What have You Return to Main Menu
Done for Me Lately?
Romans 5:1 Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
Bobby Bowden was one of the winningest coaches in college football. At Florida State University, he became only one of two coaches to win 300 football games at one school. He took his FSU teams to 26 consecutive post season bowl games. In 34 seasons at Florida State, Bowden won two national titles and engineered one of the most successful runs in the history of college football. The Board of Directors of the College Football Hall of Fame inducted him into the Hall in December of 2006. This, after they changed the rule that one had to be retired from coaching in order be inducted. The list of accomplishments go far beyond what is written here.
However, after his last five seasons were less than stellar, but still winning seasons, the FSU Board of Trustees decided enough was enough. According to Bowen’s own words, he was pushed out of his job. He had not done enough for the University lately. Meaning, his teams were not winning enough games. He was 80 and wanted one more year of coaching. But the University President said, “No”.
One of the Glories of our faith in Jesus Christ is: He will never asks us, “What have you done for me lately?” Oh, He desires great things from us for His Kingdom. Each according to the talents God has given us. But, our final judgement comes not in what we did for Him. Rather, it comes from how faithful we are to His Kingdom and living the life He plans for us.
It is a good thing that Billy Graham did not work for FSU. As his age has not permitted him to continue to do the work he once did’ It is and always has been his faith in our Lord Jesus Christ that saves him. Praise God! For any of us cannot do enough for God to save ourselves, for it is by our faith, we are saved.
In our faith, we should live that others feel compelled to to desire the True Live in Christ. This begins simply by the way we conduct our lives. Just as Jesus is the example of how to live our lives, we should do our best to do the same. We must walk the walk that makes people around us to desire what we have in our lives.... through our faith.
We must live so that Jesus will know us when we stand before Him in His Kingdom. Pray daily. Jesus wants to help you live the life that will draw others to Him. Just as parents continue to know their children by communications, so too does Jesus want to know us... by our prayers. Pray for the Holy Spirit to fill our daily lives, guiding us in all our thoughts, words, and deeds.
I do not pretend to know the final rules to which Jesus will judge mankind individually. But nonetheless, He will judge mankind. I know the standard He will judge me, it will be by my faith and how I lived this faith in His Way. I pray every day for the forgiveness of my sins; for the standard for Christians will be high.
Praise God, Pray... Often.... Everyday. Allow Christ to light His Way in your life, and then demonstrate The Light of the World to those around you. When we stand for our final judgment, it will not be about “what have you done for me lately”, it will be about how we lived our lives in HIM and walked His Way that he came to KNOW us. Our faith simply must demonstrate that we KNOW Him.
Thanks Be to God
lonnie
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Publication 0008
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Friday, October 29, 2010
God's Desires In Our Prayers
God's Desires In Our Prayers
1. Our Praise While Seeking His Kingdom,
and our acknowledgment that
in our sin we are unworthy of His
daily Forgiveness, Grace, and Blessings.
and our acknowledgment that
in our sin we are unworthy of His
daily Forgiveness, Grace, and Blessings.
2. Our Belief and living that God Rules Our Lives
4. Our Desire in Wanting Forgiveness,
and a loving relationship with Him
and a loving relationship with Him
5. Our Thankfulness in All Circumstances
(we do not have to be thankful for all circumstance,
just be thankful in our circumstances (1Thes 5:18-25) )
(we do not have to be thankful for all circumstance,
just be thankful in our circumstances (1Thes 5:18-25) )
6. Our Requests for others and
Our Needs Request for self
Our Needs Request for self
7. Our Desire to Live in God’s Desires for us
8. Our Discernment and Acceptance
that “wants” may not be our needs and
and that 'wants' are not our expectations.
that “wants” may not be our needs and
and that 'wants' are not our expectations.
9. Our Patience in waiting for answers.
10. Our Acceptance For God’s Will to Control Our Lives
......This begins by ending our prayers,
“Not my will but Thine be Done.”
(Matthew 26:42)
==============================
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© Lonnie Coggins
ldcoggins@gmail.com
If you desire to use any of these messages in a For-Profit manner you must contact me (email) for permission. Typically, I will most likely give permission.
Please email me if you find any broken links in this message.
......This begins by ending our prayers,
“Not my will but Thine be Done.”
