Lord lives, the Lord shall strike him, or his day shall come to die, or he shall go out to battle and perish.
‘The Lord forbid that I should stretch out my hand against the Lord’s anointed.’”—1 Samuel 26:10-11
David trusted in God’s promise that he would become king one day. He obeyed the Lord, while trusting God would work out His will in His timing.
Now David was not passive. He knew it was God’s will that he become ruler, but he wanted God’s timing, not his own. He refused to act in an ungodly way to obtain his goals. He refused to compromise his moral beliefs, even when prompted by others.
How to apply this lesson from David’s life to our own?
David was not passive. He continued praying but was not inactive in pursuing his goals. He fled, for instance, instead of allowing Saul to kill him. He even submitted to Saul’s authority, even when mistreated. He learned how to command men and to provide for all their needs in the wilderness, away from Jewish civilization. He never advocated rebellion against Saul’s authority.
He trusted God, even when the “chips didn’t fall his way.” He trusted God’s sovereignty and ability to fulfill His will for David’s life. He didn’t give up and just “go with the flow.” He played an active role in God’s plan, not just waited and did nothing.
Another way of stating my position: It’s not wrong to have goals and desires. But, also, to be open to God moving events in a new direction which may not align with our plans.
But we must try to achieve those goals God’s way, which means, by playing the game of life according to His rules, not sinful ways.
If God wants you to have a promotion, or attain an elected office, you will achieve that goal through honesty, perseverance and hard work. Maybe even get some help from unexpected sources.
But if you need to cheat or lie to obtain an elected position, or backstab and slander a fellow employee or lie on your resume to win that job, you obtained the goal either out of God’s timing, (if it was His will), or achieved a goal He didn’t intend for you. Obtaining wealth through defrauding or deceiving others, or committing crimes, or deliberately harming others, are obvious modern applications. And satisfying sexual needs through seducing a married person or other ways God forbids. I’m sure you can think of many other examples.
In other words, if you sin to obtain a goal or desire, it’s either not God’s will that you have it—or not the right time for you.
And anything you obtain through sinful behavior will bring you—and possibly many others—great sorrow and harm.
To summarize: To wait upon the Lord is to act in a godly fashion toward your goals and dreams, trusting that you don’t have to obtain them through unrighteous, fleshly means.
To “help the Lord” means that you’re taking matters into your own hands by trying to shove open doors through ungodly behavior that God either isn’t ready to open yet or He may want to redirect you to a better doorway to enter through which has unforeseen blessings.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will direct your paths.”—Proverbs 3:5-6
Even when life doesn’t make sense, don’t get anxious. Love and worship the Lord. Keep living life and working to fulfill your dreams by acting godly and lovingly. And He’ll open the right doors in His timing.
Because Jesus loves you.
David knew he would be king one day, so he trusted God to fulfill His promise, despite how difficult the wait was.
He prayed. But wasn’t passive. He acted, but did not disobey.
Was David perfect? Nope. But neither are we. Confess your sin when you get anxious and slip up, and keep trucking.
Believe me, please. I learned what it meant to “wait for the Lord“ the hard way because it was never explained to me properly. I want you to not only reach your goals, but also to enjoy God’s blessing when you obtain them His way.
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
PS. Or as Pastor Blaine Smith once said, “God steers a moving ship.”
***
Jesus loves you. And wants to help you through the difficulties and hardships of this life. God never promises an easy life. But He promises to bring your soul safely to heaven where God will wipe every tear from your eyes (Revelation 21:4), and there will be “no more sorrow” or “pain.”
Your life is a fairy tale, full of dark woods, danger and evil rulers. But you get to choose the ending: eternal joy—or sorrow by dying separated from a loving God forever.
Will you choose the happy ending? Living with the Prince Who rides a “white horse (Revelation 19:11)” and lives in a palace of gold and precious gems (Revelation 21:18-21)?
That good King your heart has always been longing for is Jesus, God in the flesh (Matthew 1:23).
Will you accept Him as your Lord and King today? Will you let Him rule in your life? Will you accept that Jesus died on the Cross for your sins and was raised to prove that He is God (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)?
