Tag: faith

A Love Letter From Our Father

An Intimate Message from God to Each of Us

You may not know Me, but I know everything about you. (Psalm 139:1) You are unique and special, I know when you sit down, when you rise up, (Psalm 139:2) and I am familiar with all your ways. (Psalm 139:3) I made youin My image, (Genesis 1:27) and even numbered the very hairs on your head. (Matthew 10:29-31)

I chose you when I planned creation, (Ephesians 1:11-12) and knew you even before you were conceived. (Jeremiah 1:4-5) You were fearfully and wonderfully made asI knit you together in your mother’s womb. (Psalm 139:13-14) I have even written all your days in My book. (Psalm 139:15-16)

My plan for your future has always been filled with hope (Jeremiah 29:11) because I love you with an everlasting love. (Jeremiah 31:3) Only in Me will you find true peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. (John 16:33)

I am your Father, and I love you even as I love My Son, Jesus. (John 17:23) He died for your sins so that you, a sinner, and I, the most Holy God, could be reconciled. (2 Corinthians 5:18-19) His death was the ultimate expression of My love for you, (1 John 4:10) and His resurrection sets you free from the fear of death and slavery to sin. (1 Corinthians 15:54-57)

When you repent of your sins and receive My Son Jesus as your Savior, you will receive power as the Holy Spirit indwells and works through you, bearing much spiritual fruit and even miracles. (John 15:5)

If you draw close to Me by spending time with Me in My Word and in prayer, you will be transformed by the renewing of your mind. (Romans 12:2) You will come to KNOW Me, not just KNOW ABOUT Me, and I will answer the two greatest questions in your life: “Who am I?” and “Why am I here?” (Ephesians 2:5, Matthew 28:19-20)

This means no matter what age you are, young or old, you can live these days with great purpose and meaning, for I have something in mind to accomplish in and through you in every season of your life. This is incredibly powerful when you begin to grasp it. It means life is never over. Never. You have stepped into the stream of eternal life where you live real life with Jesus from now on into heaven. (Isaiah 58:10-11)

You will be coming out of the darkness to join Christ, the light of the world,  who overcomes darkness and evil so that all who follow Him will become free of sin and spiritual darkness. (John 8:36)

You are not here by chance, but for such a time as this, (Esther 4:13-14) created to do good works which I have prepared in advance for you to do. (Ephesians 2:10) I am calling you, (Ephesians 4:1) equipping you, (Ephesians 6:10-20) and sending you out to reach the lost souls who don’t know Me, with My Truth, Compassion, and Love. (Matthew 28:18-20)

Time is short, and I am inviting you to join Me in a great spiritual adventure. It is truly exciting, it is the most important thing you will ever do in your life, and you will never be the same. (Romans 12:2)

Then I will welcome you home through the gates of heaven, where I will throw the biggest party heaven has ever seen. (Luke 15:7) My great desire and passion has always been to live with you forever. Won’t you join Me?

Love,

Your Dad, Almighty God

To God be the glory

LifeintheSpirit.net

Adapted from www.fathersloveletter.com

Source of image: Pixabay

“DEPART FROM ME; I NEVER KNEW YOU”

I don’t know about you, but whenever I hear or read this verse, it always sends chills down my back. Here is the full passage:

21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name, and in Thy name have cast out devils, and in Thy name done many wonderful works? 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from Me, ye that work iniquity.  Matthew 7:21-23 KJV

There may be millions of people around the world, and probably people that you and I know, who claim to be Christians, and “do good works”, but will be sent to the Lake of Fire because:

  1. they do not do the will of God the Father, 
  2. they don’t know the Lord, and/or
  3. they are workers of iniquity.

This is really heavy and even scary. But when we examine it carefully, we will discover good news for true believers.

Key Point #1: Calling upon the Lord and claiming justification by works is not sufficient to go to heaven.

  • Works righteousness – trying to attain righteousness by our works, even  prophesying, casting out demons, and doing many wonders in Jesus’ name, does not qualify us for salvation.
  • They may KNOW ABOUT THE LORD (as many pagans do), but have not surrendered to Christ, so they don’t KNOW THE LORD. Jesus said: “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”
  • Salvation comes only from a true surrender of one’s heart, mind, and soul to receive Christ, who died for our sins.
  • The Gospel doesn’t just save us; it changes us into new creations in Christ. II Corinthians 5:17

Key Point #2: People can “do good works” and yet never surrender to and receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. They are in effect CINOs – Christians in Name Only.    

Key Point #3: There is power in the name of Jesus, even when used by individuals who do not know the Lord.

Key Point #4: Observe why, and upon what grounds, He rejects them and their plea—because they were workers of iniquity. 

  • The Greek word for “iniquity” is anomia, which literally means “without law”. In the biblical sense, it refers to being in opposition to God’s moral will – acting as if God’s commands don’t matter.
  • Outward religion without inward regeneration is “iniquity”.