(Matthew 26:42)
Thanks Be to God
TB2G
TB2G
(c) Lonnie Coggins
==============================
Sharing these messages
You are welcome to share these messages. You can send the links to your friends, copy and insert the link on FB or you can print the message and share it with your friends.
You can print the message including this sharing message only for your friends and for non-profit. You will have to copy and paste the message to a word processing document. After you copy and paste add the following at the end of the message:
© Lonnie Coggins
ldcoggins@gmail.com
If you desire to use any of these messages in a For-Profit manner you must contact me (email) for permission. Typically, I will most likely give permission.
Please email me if you find any broken links in this message.
lonnie
Publication 0007
God has many desires for us in our Prayers. Click the Link below for a few thoughts on this.
Please share the message on your Fb page as you like, and if you like, click the FB 'Follow' button to have notifications of these publications. For other messages like this, visit my FB page, or on FB visit-"A Daily Thought".
http://lonnieadailythought.blogspot.com/2010/10/10-elements-god-wants-in-our-prayers.html
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Heaven is Watching You
“Heaven is Watching You”
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Matthew 4:17 (after His baptism and Jesus’ wilderness experience) From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
A ordinary man broke into a the house of a rich man and could not believe his eyes. The people of this house had everything. As he started creeping around the house he heard, “Heaven is watching you.” He immediately stops, no sound. He starts creeping and picking up small valuable things. “Heaven is watching you” came the voice. The man turns on his flashlight, shining it around the room he spies a parrot. “Is that you?” the man asks. “Yes, and HEAVEN! IS WATCHING YOU!!” responds the parrot. “What is your name parrot” asks the man. “god” said the parrot. “Who in the world would name a parrot ‘god’?” The parrot responds, “The same people who call their pit bull ‘Heaven’”. “UhO”.
Far too often people think of God as someone who pricks our conscience when we do something wrong, or worse, as a watchman, a resident cop, the Big Guy upstairs with a fly swatter. Someone who is out to swat us if we mess up. People live in the “Dark Ages” with thinking that God is out to get us and we can not do much to please Him. They hope they are doing enough good to “get into heaven” or they give up and live lives in quite desperation unbecoming to be a person created by and belonging to God.
How are you Living?
My question is, “How many of us live in the Light seeking everyday to find God’s will for us in our lives?” How many of us really think about our salvation? We fail ourselves when we do not seek everyday God’s will in our lives to change us from ordinary to extraordinary Christians.
This change in our lives, His Will, this desire God has for us to live extraordinary lives in His Grace begins with forgiveness. We can pray often everyday, but our salvation, our Ultimate relationship with God, begins with
“Lord, I believe, Lord I love you, Lord I Trust You,
Lord Forgive ME! For I am a sinner.”
Our God is a God of Mercy!
Our God of Mercy is not watching for us to do something wrong, as much as he is waiting for us to confess our sins and ask Him for our needs. And, he wants us to ask big! How many loving parents hear requests from their children and purposely withhold their needs? We supply their needs even though their behavior is poor. But, how much easier it is to provide for them when their behavior meets expectations, especially when they say they are sorry after disobedience. We quickly forgive our children when they mean “I’m sorry” and very quickly not only supply their needs abundantly but often help them with some of their wants.
God’s Will, His Plan, His Desires is for us ask Him for forgiveness and to live in His will. In God’s infinite mercy, He then supplies our needs in great abundance, an abundance beyond our imagination. In living in His will, He wants us to pray not for crumbs off the table but for the whole loaf of our needs!
When we accept and live Jesus as our Savior, we receive the Holy Spirit into our lives. When we live praying daily and often every day for the Holy Spirit to fill our lives according according to our needs, then we build our Trust in God and come to Know Jesus intimately and abundantly. We then feel the blessings of the Holy Spirit and feel blessed beyond our expectations and no longer feel we are just surviving and existing in this life but feel as we are thriving in God's Glory of this life.
God’s Plan is Perfect for our lives.... live it.
Be God’s ever faithful believer and
watch what God can do for you and through you,
it will not be be ordinary
it will be EXTRAORDINARY!!!!!
Click here to Follow me:
==============================
Sharing these messages
You are welcome to share these messages. You can send the links to your friends, copy and insert the link on FB or Christian.com or you can print the message and share it with your friends.
You can print the message including this sharing message only for your friends and for non-profit. You will have to copy and paste the message to a word processing document. After you copy and paste add the following at the end of the message:
© Lonnie Coggins
ldcoggins@gmail.