If so, please repeat the following prayer, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, please forgive my sins and wash me white as snow*. I call on Jesus Christ to be my Lord and Savior. Please fill me with the Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Teach me how much you love me. Thank you for answering my prayer. In the mighty name of Jesus, Your Son, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible. Just as your body requires daily nourishment to be healthy, so does your soul; the Bible is your soul food. I suggest starting with the Book of Matthew, as it’s easy to understand.
And please join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I recommend these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to get misled by legalism or false teaching till you know the Bible fairly well.
God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.
Since Buddy is now fifteen, he gets more leniency for bad behavior.
Who am I trying to kid? Buddy was mistreated by his prior owner’s husband for three years. I’ve always been lenient with Buddy as a result.
Buddy knows that he has me (and my parents) wrapped around his little paws.
When I first got saved, born again, I was exuberant that God loved me and proved He was real and not a wished for fairy tale. Not being raised Christian, I had no idea that the Holy Spirit would enter my body and give life to my dead spirit. After my salvation experiment, my focus was on Jesus and how wonderful He is.
I didn’t have to try to evangelize. People would ask me, “Why are you so happy?” and I’d tell them how Jesus changed my life.
Then legalism entered and stole my sparkle.
I heard two bad sermons on Christian radio in one week, basically both saying that you had to work hard to earn more rewards in heaven, to sit at the table with Jesus or enter a higher level of heaven.
I knew better. My first Bible lessons were a personal in depth study of the Books of Galatians and Ephesians. The Apostle Paul rebuked the church in Galatia because legalisms from Jerusalem had confused them about God’s grace, so they were mixing law with the gospel of grace.
In other words, the work of Jesus on the Cross was not “finished” (John 3:20), but that I had to work harder to please God. Even though Jesus had already fulfilled the Law (God’s standard of holiness, Matthew 5:17) on my behalf to declare me righteous and holy in God’s sight (Jude 1:24).
I no longer felt joyful because my focus zeroed in on what I was doing for God and whether I was measuring up to the “Christian standard.” I took my eyes off Jesus and His finished work on the Cross.
My focus was on puny me and not my Savior.
I was worried God would “discipline me” if I veer off track. I lived under the shadow of a God ready to hammer me if I got out of line. And not resting in the loving care of a Shepherd Who protects His sheep (John 10:1-16).
How can a person feel happy if they’re always worried about measuring up?
Especially if the One judging me sees everything I say, think and do, being God?
In this sad world of scared and depressed people, the best testimony is a happy Christian who trusts in the Lord’s loving protection and isn’t worried.
Finally, the words and true heart of Jesus finally pushed me off the hamster wheel of trying to please God through my works, by trying hard enough. In John 3:17, Jesus said:
“For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.”
We’re living in a time of grace. Jesus is focusing on saving souls and gathering them into His kingdom, not condemning them. It’s why He was gracious to the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well, who was divorced five times and, consequently, living unmarried with a man (John 4:17-18). Who showed kindness to an adulteress and prevented her from being stoned by the religious leaders for her sin (John 8:4-11). And permitted a former prostitute to wash His feet with her tears of repentance and “anoint them with perfume” (Luke 7:36-50).
Last month a young woman on the Internet was blaspheming the Lord, declaring that if He was real, why wasn’t He striking her down with a lightning bolt for her sin and defiance? I replied that He didn’t want to punish her, but wanted her to repent and come to know Him.
Jesus “did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them (Luke 9:56)”. He rebuked the Apostles James and John who wanted to command fire to rain down upon a village of Samaritans who wouldn’t “receive Him (Luke 9:53).”
So I’m sad when I hear popular preachers declare that God is bringing judgment against America, or Europe, or some other nation or person for their sins. The truth is, evil prevails because people reject the love of God and following Jesus, because they prefer the transitory pleasures of evil (John 3:19) or fear condemnation and exposure of their sin (John 3:20). Their refusal to trust God causes them to continue to engage in self destructive and selfish behavior.
That’s why it’s always best to focus on Jesus and not ourselves.
Judgment Day is coming for those who refuse to follow the Lord. The time of grace and the gathering of the lost sheep has a time limit. But we don’t know when that day is.
