Don't kill your joy with the “BUT”s!

I love my job, BUT...

I love my husband, BUT...

I love my house, BUT...

Satan is a deceiver and will steal your joy every chance he gets. Don't let him do it!

Proverbs 18:20-21 teaches us:

20 A man’s [moral] self shall be filled with the fruit of his mouth; and with the consequence of his words he must be satisfied [whether good or evil].

21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for death or life].

Are you satisfied with the fruit of your mouth? Do you speak “fresh” fruit or do you speak “rotten” fruit?

The words you speak, like the fruit you eat, determine how you feel. If you eat good, fresh fruit, you feel filled and refreshed. If you eat rotten fruit, you feel an upset tummy. Your insides are upset and the unpleasantness runs through your entire body.

The words you speak react the same way. If you speak good, peaceful, loving, encouraging, comforting, etc... words, you will feel fulfilled and refreshed even during your times of trouble. If you speak hurtful, doubtful, mean, discouraging, etc... words, you will feel upset all the time.

Galations 6:7 warns us:

7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.

In other words, the words that come out of your mouth will determine the level of your peace in your life. So get in the habit of only speaking good words (fresh fruit) from your mouth. You will feel much better about your life.

A good example of the words we should speak is found in Galations 5:22-23 where it lists the Fruit of the Holy Spirit:

22 But the fruit of the [Holy] Spirit [the work which His presence within accomplishes] is love, joy (gladness), peace, patience (an even temper, forbearance), kindness, goodness (benevolence), faithfulness,

23 Gentleness (meekness, humility), self-control (self-restraint, continence). Against such things there is no law [that can bring a charge].

Peace is attainable.

In Christ's Service,

~ Darcel ~

Revelation 3:15-16 says:

15 I know your [record of] works and what you are doing; you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were cold or hot!

16 So, because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of My mouth!

Examine yourself. Be honest with yourself. Where do you fit in this scripture? Are you cold or hot, or are you merely lukewarm?

Are you totally against Christ = Cold?

Are you on fire for the Lord = Hot?

Or are you afraid of what others may think of you? Are you afraid to stand up against evil in front of your peers, your friends, or even your family? Do you sit in the lunchroom at work with your coworkers and join in the gossip about other coworkers, your boss or the company? Do you listen as someone tells you a dirty joke and laugh along with them at the punchline because you want to “fit in”?

My friend, you know the difference between right and wrong, good and evil. Make a public stand and do what's right. People are watching you and even testing you from time to time to see how you will react.

Everyone is searching for peace in their life. Become a shinning example of where and how people can find that supernatural peace that passes all understanding that can only come from Jesus Christ. As you surrender you mind and heart to Jesus Christ, you will also find that perfect peace. Paul assures us in Philippians 4:8-9:

8 For the rest, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is worthy of reverence and is honorable and seemly, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely and lovable, whatever is kind and winsome and gracious, if there is any virtue and excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think on and weigh and take account of these things [fix your minds on them].

9 Practice what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and model your way of living on it, and the God of peace (of untroubled, undisturbed well-being) will be with you.

Rest in His Peace.

In Christ's Service,

~ Darcel ~

Looking for Peace in your life?

Isaiah 26:3-4 encourages us:

3 You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You.

4 So trust in the Lord (commit yourself to Him, lean on Him, hope confidently in Him) forever; for the Lord God is an everlasting Rock [the Rock of Ages].

Christ has made so many great and wonderful promises to each of us. If we will keep our mind on Him, He will direct our paths. Those paths will be in His Peace. A Peace that you cannot even comprehend exists.

Don't believe me. Believe God's Word. He promises Peace to each and every one of us. That includes YOU.

Put your trust in God. Keep your mind on Him. Learn, follow and obey His teachings. He is your Rock. He will not falter or crumble, but will stay strong and powerful. That strength and power will protect you from the enemy and will guide you into His Peace.

In Christ's Service,

~ Darcel ~

We are going to address 2 sins that people of today try to ignore ...

1. Fornication = Sexual immorality = Sex out of marriage

2. Adultery = Sexual immorality = Sex with other than your husband or wife

Sin is what separates us from God, the Father. Sin in the world is what caused God to wipe it out in the days of Noah and start again. Genesis 6:7 tells us of God's regret to make mankind:

So the Lord said, I will destroy, blot out, and wipe away mankind, whom I have created from the face of the ground—not only man, [but] the beasts and the creeping things and the birds of the air—for it grieves Me and makes Me regretful that I have made them.

But be of good cheer. God promised He would never wipe out the earth again and gave us the rainbow to remind us of this promise.

As the years have passed, mankind has grown progressively worse and worse to what we have, today. I think all of you will admit things have gotten very corrupt and out of hand.