If you desire to use any of these messages in a For-Profit manner you must contact me (email) for permission. Typically, I will most likely give permission.
intro
A man breaks into a house and the first thing he hears, "Heaven is Watching YOU!!!". Many people live their lives with the wrong impression of what God is concerned about in our lives. They are afraid of God, rather than focusing on why they should Love God. Click the link below and read on.
http://lonnieadailythought.blogspot.com/2010/10/heaven-is-watching-you.html
Return to Main Menu
To follow A Daily Thought click>>>
Matthew 4:17 (after His baptism and Jesus’ wilderness experience) From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
A ordinary man broke into a the house of a rich man and could not believe his eyes. The people of this house had everything. As he started creeping around the house he heard, “Heaven is watching you.” He immediately stops, no sound. He starts creeping and picking up small valuable things. “Heaven is watching you” came the voice. The man turns on his flashlight, shining it around the room he spies a parrot. “Is that you?” the man asks. “Yes, and HEAVEN! IS WATCHING YOU!!” responds the parrot. “What is your name parrot” asks the man. “god” said the parrot. “Who in the world would name a parrot ‘god’?” The parrot responds, “The same people who call their pit bull ‘Heaven’”. “UhO”.
Far too often people think of God as someone who pricks our conscience when we do something wrong, or worse, as a watchman, a resident cop, the Big Guy upstairs with a fly swatter. Someone who is out to swat us if we mess up. People live in the “Dark Ages” with thinking that God is out to get us and we can not do much to please Him. They hope they are doing enough good to “get into heaven” or they give up and live lives in quite desperation unbecoming to be a person created by and belonging to God.
How are you Living?
My question is, “How many of us live in the Light seeking everyday to find God’s will for us in our lives?” How many of us really think about our salvation? We fail ourselves when we do not seek everyday God’s will in our lives to change us from ordinary to extraordinary Christians.
This change in our lives, His Will, this desire God has for us to live extraordinary lives in His Grace begins with forgiveness. We can pray often everyday, but our salvation, our Ultimate relationship with God, begins with
“Lord, I believe, Lord I love you, Lord I Trust You,
Lord Forgive ME! For I am a sinner.”
Our God is a God of Mercy!
Our God of Mercy is not watching for us to do something wrong, as much as he is waiting for us to confess our sins and ask Him for our needs. And, he wants us to ask big! How many loving parents hear requests from their children and purposely withhold their needs? We supply their needs even though their behavior is poor. But, how much easier it is to provide for them when their behavior meets expectations, especially when they say they are sorry after disobedience. We quickly forgive our children when they mean “I’m sorry” and very quickly not only supply their needs abundantly but often help them with some of their wants.
God’s Will, His Plan, His Desires is for us ask Him for forgiveness and to live in His will. In God’s infinite mercy, He then supplies our needs in great abundance, an abundance beyond our imagination. In living in His will, He wants us to pray not for crumbs off the table but for the whole loaf of our needs!
When we accept and live Jesus as our Savior, we receive the Holy Spirit into our lives. When we live praying daily and often every day for the Holy Spirit to fill our lives according according to our needs, then we build our Trust in God and come to Know Jesus intimately and abundantly. We then feel the blessings of the Holy Spirit and feel blessed beyond our expectations and no longer feel we are just surviving and existing in this life but feel as we are thriving in God's Glory of this life.
God’s Plan is Perfect for our lives.... live it.
Be God’s ever faithful believer and
watch what God can do for you and through you,
it will not be be ordinary
it will be EXTRAORDINARY!!!!!
Thanks Be to God
lonnie
Click here to Follow me:
==============================
Sharing these messages
You are welcome to share these messages. You can send the links to your friends, copy and insert the link on FB or Christian.com or you can print the message and share it with your friends.
You can print the message including this sharing message only for your friends and for non-profit. You will have to copy and paste the message to a word processing document. After you copy and paste add the following at the end of the message:
© Lonnie Coggins
ldcoggins@gmail.
If you desire to use any of these messages in a For-Profit manner you must contact me (email) for permission. Typically, I will most likely give permission.
intro
A man breaks into a house and the first thing he hears, "Heaven is Watching YOU!!!". Many people live their lives with the wrong impression of what God is concerned about in our lives. They are afraid of God, rather than focusing on why they should Love God. Click the link below and read on.
