Go IS LOVE

The defining characteristic of God is that He is LOVE. He bent over backwards to ensure that we could remain in relationship with Him all through the Old Testament. When that didn’t work He sent His only Son to die a horrible, humiliating death so that we could be saved and considered worthy to spend eternity in His house.

Everything God does is done out of love. We may not always be able to see that but He has the whole picture to consider. So next time you are feeling unworthy of being forgiven remember this :

There is nothing you can do to make Him love you less

He is infinitely patient and infinitely forgiving. When you stuff up time after time He merely waits to pick up the pieces. Turn to Him today and when you sin and create a gap between you and Him, turn to Him again.

He loves you and the only thing you can do to disappoint Him is move away from Him in your heart.

God Bless You

Once Saved Always Saved ?

So how do you get your salvation ? Once you are saved can you loose your salvation ? Who is saved and who is not? Can everyone be saved ? What about the thought that different religions are just different ways for people to get close to God?

What are your thoughts and beliefs ? Please leave a comment.

The Benifits of Sexual Strength

I have written three posts about the battles with sexual temptation :

http://gefs.wordpress.com/2009/03/21/the-battle-with-lust/
http://gefs.wordpress.com/2009/02/20/eye-gate-ear-gate-and-the-battlefield-of-the-mind/
http://gefs.wordpress.com/2008/03/21/no-fantasy-in-sex/

I have received lots of feedback about the contents of my posts and generally people see them as being too restrictive. Some argue that masturbation is ok, others that there is no biblical basis to them and so on.

I am a thirty year old married male with 2 children. I wrote these posts because I want others to experience the amazing benefits of living a life of ‘sexual righteousness’. I grew up with pornography, teen sex and blatant sexual debauchery being the norm but in recent years I have discovered how wonderful it can be to be strong and faithful in the areas of sex and lust.

When you keep your sex life pure, no pornography, no masturbation, no fantasies outside you and your wife/husband, you discover a whole new world. There is so much danger in allowing a fantasy sex life to develop in your mind BUT there is so much benefit to not doing it. When you and your wife, or husband, are 100% exclusive in mind, body and spirit, you find a whole new level of trust, intimacy and love.

It is definitely not easy, it takes practice and you need to develop habits that keep you on track but if you make the effort, if you are determined not to let the spirits of lust and desire control you, you will reap the rewards.

May your relationships be righteous and all you do bring glory and honor to our Lord and savior Jesus Christ.

GBU

Tithing

If you are asking for verses to prove to you that you should tithe or you want someone to explain to you why you have to tithe then your heart is in the wrong place.

The reason you tithe is because you love God and He is your number one priority. It says “God, I love you and I trust you. You have given me everything I have and it is an honor for me to give a portion of it back to you.” If you have $100 a week coming in and you say “I don’t have enough money to tithe” you would almost definitely say the same thing with $1,000 a week.

I listened to someone share once and he said “Yeah well, when my tithe was only a few hundred dollars a month it was easy to give but now my tithe can be tens of thousands of dollars, it is hard to give away that money when you realize it could but a house!!”

It doesn’t matter how much money you have. Without God it is worthless. It doesn’t matter if you have to or don’t. What matters is that God should be your number one priority. If by tithing you cannot afford to get a new car, don’t get a new car!!

There are many benefits to tithing. When you break the power money has over you, you become capable of prioritizing your life correctly…1st God, 2nd family, 3rd work, 4th ministry (for most). You can also truly see how God looks after you and provides for you. And you get to be a part of doing God’s work and building His kingdom.

God Bless You

A Tactical Battle

Ephesians 6: 11-12
Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

I love how the word ‘schemes’ is used in this verse…’the devil’s schemes’. We are in a battle and it is not against an enemy with honor or pride. He doesn’t fight fair and he is not stupid, he knows what works! The devil uses our weaknesses, he is patient and cunning and his favorite tactic is to get us to undermine and defeat ourselves. He is persistent and he schemes constantly in order to bring our walk with God undone.

There is an old saying “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail” We need to be aware of our weaknesses and use strategies to avoid them or, even better, turn them into strengths. You have to go proactive on your war with the devil. If you are goaded by a lust of money you have to break that desire. Give your money away, pay your tithe and then some, develop a habit of choosing God over finances, cut back on your work and spend more time with your family.

If you are temped to watch pornography or cheat on your partner, declare to the devil and yourself that you WILL NOT DO IT!! If there is a person at your office or in your social circle that is tempting you, intentionally limit your exposure to that person. Don’t temp fate and flirt with sin by thinking you are strong enough to keep it under control. If pornography is the problem, get rid of your internet or find alternate activities to fill your time.

Tuesday afternoon is the only day of the week when I get home from work to an empty house. My daughter is at ballet class. It is pretty much the only regular time I have to myself at home. When I found that I was thinking about the dvds I could put on when I had that privacy I made the decision not to leave myself open to the temptation. I changed my workout days and I went from work straight to the ballet school to wait with my wife rather than being tempted.

In Ephesians 6 it also talks about putting on ‘the full armor of God’. Pray, read His word and make sure you fellowship. The prayers of the righteous are powerful.

Whatever you do, make sure you do something!! Don’t leave yourself vulnerable. You may be strong enough 9 times out of 10 but it only takes 1 time out of 10 to do serious damage to your marriage or your career or your walk with God. We are in a war be a tactical fighter and remember that the spirit that lives in you is greater than the spirit that resides in the world.

GBU

Greek vs Roman vs Jewish vs Modern Education

The Greeks were the first society to have a form of education as we know it today. They would sit around and ponder and share their ideas…philosophy. The Romans took the next step. They ‘trained’ people for positions in the empire. The Jews meanwhile would be assigned ‘teachers’ and would spend much of their childhood in the presence of a Rabbi learning the Holy scriptures and about the nature of God.

Each of these ‘systems’ of education has positive points but which form of education do you think is most prevalent in today’s society ?……….. We use a blend but I think most people will agree we lean heavily toward the Roman system with a portion of Greek and a sprinkling of Jewish IF you have enrolled your kids in a Christian school or are lucky enough to have them at a school that still allows prayer and teaches them something of God.

So what do our schools focus on ? The priority is overwhelmingly pushing children towards a position in the ‘empire’. We no longer do it as blatantly as the industrial evolution era education system, we have developed an appreciation of multiple intelligences and the individuals ability to grow and develop BUT we are still building our children up to become successful consumerists.

I don’t know about you but when I look at the crude oil crisis, global warming, the economic crisis and the plight of tribal communities, deforestation etc I get an overwhelming sense that consumerism IS NOT GOOD ! We need to change our priorities as a race from earning and spending money to learning how to live sustainably and more importantly spiritually. I think now, more than ever there is a real need for our children to be educated about how important it is NOT to live their lives chasing money but chasing God, not ‘taking their eyes from Jesus’, ‘running the race to the end well’ knowing that we will receive our reward at the finish line when we receive a crown from our king.

I’ll leave you with words of wisdom from that ever useful source of wisdom, a bumper sticker “Life is not a job”

GBU and if you are a parent, please remember you are responsible for your child’s education. Don’t just pay the fees and think it is dealt with. Take a keen interest and be an educator. Teach them, especially about God. Question them. Cause them to think. Help them to pray. Instill and impart the right values to them (which you can only do by spending time with them) Invest in your children but most of all LOVE them and make sure they hear it and believe it and know it every moment of every day.