Although God promised He would not flood the earth again, He did promise us that He would throw Satan into the bottomless pit where he can no longer deceive and those who will participate with Christ during The First Resurrection will reign with Him for a thousand years.

Until that day comes, we are here on earth striving to find Christ's peace. With repentance and faith, it IS attainable.

So again I say, sin separates us from God, the Father. Fornication and Adultery are listed right with all the other corrupting sins and wickedness we live in that needs to be repented from. It's kind of scary as Romans 1:29-32 states we are worthy of death for these sins by warning us:

29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:
32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

It's time to repent and turn from your wicked ways if you want to find peace in your life. God loves you and offers you His peace. All you have to do is turn to Him and accept it.

In Christ's Service,
~ Darcel ~

God wants you to realize He loves you UNCONDITIONALLY.

It doesn't matter what you have ever done in your life, if you ask Him to forgive you and turn from your wicked ways, He will forgive you and give you eternal life with Him. John 3:16 is the verse in God's word that best explains His unconditional love for you:

For God so greatly loved anddearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.

No matter who you are or what you've done, God WANTS to pour His love out to you. He wishes that none should perish in the pit of Hell but that ALL should accept Jesus Christ and receive eternal life. 2 Peter 3:9 tells you of this long-suffering, unconditional love for you

The Lord does not delay and is not tardy or slow about what He promises, according to some people’s conception of slowness, but He is long-suffering (extraordinarily patient) toward you, not desiring that any should perish, but that all should turn to repentance.

But, that verse also has a warning within it. This opportunity won't last forever. There will come a time when God will remove the wickedness of the world, cast Satan and his demons and followers into the fiery pit of Hell and give us, Christ's followers, eternal life with Him.

All God's promises will be yours. He will take complete care of you while you are here in this life. Trust in Him, putting your life in His hands, and all your needs will be met according to His riches in Glory. (His riches in Glory is another teaching coming up, but trust me, His riches in Glory are far more and better riches than you can ever imagine.)

Just remember, no matter what you've done, God loves you and will forgive you. He has given us a story in the Bible that parallels His unconditional love for us, even when we have gone off on our own and messed up our lives. Read the story of The Prodigal Son found in Luke 15: 11-32. Put you in the position of the son and God in the position of the father. Then you will understand that God Loves YOU!

In Christ's Service,

~ Darcel ~

God Loves YOU!!

Take it personally. It's meant personally for you.

God knew you before you were formed in your mother's womb. He knew you before the beginning of time. Psalm 139:16 tells us:

Your eyes saw my unformed substance, and in Your book all the days [of my life] were written before ever they took shape, when as yet there was none of them.

God has great and wonderful plans for your life. If you will trust Him, if you will put your life completely in His hands and let His Holy Spirit guide you according to His will, He will lead you in His perfect plan for your life. Your needs will be met according to His riches in glory. (That's a whole 'nother lesson.)

Bottom line...you will live in the peace you are craving. God's perfect peace. That peace that passes all understanding. That peace that only God can provide.

In Christ's Service,

~ Darcel ~

God deals with you, One-on-One.

Don't get stressed out about “legalisms” or “unessential rules”. The Bible is very clear on some sins that we will call “essential”, such as stealing, lying, murder, etc. It's not so clear on others that we will call “unessential”.

Stop judging everyone according to your own convictions. This is not the will of God. Matthew 7:1-2 warns us:
1 Do not judge and criticize and condemn others, so that you may not be judged and criticized and condemned yourselves.
2 For just as you judge and criticize and condemn others, you will be judged and criticized and condemned, and in accordance with the measure you [use to] deal out to others, it will be dealt out again to you.

Romans 14:1-2 continues to teach us:
1 As for the man who is a weak believer, welcome him [into your fellowship], but not to criticize his opinions or pass judgment on his scruples or perplex him with discussions.

2 One [man’s faith permits him to] believe he may eat anything, while a weaker one [limits his] eating to vegetables.

5 One man esteems one day as better than another, while another man esteems all days alike [sacred]. Let everyone be fully convinced (satisfied) in his own mind.

Just because you think it's ok to do something, don't judge another believer for not doing it, and vice versa. What God has told one person it's OK to do, He may have told another NOT to do. God knows what He has planned for each one of our lives. What is wrong for one person may not be wrong for you, and what is wrong for you may not be wrong for another. Learn to deal with youself and let God deal with others the way He sees fit.

One person may feel comfortable to see a certain movie, yet another person is absolutely against seeing that movie.This is an unessential area. Don't judge that person for not wanting to see that movie by trying to talk him into it because you feel it's fine to watch.