Please share the message on your Fb page as you like, and if you like, click the FB 'Follow' button to have notifications of these publications. For other messages like this, visit my FB page, or on FB visit-"A Daily Thought".
http://lonnieadailythought.blogspot.com/2010/10/heaven-is-watching-you.html
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Who - What Do You Trust
Trust
Instrument Flying
In mid Summer 1972 in Vietnam, near the end of our flying day came a monsoon rain that destroyed visibility for flying, As there was no visibility beyond our windows, we were not able to land the plane; after holding for 2 hours we were running out of gas. The pilot radioed Bin Hoa tower (just North of Saigon) for landing clearance as we would be on the ground soon, one way or the other. In the midst of our emergency, an interesting peaceful calmness came to my voice. I trusted my radar to talk the pilot to the runway. I even had to tell him when to flare the airplane nose up for landing as with zero visibility he had no idea we were to immediately feel the plane touch the runway. The landing lights on our plane finally showed us the runway, ... after touchdown. In my navigator training we were drilled with, “Trust your instruments”. In trusting my on board radar guidance system completely and talking calmly, my pilot trusted me. After landing, we carefully determined we had only 20 minutes of gas left. Hardly enough gas in the tanks to really register on the gauges. As we trusted our man created instruments, it brings to mind: we trust many things created my man, why is it so hard to trust our lives to The Creator God. I hope my daily trust in God's Guidance is greater than what we had in our instruments that night. I like to think so.
We all want to have faith and trust in something greater than ourselves. In ancient Greek, the word for faith (pistus (*1)) is also the root word for "to believe" and "to trust". But, there is more to it, part of the Greek meaning is "to trust". We have faith and build our faith by laying our trust and total belief in the object of our faith. The 'object of our faith' is the whom in which we come to have a relationship. What/Who do you trust and believe in. Is your faith in great abundance in a higher authority or of temporal objects? Remember, your eternal life just might depend on it.
It seems to be a part of our human nature to want to be in control, we find it incredibly hard to give up control of our life, even when we know something else will provide for us abundantly. On that night in ‘72 I had no option but to have complete faith in my instruments. AS these instruments and engines were, they were really in control of our lives that night, they were all I had to guide the crew and navigate through the storm.
As we come to know God's word, through the Bible we come to know God, in our Bible Study and prayers we build trust, and the Holy Spirit helps us grow our Trust in God, especially to fill us with His presence during our storms. Where do you put the control of your life? Where is your total trust and faith to guide and navigate through your storms in life. In your storms, and they do come, do you / will you have the Light. Or, are you still searching to find the Light for safe landings? Find the Light, it is already there, open your eyes, Read the Bible, pray and pray and pray....everyday..... before the Storm. God will lead you through the storms of your life, you just have to give up control to Him, and it is best done before the storm. *1
God's Word and Leadership is truly the
Best Instrument for flying though our lives.
=============
This incident occurred about a month after my visible encounter with the Holy Spirit that first night in Vietnam *2. Until the time this message came to mind this week, I often wondered why I was so peacefully calm that night in landing at Bien Hoa, it writing this, I now realize it was the Holy Spirit guiding my words. As we grow in Trust in God through our Bible Study, prayers, and trusting in our relationship with Him (our faith), we come to know more about ourselves and how God truly affects our lives. But, more importantly we grow in a greater realization that God Truly IS with us and He needs to be in control.
Peace be with you.
To God Be the Glory.
==============================
Sharing these messages
You are welcome to share these messages. You can send the links to your friends, copy and insert the link on FB or you can print the message and share it with your friends.
You can print the message including this sharing message only for your friends and for non-profit. You will have to copy and paste the message to a word processing document. After you copy and paste add the following at the end of the message:
© Lonnie Coggins
ldcoggins@gmail.com
If you desire to use any of these messages in a For-Profit manner you must contact me (email) for permission. Typically, I will most likely give permission.
Please email me if you find any broken links in this message.
*1 Storms in Our Lives
a Poem by Lonnie Coggins
*2 Self-Confidence,
(c) Lonnie Coggins
Permission is granted to use any of these writings in local Bible studies or sermons and even make copies to share with your friends. Permission will likely be granted by contacting me if you wish to use these writings in non-profit or for-profit publications.
ldcoggins@gmail.com
References
*1 http://biblesuite.com/strongs/greek/4102.htm
We trust many things and people every day. It is unfortunate many, perhaps a majority would rather trust themselves rather than God, even though He created us. Here are some thoughts on Trusting God.
http://lonnieadailythought.blogspot.com/2010/10/trust.html
To follow/subscribe to
A Daily Thought click >>>
A Daily Thought click >>>
John 8:12 NKJ Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life."
