demons
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. 2 Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. 1 Timothy 4:1-3
I believe in demons in today's world and I wonder if you do as well. Do you know why I believe in demons, because not only did Jesus have a lot of experience with demons, but satan is allowed to rule the earth. I watched a show the other night before bed and it had some demonic activity in it. While I knew in my heart it wasn't real, and only a show, the demons saw an open door and wanted to remind me they were there. And sure enough I struggled with sleep and had burning thoughts of issues at work that I am having and they made them bigger in my mind than what they should be. We need to remember that God is bigger than all these things, and can protect us if we call on Him to help. We cannot abandon our faith in our Lord but must continually be thoughtful and thankful for all He provides.
Have a great weekend.
Matt
Friday, January 25, 2019
Friday, January 18, 2019
Fantastic Friday #663 - Weeds
Weeds
37 He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man.38 The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. Matthew 13:37-39
I had a friend tell me a story about a menacing thick weed in his yard that had been taken down months ago and the weed came back even stronger than before. So strong, he mentioned, it reminded of the Beanstalk, which was going to be a challenge but he got his gloves for protection and began the process of removing the weed. In order to keep the weed from coming back he visited his local greenery to purchase something to keep it from growing even higher. Once he got the weed removed, he thought he was safe and took his protection off to begin removing some of the thorns and sure enough he got pricked by the thorns. This story reminded me of the story in Matthew where the good seed is the Son of Man and the weeds are the people of the evil one. As long as we keep the protection of the Lord around us, we will be protected, but the moment we remove that protection is the moment we will be pricked and engulfed by the weeds. Remember that all we have to do is remind ourselves that God is our protection daily and can help us through those thorny situations.
Have a great weekend.
37 He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man.38 The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. Matthew 13:37-39
I had a friend tell me a story about a menacing thick weed in his yard that had been taken down months ago and the weed came back even stronger than before. So strong, he mentioned, it reminded of the Beanstalk, which was going to be a challenge but he got his gloves for protection and began the process of removing the weed. In order to keep the weed from coming back he visited his local greenery to purchase something to keep it from growing even higher. Once he got the weed removed, he thought he was safe and took his protection off to begin removing some of the thorns and sure enough he got pricked by the thorns. This story reminded me of the story in Matthew where the good seed is the Son of Man and the weeds are the people of the evil one. As long as we keep the protection of the Lord around us, we will be protected, but the moment we remove that protection is the moment we will be pricked and engulfed by the weeds. Remember that all we have to do is remind ourselves that God is our protection daily and can help us through those thorny situations.
Have a great weekend.
Friday, January 11, 2019
Fantastic Friday #662 - Hands
Hands
6 Though the Lord is exalted, he looks kindly on the lowly;
though lofty, he sees them from afar.
7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve my life.
You stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes;
with your right hand you save me.
8 The Lord will vindicate me;
your love, Lord, endures forever—
do not abandon the works of your hands. Psalm 138:6-8
Have you looked at your hands today? What do they look like? Do they appear that you have worked hard and put forth significant effort, or do they appear lazy, soft and unmovable? God gave us hands to do many things and accomplish things as well, but in order to use our hands we have to use our brain, because this organ controls everything. What have you done with your brain today to come closer to God? Was it prayer, there is a simple one out there you can speak daily. Is it read and absorb God's Word? There are over 800,000 words in the Bible, surely you can absorb some of those, especially if you can remember song lyrics, movie lines, or the latest YouTube video phenomenon. The great thing about this verse is that it shows how God has hands like us, that can be used to protect us from the things of this world that want to pull us away from Him. If you work with your mind and hands to come closer to Him, he will protect you from the trouble you face. The further away from Him we run, the further away from His hands we become. Stay within reach of our Father, for only He can vindicate us.
Have a great weekend.
Matt
6 Though the Lord is exalted, he looks kindly on the lowly;
though lofty, he sees them from afar.
7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve my life.
You stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes;
with your right hand you save me.
8 The Lord will vindicate me;
your love, Lord, endures forever—
do not abandon the works of your hands. Psalm 138:6-8
Have you looked at your hands today? What do they look like? Do they appear that you have worked hard and put forth significant effort, or do they appear lazy, soft and unmovable? God gave us hands to do many things and accomplish things as well, but in order to use our hands we have to use our brain, because this organ controls everything. What have you done with your brain today to come closer to God? Was it prayer, there is a simple one out there you can speak daily. Is it read and absorb God's Word? There are over 800,000 words in the Bible, surely you can absorb some of those, especially if you can remember song lyrics, movie lines, or the latest YouTube video phenomenon. The great thing about this verse is that it shows how God has hands like us, that can be used to protect us from the things of this world that want to pull us away from Him. If you work with your mind and hands to come closer to Him, he will protect you from the trouble you face. The further away from Him we run, the further away from His hands we become. Stay within reach of our Father, for only He can vindicate us.
Have a great weekend.
Matt
Friday, January 4, 2019
Fantastic Friday #661 - Mercy
Mercy
6 Praise be to the Lord,
for he has heard my cry for mercy.
7 The Lord is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.
My heart leaps for joy,
and with my song I praise him. Psalm 28:6-7
What is the first thing you think of when you hear the word mercy? The first thing that comes to my mind is compassion and an act of kindness. How have you shown mercy to someone this week? There is less compassion in our world today, for many reasons, and I think the biggest reason is because we don't acknowledge the mercy our Lord and Savior gives us daily. Once we start recognizing the Mercy our Lord heaps on us, then maybe we can see how it makes us feel and can provide mercy for those others that are less fortunate than us. Take a moment this week and ask God for mercy for whatever situation you are experiencing and then take that mercy and remember that daily for a week. Maybe then you can see how it can make a difference and then show mercy to others whenever you can.
Have a great weekend.
Matt
6 Praise be to the Lord,
for he has heard my cry for mercy.
7 The Lord is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.
My heart leaps for joy,
and with my song I praise him. Psalm 28:6-7
What is the first thing you think of when you hear the word mercy? The first thing that comes to my mind is compassion and an act of kindness. How have you shown mercy to someone this week? There is less compassion in our world today, for many reasons, and I think the biggest reason is because we don't acknowledge the mercy our Lord and Savior gives us daily. Once we start recognizing the Mercy our Lord heaps on us, then maybe we can see how it makes us feel and can provide mercy for those others that are less fortunate than us. Take a moment this week and ask God for mercy for whatever situation you are experiencing and then take that mercy and remember that daily for a week. Maybe then you can see how it can make a difference and then show mercy to others whenever you can.
Have a great weekend.
Matt
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