So let’s stop looking at God as “The Big Stick Guy,” eager to punish.
But as our “God Who so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16).”
The more I learn about how good, loving and kind God is, the more I understand how to be kind and loving.
Let’s tell people how much God loves them and wants to bring the lost sheep into His loving arms.
And wants to deliver them from their sins, which is causing themselves, others, and our society harm.
Now go out and sparkle with the joy of knowing God loves, and does not condemn, His children.
“There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1).”
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy.
***
Because we don’t know when Judgment Day is, it’s best not to ignore the Lord’s voice when He’s calling you to repent (Revelation 3:20).
“He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God (John 3:18).”
The name of the only begotten Son of God is Jesus, “Immanuel, God with us (Matthew 1:23).”
You see, Jesus doesn’t want to bring punishment and judgment. He wants you to accept Him as your Lord and God, repent of your refusal to obey Him, and give you eternal life. But it’s your decision.
If you’re ready to become born again, please say the following prayer out loud (if you can):
Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for sending Jesus to die for my sin and take my punishment on the Cross. Thank you for not wanting to punish me, but to save and love me. I call on Jesus Christ to be my Lord and Savior. Please forgive my sin. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I want to live for You. In the name of Jesus, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please read the Bible as it’s your spiritual food. Just as your body needs daily nourishment, so your soul needs daily food—soul food. I suggest starting with the Book of Matthew as it’s easy to understand.
Also, please join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these two ministries: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org. Both have apps, if that’s your preference. There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be misled by false teaching or legalism till you know the Bible fairly well.
Remember, God loves you. Focus on Jesus and His righteousness and love. Keep the focus off yourself and your works. Relax and let the Holy Spirit work through you.
I adore Buddy. We’ve been together 12 years. But he’s a little monster at times. I might’ve spoiled him a teensy bit to make up for the 3 years he was abused by a former owner. To get attention, he’ll knock something over or “go to town,” digging away at the bag of shredded paper.
To be my companion, I don’t demand that Buddy be perfect in his behavior.
However, the Creator of our universe is different.
“‘For I am the Lord Your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy.’”—Leviticus 11:44
God cannot tolerate sin and must punish it. So only holy people can enter into His presence. The prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 6:5) and the Apostle Peter (Luke 5: 8) were both mortified when they realized they were in God’s presence, recognizing their sinfulness. They knew that a holy God cannot overlook sinful behavior and must judge it.
“Who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood and has not sworn deceitfully.”—David, Psalm 24:3-4
I’d like to say that I’ve never told a lie or my heart is pure, but I know I struggle with contentious thoughts and other ungodly attitudes. No way would I declare myself holy enough to approach a perfect God and not expect to be zapped.
When Adam and Eve rebelled against God’s authority, the Holy Spirit left the human race. We were once triune beings, as we are made in God’s image: body, soul and spirit. Born in sin, separated from God as we’re all descendants of the original couple, we are incomplete, devoid of God’s presence. We are no longer triune in nature.
But God desires to be back in fellowship with His created beings. He wants to be our Father and brother and best friend.
We cannot be complete without the presence of God’s Holy Spirit. But the Spirit is holy—and we are not. (Tell me you’re holy and I’ll prove that you’re arrogant.)
So God had to come up with a plan to make us holy, so that the Holy Spirit can once again inhabit people, making “our body a temple (1 Corinthians 6:19)” of God’s presence.
Jesus died for our sins so that we can be declared righteous and holy before God. When we die in our sins, we are eternally separated from the Lord. He doesn’t desire that.
“‘For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies,’ declares the Lord God. ‘Therefore repent and live.’ (Ezekiel 18:32)”
By admitting that you are unholy, accepting that God alone is the Creator Who has the right to declare what is right and wrong, you can clothe yourself with the holiness of Jesus instead.
“For Christ died once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God (1 Peter 3:18).”
In summary:
1. God is holy and cannot tolerate evil.
2. We are unholy.
3. Somehow our sin must be taken away so that we can be declared perfect in righteousness to receive the spiritual life of the Holy Spirit.
“He (God) has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His loving kindness toward those who fear Him. As far as the East is from the West, so far has He removed our transgressions from us (Psalm 103:10-12).”