Instrument Flying
In mid Summer 1972 in Vietnam, near the end of our flying day came a monsoon rain that destroyed visibility for flying, As there was no visibility beyond our windows, we were not able to land the plane; after holding for 2 hours we were running out of gas. The pilot radioed Bin Hoa tower (just North of Saigon) for landing clearance as we would be on the ground soon, one way or the other. In the midst of our emergency, an interesting peaceful calmness came to my voice. I trusted my radar to talk the pilot to the runway. I even had to tell him when to flare the airplane nose up for landing as with zero visibility he had no idea we were to immediately feel the plane touch the runway. The landing lights on our plane finally showed us the runway, ... after touchdown. In my navigator training we were drilled with, “Trust your instruments”. In trusting my on board radar guidance system completely and talking calmly, my pilot trusted me. After landing, we carefully determined we had only 20 minutes of gas left. Hardly enough gas in the tanks to really register on the gauges. As we trusted our man created instruments, it brings to mind: we trust many things created my man, why is it so hard to trust our lives to The Creator God. I hope my daily trust in God's Guidance is greater than what we had in our instruments that night. I like to think so.
We all want to have faith and trust in something greater than ourselves. In ancient Greek, the word for faith (pistus (*1)) is also the root word for "to believe" and "to trust". But, there is more to it, part of the Greek meaning is "to trust". We have faith and build our faith by laying our trust and total belief in the object of our faith. The 'object of our faith' is the whom in which we come to have a relationship. What/Who do you trust and believe in. Is your faith in great abundance in a higher authority or of temporal objects? Remember, your eternal life just might depend on it.
It seems to be a part of our human nature to want to be in control, we find it incredibly hard to give up control of our life, even when we know something else will provide for us abundantly. On that night in ‘72 I had no option but to have complete faith in my instruments. AS these instruments and engines were, they were really in control of our lives that night, they were all I had to guide the crew and navigate through the storm.
As we come to know God's word, through the Bible we come to know God, in our Bible Study and prayers we build trust, and the Holy Spirit helps us grow our Trust in God, especially to fill us with His presence during our storms. Where do you put the control of your life? Where is your total trust and faith to guide and navigate through your storms in life. In your storms, and they do come, do you / will you have the Light. Or, are you still searching to find the Light for safe landings? Find the Light, it is already there, open your eyes, Read the Bible, pray and pray and pray....everyday..... before the Storm. God will lead you through the storms of your life, you just have to give up control to Him, and it is best done before the storm. *1
God's Word and Leadership is truly the
Best Instrument for flying though our lives.
=============
This incident occurred about a month after my visible encounter with the Holy Spirit that first night in Vietnam *2. Until the time this message came to mind this week, I often wondered why I was so peacefully calm that night in landing at Bien Hoa, it writing this, I now realize it was the Holy Spirit guiding my words. As we grow in Trust in God through our Bible Study, prayers, and trusting in our relationship with Him (our faith), we come to know more about ourselves and how God truly affects our lives. But, more importantly we grow in a greater realization that God Truly IS with us and He needs to be in control.
Peace be with you.
To God Be the Glory.
© lonnie coggins
==============================
Sharing these messages
You are welcome to share these messages. You can send the links to your friends, copy and insert the link on FB or you can print the message and share it with your friends.
You can print the message including this sharing message only for your friends and for non-profit. You will have to copy and paste the message to a word processing document. After you copy and paste add the following at the end of the message:
© Lonnie Coggins
ldcoggins@gmail.com
If you desire to use any of these messages in a For-Profit manner you must contact me (email) for permission. Typically, I will most likely give permission.
Please email me if you find any broken links in this message.
lonnie
Publication 0000
*1 Storms in Our Lives
a Poem by Lonnie Coggins
*2 Self-Confidence,
(c) Lonnie Coggins
Permission is granted to use any of these writings in local Bible studies or sermons and even make copies to share with your friends. Permission will likely be granted by contacting me if you wish to use these writings in non-profit or for-profit publications.
ldcoggins@gmail.com
References
*1 http://biblesuite.com/strongs/greek/4102.htm
We trust many things and people every day. It is unfortunate many, perhaps a majority would rather trust themselves rather than God, even though He created us. Here are some thoughts on Trusting God.
http://lonnieadailythought.blogspot.com/2010/10/trust.html
Old Baggage
Old Baggage Return to Main Menu
Matthew 5:22-24
22 But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, "You fool,' you will be liable to the hell of fire. 23 So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.