Key Point #5: THE GOOD NEWS is that although doing good works doesn’t earn salvation, when we have true faith in Jesus Christ, it will lead to obedience to God’s will, a life of good works led by the Holy Spirit, and eternity with Christ in Heaven.

  • Christ didn’t come just to create another RELIGION. He came that we may be set free of sin and have a RELATIONSHIP with Him.

Religious acts like worship services become hollow if they are not grounded in faith in Christ and a desire to live a life with God. Those who settle for doing good works and going through the motions at church are missing out on the greatest adventure in the world – life in the Spirit.

Three critical questions:

  1. Do you KNOW the Lord and the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit, or just KNOW ABOUT Him, like knowing about Trump or Putin?
  2. Do you know the Lord’s calling upon your life – what He is calling you to do and become?
  3. Are you fulfilling that calling? If not, WHY NOT?

Time is short, and He is inviting us to join Him on a great spiritual adventure. It is truly exciting, it is the most important thing we have ever done in our lives, and we will never be the same. God loves us more than we can imagine, and He can’t wait to welcome us home through the gates of heaven.

So we need to stand strong, be bold, and be courageous, speaking His Word and His Truth with love and compassion to all He brings across our path.

To God be the glory

LifeintheSpirit.net

Source of Image: Godversusreligion.com

Satan, You Can’t Have My Family

Satan is destroying families at an alarming rate.  We must stand up and resist the enemy.  Fight for your family! Stand in the gap.  Your prayers are powerful.  To resist is to take action; it is not being passive.  It means you take a stand and don’t budge, come wind or high water.  You stand on God’s promises while confessing His Word.  When you do this, then God does the rest.

Many believers continue to live in defeat, worry, anxiety, depression, and unbelief. They lack knowledge of who they are in God and what position and identity they have in Christ. Lack of faith and trust in God has them living in defeat. Ignorance in this area leads to failures.

The battle must be waged against the devil and demonic forces, and not against the person who is behaving in an ungodly manner. It is the devil who is the spiritual enemy. Spiritual warfare should not be waged against a mate, a child, a loved one, or a boss. The loved one should be treated with unconditional love, while Satan is being engaged in spiritual warfare. In order to wage spiritual warfare successfully, a Christian must continually submit himself/herself to God, put on spiritual armor (see Ephesians 6), and continually resist the devil.

The good news is that we can appropriate our freedom in Christ Jesus by the power of God’s Word and the blood of Jesus Christ. To appropriate means “to take possession of, secure, allocate, assign, appoint, and so forth.” God wants us to take possession of all of the kingdom’s rights and benefits that He has already deeded and guaranteed to us. We have been delegated power and authority over all the power of the enemy. I firmly believe that lack of knowledge will keep a Christian from enjoying the blessings and the peace of God.

Weapons for spiritual warfare include the name of Jesus, the blood of Jesus, the power of the Holy Spirit, keys of binding and loosing, the power of praise and worship, effective prayer, the power of agreement, and the Word of God.

Take Action

  1. In the Spirit, be bold as a lion.  Learn to pray, intercede, and wage war.  Remain connected to the Holy Spirit.
  2. Pray for discernment.  Pray with power.  Pray fervently. Pray without losing heart.  Pray all the time.  Tie your heart, mind, and emotions to God’s heart.
  3. Always begin praying with thanksgiving to God for people who need our prayers.
  4. Thank God for your loved one and for God’s awesome plan for their lives.
  5. Avoid controlling prayers that focus on the negative and ask God to change, sever, transform, stop, bind, and remove.  They tend to bring upon the person a burden of guilt and condemnation.
  6. Pray in faith, trusting God to intervene in their lives. Confess and declare all of those good things that you expect to see manifested in their lives.
  7. Refuse to be moved by what you see, hear, or feel. 
  8. Bind all strategies of the enemy from becoming effective in their lives.
  9. Pray in a positive way with thanksgiving.  Pray scriptures, not your own words.  Allow God to be God.

The Holy Spirit will be your helper and guide. Forget about your feelings, and walk by faith. Embark on a journey to wholeness that will restore your life and the lives of your family members. Satan does not have to take your family or your mind. God has enabled us to triumph and to overcome evil with good.

Seek God’s Word about these principles and apply them to your everyday life through prayer. Applying these principles in my [Iris Delgado’s] life, my husband’s life, my daughters’ lives and into the lives of countless others, I have seen miracles of deliverance from manic depression, sickness, disease, fear and torment, destructive thought patterns, rejection, unbelief, and wrong relationships.

Prepare your heart. If you submit to God with all your heart, put on your spiritual armor, and aggressively resist the devil, the devil will have to flee from you, your household, and from those for whom you pray. The key is to yield your life to God completely and to be obedient to His Word. Once you experience the love and the power of God in your life, you won’t desire anything else.

“Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” Luke 10:19

“Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” James 4:7

Excerpts from “Satan, You Can’t Have My Children”, by Dr. Iris Delgado

To God be the glory

LifeintheSpirit.net

Source of image: Unsplash

Time is Short; The Value of Time

Imagine there is a bank which credits your account each morning with $86,400. It carries over no balance from day to day, allows you to keep no cash balance, and every evening cancels whatever part of the amount you failed to use during the day.

What would you do? Draw out every cent, of course! Well, everyone has such a bank. Its name is TIME. Every morning, it credits you with 86,400 seconds. Every night it writes off, as lost, whatever of this you have failed to invest to good purpose. It carries over no balance. It allows no overdraft. Each day it opens a new account for you. Each night it burns the remains of the day. If you fail to use the day’s deposits, the loss is yours.

There is no going back. There is no drawing against “tomorrow”.
You must live in the present on today’s deposits. Invest it so as to
get from it the utmost in health, happiness and success! The clock is
running, so MAKE THE MOST OF TODAY.

To realize the value of ONE YEAR, ask a student who has failed a
grade.
To realize the value of ONE MONTH, ask a mother who has given birth
to a pre-mature baby.
To realize the value of ONE WEEK, ask an editor of a weekly
newspaper.
To realize the value of ONE DAY, ask a daily wage laborer who has
kids to feed.
To realize the value of ONE HOUR, ask the lovers who are waiting to
meet.
To realize the value of ONE MINUTE, ask a person who has missed
the train.
To realize the value of ONE SECOND, ask a person who has avoided
an accident.
To realize the value of ONE MILLI-SECOND, ask the person who has
won a silver medal in the Olympics.


Treasure every moment that you have! And treasure it more because
you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend your time with them.
And remember that TIME WAITS FOR NO ONE.

Yesterday is history.
Tomorrow a mystery.
Today is a gift. That’s why it’s called THE PRESENT.

And finally, what happens WHEN WE RUN OUT OF TIME? We will be standing before the sovereign, living God of the universe, and asked why we did not choose Jesus as our Lord and Savior, even though we had many opportunities to do so? We will be staring at two paths into eternity and our course will already be set – to join the heavenly host or head for the Lake of Fire.

So let us seek the Lord with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength, for time is short, eternity is a very long time, and we are not guaranteed tomorrow.

P.S. Speaking of RUNNING OUT OF TIME, be sure to check out this blog post: “If You Took the Vax, Your Health is in Danger (PART I)”. You see it here: https://bit.ly/IfYouTooktheVaxPARTI.

To God be the glory
LifeintheSpirit.net

Source of image: Pixabay

25 SIGNS OF A HEALTHY CHURCH

A healthy church is not just a building, leadership structure, or weekly service. A healthy church is a vibrant community where God is present and members grow in their faith and service. Here are 25 signs of a healthy church:
___1. There is a divine sense of mission and purpose to carry out The Great Commission.
___2. The presence of God is evident in worship services and the assembly of the saints.
___3. The Word of God is presented with authority and anointing.
___4. There are functional prayer gatherings.
___5. There is a real expectation for answered prayers.
___6. People are getting saved and baptized.
___7. The leadership of the church – elders, deacons, teachers, and pastors, seek to serve the Lord and the congregation with humility and integrity.
___8. The church is more in love with the future (with a compelling vision) than the past.
___9. Fellowship and relationships are warm, and people do not jockey for position and titles.
___10. Many people volunteer to serve.
___11. Many people support the church with tithes and offerings.
___12. The community gets impacted in real ways.
___13. Your leaders have great passion.
___14. There is more attention, resources, and enthusiasm devoted to the work of the Lord than to maintaining the church organization and facilities.
___15. There is an established pattern of disciple making, equipping members to be ambassadors for Christ.
___16. Homeless and street people are seen as a mission field and are treated with compassion.
___17. There is greater emphasis on what unites us in Christ than how we are different from other Christians.
___18. There is an increase of members and finances over time. ___19. Openness to change and support of innovation is evident.
___20. Sermons engage both the mind and the heart. ___21. You are seeing many first-time visitors.
___22. Your church is welcoming and diverse; everyone in your church does not look and think just like you.
___23. You’re focused on reaching new people as well as keeping church members. ___24. Communication is clear and conflicts are resolved when they arise.
___25. There is a sense of urgency and passion to reach lost souls.

How many of these describe your church: _ out of 25?

Action steps you can take:
• share this list with other members and leaders of your church,
• hold this up to the Lord, seeking His guidance,
• develop action steps to build on your strengths and address problem areas, and
• take action, giving glory to God for the results.

To God be the glory
LifeintheSpirit.net
Image by Arnie Bragg from Pixabay