By living a perfect life, Jesus could die for the sins of others as He didn’t have any sin of His own to be punished for.
An easier way to understand it is that you could not afford a ticket to Heaven. But Jesus had pity on you and bought that ticket for you with His blood. He gives every believer a ticket for free they could never buy if they just humble themself to ask Him for it.
“All things are cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (Hebrews 9:22).”
So, are you forgiven of your sins and trusting in the ticket Jesus bought for you with His suffering on the Cross to enter Heaven?
Or are you declaring yourself good enough to buy that ticket to heaven with good deeds—while still being tainted with your sin?
Remember, a holy God cannot allow unholy people to live with Him in heaven.
“No one is good except God alone (Jesus, Mark 10:18).”
Hoping you gave me the correct answer:
I’m trusting in Jesus for the forgiveness of my sins.
“And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He (God) has now reconciled you in His (Jesus’) fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach (Colossians 1:21-22).”
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
So do you have your ticket to heaven, made out of the suffering of Jesus and stamped red with His blood, verifying you are holy?
Or are you still trying to do the impossible? Trying to prove that you are good enough by doing more good deeds than bad ones, hoping that God forgets the bad things you’ve said,done and thought?
You see, you’ve probably heard bad theology most of your life. That God grades on a curve.
If God grades on a curve, where’s the cut off point? And is it fair if someone has one more good deed and gets to go to heaven but the guy with just one less good deed goes to Hell?
Does grading on a curve really seem fair to you?
Not to me. I’d never feel saved, wondering where I was on that curve. And whether I’d done enough good deeds or not. I’d die, terrified of Judgment Day.
But the wonderful truth is:
“There is now no condemnation in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1).”
God doesn’t grade on a curve. There is one way to Heaven and it’s the same for everybody: perfection.
No curve. One way to get to heaven: The death of Jesus as punishment for our sins and His resurrection to give us eternal life.
“If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved (Romans 10:8).”
Are you ready to stop trying to earn your way to heaven and accept God’s free gift? If so, please pray the below.
Heavenly Father, Please forgive my sins, because I can never be good enough to earn Your love. I ask Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. I acknowledge You alone are Lord and define right from wrong. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Thank you for loving me so much that Jesus died for my sins, taking the punishment I deserved so that I can be declared holy and enter into fellowship with You. In the precious name of Jesus, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you are born again. Please start reading the Bible, as it’s your soul food. I suggest starting with the book of Matthew as it’s easy to understand. And please find a Bible-believing church or Bible study and get baptized.
If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these three ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.InTouch.org, http://www.AndrewFarley.org and http://www.LTW.org. There are other godly ministries, but when you don’t know what the Bible teaches very well, you can get misled.
You’re starting a wonderful new journey in life. God bless. May Buddy and I see you in heaven.
Buddy is my furever friend. He has a distinct personality from my prior dogs. In fact, we’re a perfect match as we’re both a bit strange. He knocks things over to get my attention, instead of barking, and licks his bowl to tell me that he’s hungry. He’s terrified of loudly chirping birds but will bark at large dogs that could crush him who he feels threatened by.
I believe one reason that the Harry Potter book series is so popular, besides being amazingly creative, is that Harry chose society’s misfits as his companions. Most people felt rejected by the cool kids when attending school, unwelcome in the popular clique. The fact that the “Chosen One” chooses the outsiders immensely increases Harry’s likability factor.
Harry rejects the offer to join the popular kids from arrogant, handsome, wealthy, pure blood wizard Draco Malfoy as he doesn’t want to discriminate against others. He knows the hurt of rejection, from suffering by living with the Dursleys. Instead, he surrounds himself with “misfits”: Hermione, the smart girl from a Muggle (nonmagical) family; Ron, the red-headed, freckled chess player from a large, not too wealthy family; Luna, the dreamy-eyed space cadet who sees and believes in creatures no one else sees; Seamus, the halfblood Irishman; Neville Longbottom, the clumsy dork; and Hagrid, the half-human, half-giant who loves dangerous creatures.
And guess what? God chooses misfits to join His team, also.