We all like to keep stuff. We move, we pack, and some of it goes in the attic. Years later it is still there and we do not want to let go. It does us no good yet we keep it knowing it would be fuel for a fire. The problem is, we pack emotional baggage in our memory attic knowing it is not good for us and not realizing it too can become fuel for a fire. What is worse, this old memory baggage can be about people we love that we chose to have close to us.
Jesus tell us that we must be reconciled to people around us, especially when we have been the person wronged. Being the person wronged can lead to resentment. From the scripture passage and for our time, among others, our gifts to God are our prayers. For our prayers to be fully authentic, we must not harbor resentment of another. No matter how hard we try to bury resentment, it can and will often rise to the surface in the heat of an argument and when we least expect it. Just when a fire reaching the critical point of superheated air, it will explode, likewise explosive words can crash our conversations when we least expect it.
If we believe sacred the words of our Lord Jesus, then if we are not reconciled to those around us we can easily slide ourselves into sinful behavior. When harboring sinful baggage, in time it comes to hurt us far more that it hurts those around us. We must live in Christ’s teachings to live in God's will. For your prayers to be more authentic, reconcile and clean out your attic.
Thanks be to God
lonnie
Return to Main Menu
Publications 4
Matthew 5:22-24
22 But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, "You fool,' you will be liable to the hell of fire. 23 So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.
We all like to keep stuff. We move, we pack, and some of it goes in the attic. Years later it is still there and we do not want to let go. It does us no good yet we keep it knowing it would be fuel for a fire. The problem is, we pack emotional baggage in our memory attic knowing it is not good for us and not realizing it too can become fuel for a fire. What is worse, this old memory baggage can be about people we love that we chose to have close to us.
Jesus tell us that we must be reconciled to people around us, especially when we have been the person wronged. Being the person wronged can lead to resentment. From the scripture passage and for our time, among others, our gifts to God are our prayers. For our prayers to be fully authentic, we must not harbor resentment of another. No matter how hard we try to bury resentment, it can and will often rise to the surface in the heat of an argument and when we least expect it. Just when a fire reaching the critical point of superheated air, it will explode, likewise explosive words can crash our conversations when we least expect it.
If we believe sacred the words of our Lord Jesus, then if we are not reconciled to those around us we can easily slide ourselves into sinful behavior. When harboring sinful baggage, in time it comes to hurt us far more that it hurts those around us. We must live in Christ’s teachings to live in God's will. For your prayers to be more authentic, reconcile and clean out your attic.
Thanks be to God
lonnie
Return to Main Menu
Publications 4
Ties that Bind
Ties that Bind Posted September 23, 2010
==========
Luke 18: 13, 14b --But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!' ..... for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted."
In 1772, Dr. John Fawcett was pastor in a small church and accepted a call to a larger church in London. After packing up one Saturday, he was ready for his farewell sermon the next day. As he gave his sermon he realized he had too many ties to his community and that afternoon he unpacked and stayed with his community.
Spiritual Fellowship is the greatest of fellowship in our lives and comes in two forms, our friends and the fellowship we have with our Lord Jesus Christ. Dr. Facett’s comments in his hymn “Blest Be the Tie that Binds” explains much of our fellowship with friends, but before we can have real Spiritual Fellowship with friends we must be in True Fellowship with God, the Holy Spirit and with our creator Jesus.
Fellowship with our Savior and friends begins with and and how we end with OUR prayers. Jesus on this earth was bound to our Heavenly Father through prayer. In Luke, on many occasions Jesus went off by himself to be in prayer (Luke 5:16, 6:12). But, before we begin our prayers we must have at least one required behavior - a proper attitude. An attitude addressed and defined by Jesus. In Luke 18:10-15, Jesus tells us to bring a humble attitude to our prayers. It is only though our humble prayers, acknowledging our sinfulness to God that we really begin our True Fellowship with Him. As we end our prayers, we should share the same attitude to God as Jesus did in Gethsemane Garden just before His betrayal. As, Jesus ended His prayers before meeting Judas he prayed “not my will but thine be done”, Luke 22:42. With the desire for Fellowship and with proper attitude, we can most authentically pray daily for friends creating a Spiritual Fellowship with each other resulting in a greater Fellowship with God. This creates “the ties that bind”, Spiritual Fellowship, the greatest of fellowships with our friends.
==========================
Ties that Bind, click the link below
This was the beginning month of publications.
Publication 003
http://lonnieadailythought.blogspot.com/2010/10/ties-that-bind.html
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Luke 18: 13, 14b --But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!' ..... for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted."
In 1772, Dr. John Fawcett was pastor in a small church and accepted a call to a larger church in London. After packing up one Saturday, he was ready for his farewell sermon the next day. As he gave his sermon he realized he had too many ties to his community and that afternoon he unpacked and stayed with his community.
Spiritual Fellowship is the greatest of fellowship in our lives and comes in two forms, our friends and the fellowship we have with our Lord Jesus Christ. Dr. Facett’s comments in his hymn “Blest Be the Tie that Binds” explains much of our fellowship with friends, but before we can have real Spiritual Fellowship with friends we must be in True Fellowship with God, the Holy Spirit and with our creator Jesus.
Fellowship with our Savior and friends begins with and and how we end with OUR prayers. Jesus on this earth was bound to our Heavenly Father through prayer. In Luke, on many occasions Jesus went off by himself to be in prayer (Luke 5:16, 6:12). But, before we begin our prayers we must have at least one required behavior - a proper attitude. An attitude addressed and defined by Jesus. In Luke 18:10-15, Jesus tells us to bring a humble attitude to our prayers. It is only though our humble prayers, acknowledging our sinfulness to God that we really begin our True Fellowship with Him. As we end our prayers, we should share the same attitude to God as Jesus did in Gethsemane Garden just before His betrayal. As, Jesus ended His prayers before meeting Judas he prayed “not my will but thine be done”, Luke 22:42. With the desire for Fellowship and with proper attitude, we can most authentically pray daily for friends creating a Spiritual Fellowship with each other resulting in a greater Fellowship with God. This creates “the ties that bind”, Spiritual Fellowship, the greatest of fellowships with our friends.
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Ties that Bind, click the link below
This was the beginning month of publications.
Publication 003
http://lonnieadailythought.blogspot.com/2010/10/ties-that-bind.html
Our Misplaced Amazement of God’s Work in Our Life
Our Misplaced Amazement of God’s Work in Our Life
Posted October 4th, 2010
Matthew 15:31
The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.
David Copperfield is a Las Vegas headliner with one of the great magic shows of our era. When people see his shows they know it is a trick and slight of hand but are amazed. We are amazed not of the trick but how well he can do the trick and we cannot determine how he did it! Years ago he made a space shuttle disappear and reappear. It was amazing.
When Jesus healed and taught, repeatedly the crowds were amazed, Matthew 7:28, 8:27, 9:33,13:54, and many others times throughout the Gospels, people were amazed. From Greek Bible and Word Study we learn that amazed in these cases can mean any or perhaps all of the following: astonished, thrown into wonderment, astounded, surprised, dumbfounded and several other meanings. People of Israel would wonder where He received His wisdom, His power, His abilities. They were yet to understand his divinity and most thought Him to be only human like everyone else.
Why is it then that as Christians, who profess his divinity, can too often, as in Jesus’ time, feel amazement at the fulfillment of our humble prayers, Yet, we know of Jesus’ power and wisdom from our studies, personal experience, and the experience of believers around them..
During the storm described in Matthew 14:29-31 Peter goes to Jesus and walks on water as Jesus does. However, as soon he is alone between Jesus and the safety of the boat and he looks around at the storm, and in loosing sight of Jesus becomes afraid and loses his faith; then he begins to sink into the water. Jesus is faithful and at hearing “Lord save me” Jesus pulls Peter out of the storm.
We pray for our needs because of our faith but why should we be astonished, astounded, or surprised when our prayers are answered. Could it be that our faith like Peter’s dissipates as we travel though our storms? In the midst of our storms, we must cling to our faith that God’s promises will be fulfilled in our lives.... and not be surprised at fulfillment of our prayers. Pray often ...... everyday ...... and let the fulfillment of your prayers build your faith. Fulfillment is God’s promise, pray and feel God build your faith, in doing so your faith will never stop growing even in the midst of a storm.