The Apostle Paul describes God’s choice of converts in 1 Corinthians 1:26-29 as follows:
“For consider your calling, brethren, that there we’re not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen,…so that no man may boast before God.”
In other words, God doesn’t choose people because they’re popular, or good or beautiful or rich, but, rather, He chooses misfits who are humble enough to realize their need for a Savior.
Jesus chose, as His top 12, men who weren’t considered high class in Roman and Jewish society: fishermen, a political zealot and a tax collector, Matthew, a member of the most despised group in Jewish society.
Jesus also spoke to a Samaritan woman, a disliked racial group of Hebrews who had intermarried with Gentile pagans; rescued an adulteress from being stoned to death; allowed a woman considered impure from uterine bleeding, to touch his garment; permitted a repentant prostitute to wash his feet with her tears and hair; touched lepers, the most outcast group of society; approached demoniacs; and had lunch with a short tax collector.
God doesn’t discriminate. He doesn’t go looking for perfect, wonderfully holy people to join His family and spend eternity with Him.
“We love because He first loved us.”—Apostle John, 1 John 4:19
God chooses ordinary, faulty people like me and you who are willing to come to Him.
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
PS. God loves everyone. He chooses intelligent, lovely, charming and talented people as His children, also. After all, He created and gifts everyone in different ways.
***
As you can see, God loves you just as you are and welcomes you into His family. You don’t have to “clean up your act” first before becoming a child of His. Just welcome Him as your Lord, submitting to His authority, and He’ll partner with you to improve your personality. He does not reject anyone willing to open their heart to Him.
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.”—Jesus, Revelation 3:20
If you’d like to follow Jesus, the Great Shepherd, please pray the following:
Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you that you love me and accept anyone into Your family who is willing to come. I call on Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Please forgive my sins. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. In Jesus’ holy name, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you are born again. Just as your body needs daily meals, so your spirit needs soul food: the Bible. Please start reading it, daily if possible. I suggest starting with the Book of Matthew as it’s easy to understand.
Also, please join a Bible believing church or Bible study. If that’s not possible right now, please check out these three ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.InTouch.org, http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) or http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but as a new believer, you can be misled by bad teaching till you become familiar with the Bible.
Many of us had our plans destroyed or delayed this year due to the COVID19 pandemic. Depending upon the circumstances, different states locked down their populations for varying lengths of time. Not too long after Buddy and I had settled into our new home in Arizona, the Governor issued a mandatory state at home order during the month of April. I suddenly found myself in a new state, divorced from any human contact, except via the phone or the rare occasion when I had to buy food. (Fortunately, I was stocked up on toilet paper due to the recent visit of multiple guests.) I was unable to develop the new relationships I was forming or to attend the new clubs I had joined.
My sole companion was Buddy. I was very grateful to have my furry pal and not be totally isolated from physical company.
Or was he my sole companion?
Many people make the mistake of believing that God, if He does exist, has no physical presence in, nor concern for, His creation. Even if people believe that Jesus did exist, and perhaps also that He was indeed God in the flesh come to visit us (Matthew 1:23), Jesus is only sitting up in Heaven now, waiting for the right time to return and reclaim His throne on earth.
But God does have a physical presence here on earth–NOW.
Jesus compared the Holy Spirit to the wind:
“The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” John 3:8
We cannot see the wind, but we know it exists because we experience its effects: We feel it against our skin, see it blow things about and experience its mighty destructive power at times.
The Holy Spirit cannot be seen, but believers experience His presence.
When I was born again, after repenting of my sins and acknowledging Jesus as my Lord and Savior, the Holy Spirit swept into my body to indwell me. Many persons have a powerful born again experience, but many others only gradually become aware of His presence. God knows what each of us needs to assist us in our walk with Him.
Often, when I praise God or tell Him that I love Him, I feel the Holy Spirit “embrace me”: I feel Him loving me back. Or at times I experience a surge of power when I’m weary that comes from deep within, not from my physical body.
Sadly, because of evolution or Liberal theology, teaching on the supernatural has been removed from many churches. As a result, many Christians and non-Christians are totally unaware that God’s indwelling presence and power is vital to the Christian experience.