Just remember- God does answer our prayers and sometimes the answer is 'no' or 'wait'. It this case maybe something better is coming. Also, sometimes God calms the storms in our lives and sometimes..... sometimes He calms our lives in our storms.
Thanks be to God.
Addendum, A poem
Storms in Our Lives Lonnie Coggins (c) 2009
An eagle can sense a coming bad storm
In doing so, the eagle files to the highest stable tree limb
and awaits the storm's arrival.
As the storm approaches,
the eagle stretches out its wings,
allowing the wind to lift it up over the storm.
Likewise,
We must prepare for the storms that come in our lives,
Then pray for the Breath of God to come to us and lift our spirit,
so that just like the eagle, we too can survive our storms.
Our storms will come, we must be prepared.
We must pray, and pray, and pray everyday so that
You can truly know the Holy Spirit in your life.
Only then can you truly be prepared to Receive
The Breath of God to lift your Spirit in your greatest time of weakness,
Only then can you be prepared for the Storms in Your Life.
In receiving the Breath of God in our lives,
We learn to do what God wants for us in our lives,
We learn that our storms help us grow in our Wisdom in Him.
Thanks be to God for ALL things in our lives. 1st Thessalonians 5:16-21
Publication 0002
Posted October 4th, 2010
Matthew 15:31
The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.
David Copperfield is a Las Vegas headliner with one of the great magic shows of our era. When people see his shows they know it is a trick and slight of hand but are amazed. We are amazed not of the trick but how well he can do the trick and we cannot determine how he did it! Years ago he made a space shuttle disappear and reappear. It was amazing.
When Jesus healed and taught, repeatedly the crowds were amazed, Matthew 7:28, 8:27, 9:33,13:54, and many others times throughout the Gospels, people were amazed. From Greek Bible and Word Study we learn that amazed in these cases can mean any or perhaps all of the following: astonished, thrown into wonderment, astounded, surprised, dumbfounded and several other meanings. People of Israel would wonder where He received His wisdom, His power, His abilities. They were yet to understand his divinity and most thought Him to be only human like everyone else.
Why is it then that as Christians, who profess his divinity, can too often, as in Jesus’ time, feel amazement at the fulfillment of our humble prayers, Yet, we know of Jesus’ power and wisdom from our studies, personal experience, and the experience of believers around them..
During the storm described in Matthew 14:29-31 Peter goes to Jesus and walks on water as Jesus does. However, as soon he is alone between Jesus and the safety of the boat and he looks around at the storm, and in loosing sight of Jesus becomes afraid and loses his faith; then he begins to sink into the water. Jesus is faithful and at hearing “Lord save me” Jesus pulls Peter out of the storm.
We pray for our needs because of our faith but why should we be astonished, astounded, or surprised when our prayers are answered. Could it be that our faith like Peter’s dissipates as we travel though our storms? In the midst of our storms, we must cling to our faith that God’s promises will be fulfilled in our lives.... and not be surprised at fulfillment of our prayers. Pray often ...... everyday ...... and let the fulfillment of your prayers build your faith. Fulfillment is God’s promise, pray and feel God build your faith, in doing so your faith will never stop growing even in the midst of a storm.
Just remember- God does answer our prayers and sometimes the answer is 'no' or 'wait'. It this case maybe something better is coming. Also, sometimes God calms the storms in our lives and sometimes..... sometimes He calms our lives in our storms.
Thanks be to God.
Addendum, A poem
Storms in Our Lives Lonnie Coggins (c) 2009
An eagle can sense a coming bad storm
In doing so, the eagle files to the highest stable tree limb
and awaits the storm's arrival.
As the storm approaches,
the eagle stretches out its wings,
allowing the wind to lift it up over the storm.
Likewise,
We must prepare for the storms that come in our lives,
Then pray for the Breath of God to come to us and lift our spirit,
so that just like the eagle, we too can survive our storms.
Our storms will come, we must be prepared.
We must pray, and pray, and pray everyday so that
You can truly know the Holy Spirit in your life.
Only then can you truly be prepared to Receive
The Breath of God to lift your Spirit in your greatest time of weakness,
Only then can you be prepared for the Storms in Your Life.
In receiving the Breath of God in our lives,
We learn to do what God wants for us in our lives,
We learn that our storms help us grow in our Wisdom in Him.
Thanks be to God for ALL things in our lives. 1st Thessalonians 5:16-21
Publication 0002
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