(My blog was just interrupted by Buddy’s insistence that we go for a “walkie” in the desert heat.)
After His bodily resurrection from the grave following His crucifixion, Jesus emphasized the importance of the Holy Spirit for Christian living when He told the disciples to wait in Jerusalem:
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses…” Acts 1:8 “You are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” Luke 24:49
So if you are born again, you are never alone. The Holy Spirit indwells you, to give you power to live the Christian life, to be His witness, to bear fruit for His kingdom–and to encourage you and be your helper and companion.
God bless you, from Dawn and Buddy.
***
And if you don’t have a Buddy in your own life, there is a great God Who is just waiting to be invited into your life, if you’re willing, to be your best friend.
“Behold, I (Jesus) stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.”–Revelation 3:20
Why not invite Jesus into your life tonight, to be your Lord and Shepherd?
Had to rush Buddy to the ER vet because his groomer let him fall out of the washing tub when she opened its door. He tore an ACL in his knee and cannot stand on his back legs.
The vet said 20% of dogs can recover without surgery. Since Buddy is 16.5, he prefers not to operate.
I honestly don’t remember why Buddy has a copy of a Clive Cussler book under his paw.
However, I’ve reread this book by now deceased Pastor Chuck Smith, who started the Calvary Church denomination, multiple times. I used it for evangelism in the past, but not effectively. It’s really geared for Christians to understand the grace of God and break free from legalism which, sadly, seems the main teaching in the church.
Galatianism—mixing Law with Grace—seems to be the main stance of the modern church, despite the warning of the Apostle Paul to the Galatians:
“You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified?
“This is the one thing I want to find out from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?
“Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?”—Galatians 3:1-3
One of my favorite verses.
Oh, Church! The Apostle Paul warns against foolishness!
God bless.
Dawn
PS. If you’re interested, please check out my recent (usually) weekly blog post. Thank you!
Buddy is 16.5 years old and his eyesight has weakened, so his depth perception is off. He cannot climb down a staircase without risk of a misstep and tumbling down the stairs. He’s fine with me carrying him down the exterior stairs which must be scary looking to him, being pebbles set into concrete.
But he sure gets quite upset when I pick him up to carry him down the interior stairs. The photo above shows how it must look to him. But unless he permits me to carry him, Buddy is not guaranteed a safe journey to the lower floor.
After the arrest, merciless beating, crucifixion, and burial of Jesus Christ, his apostles were terrified of the future. The man they thought would establish God’s kingdom on earth and rescue them from oppression under the Roman Empire seemed utterly powerless to protect Himself from death.
They went into hiding, fearing the same, brutal death.
The future looked terrifying!
Maybe they wondered if they were wrong to believe He was the Christ. He died just like anybody else. Those who hated Him “without a cause (John 15:25)” had won!
“Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst, and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’”—John 20:19
Although Jesus had told the disciples on multiple occasions that He had to suffer but would rise again, they either didn’t believe or understand what He was really saying.
Even after His resurrection, the apostles still didn’t get that Jesus was establishing a heavenly kingdom, not an earthly one (per my Pastor Jon Bjorgaard this AM, thank you).
“Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him saying, ‘Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?’”—Acts 1:6
Just as Buddy gets scared and doesn’t trust me to carry him safely down the interior staircase, so, too, we often get terrified at what lies before us. The unknown future looks frightening! We don’t realize that Jesus has total control, not only over our lives, but over history and the universe!
“The Lord has established His throne in the heavens, and His sovereignty rules over all.”—Psalm 103:19
The apostles were afraid of the future because they didn’t understand God’s plan.
Just as you and I can be fearful when we look around at our deteriorating culture and the evil in our world.
But even though we don’t always understand how His plan is unfolding, we don’t need to be afraid.
Just as I won’t let go of Buddy and will get him safely down the staircase…
…God will carry you safely through the unknown future into Heaven.
He’s got this!
God bless you.
“You have enclosed me behind and before, and laid Your hand upon me.”—Psalm 139:5
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
PS. I’m human just like you. I get scared as I see prophetic events unfolding, so I recall the psalms above to calm myself, remembering God’s power.
Meditations About God and Buddy 