Remember that God deals with us One-on-One. He has a specific will and purpose for each one of us. When we surrender our lives to Him, He does His incredible works in each one of us. BUT, the purpose He is working in your life is not the same purpose He is working in another life. Each purpose involves specific plans for that purpose.

You deal with YOU. Let God do His works in you and leave the others for God to deal with. Don't get in God's way for someone else's life. Romans 7:14 & 22-23 teaches us:

14 I know and am convinced (persuaded) as one in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is [forbidden as] essentially unclean (defiled and unholy in itself). But [none the less] it is unclean (defiled and unholy) to anyone who thinks it is unclean.

22 Your personal convictions [on such matters]—exercise [them] as in God’s presence, keeping them to yourself [striving only to know the truth and obey His will]. Blessed (happy, to be envied) is he who has no reason to judge himself for what he approves [who does not convict himself by what he chooses to do].

23 But the man who has doubts (misgivings, an uneasy conscience) about eating, and then eats [perhaps because of you], stands condemned [before God], because he is not true to his convictions andhe does not act from faith. For whatever does not originate andproceed from faith is sin [whatever is done without a conviction of its approval by God is sinful].

Choose Peace. Follow your conscience. The Holy Spirit guides you through your conscience, so learn to listen for His small, still voice. If you are uncomfortable about something, it's simple … Don't Do It! That uncomfortable feeling is the Holy Spirit speaking to you and guiding you in His purpose for you.

Choose Peace and you will find it.

In Christ's Service,

~ Darcel ~

You are special, too!

That's right. You are as special to God as anyone else is. Peter reassures us in Acts 10:34-35:

34 And Peter opened his mouth and said: Most certainly and thoroughly I now perceive and understand that God shows no partiality and is no respecter of persons,

35 But in every nation he who venerates and has a reverential fear for God, treating Him with worshipful obedience and living uprightly, is acceptable to Him and sure of being received and welcomed [by Him].

God is no respecter of persons. His promises are for you just as much as they are for great evangelists like Billy Graham and Joyce Meyer. If you follow His will and live for Christ, His promises are for you, too.

Put your faith in God. He will direct your paths and bring you into His peace.

In Christ's Service,

~ Darcel ~

Don't look back.

We've all made mistakes in our lives. We are all sinners. Christ died for those sins and forgives us when we ask Him and accept Him into our hearts. It doesn't matter what you've done, He will forgive you. If Hitler asked for forgiveness of His sins and meant it in His heart, Christ would welcome him in Heaven.

We all feel badly for our sins. Regret committing them. Feel guilty.

Hebrews 12:1 tells us:
Therefore then, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses [who have borne testimony to the Truth], let us strip off and throw aside every encumbrance (unnecessary weight) and that sin which so readily (deftly and cleverly) clings to and entangles us, and let us run with patient endurance and steady and active persistence the appointed course of the race that is set before us,

We can't take them back. All we can do is receive forgiveness and move forward. Let the guilt or whatever may be holding you back, go. Receive the freedom from these bondages.

Paul encourages us in Philippians 3:13-14:
13 I do not consider, brethren, that I have captured and made it my own [yet]; but one thing I do [it is my one aspiration]: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,
14 I press on toward the goal to win the [supreme and heavenly] prize to which God in Christ Jesus is calling us upward.

Don't look back. Move forward in Christ's peace. He freely gives it to you, free for the taking.

In Christ's Service
~ Darcel ~

Congratulations! You're a Believer! You have asked God into your life. You have asked Him to forgive you of your sins. You have accepted His forgiveness. You are on the road to victory!

Now it's time to move on with your life. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you, and He will.

Matthew 7:7-8 teaches us:

7 Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you.

8 For everyone who keeps on asking receives; and he who keeps on seeking finds; and to him who keeps on knocking, [the door] will be opened.

Your conscience is a special gift from God. None of us are perfect and we were all full of problems when we first came to Christ. The Holy Spirit will use your conscience to guide you. We don't always know if the things we do or the way we act are proper in God's eyes, but the Holy Spirit will guide you. Simple rule of thumb: If you go to do something and you feel uneasy about it, don't do it. That's the Holy Spirit speaking to you. Listen for His still, small voice and you will hear it.

In Christ's Service,
~ Darcel ~

You probably fall in one of these categories or something similar:

You go to church every Sunday. You may even teach Sunday School. The rest of the week you don't give Christ a thought as you live your sin-filled life the way YOU want to live it. Just because you go to church doesn't mean you will go to heaven if Christ were to come take His believers right now. Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.
~ Or Maybe ~
You went to a prayer meeting one time where the Spirit really moved. You felt the excitement and conviction of the Holy Spirit in your heart and you even walked down the aisle and repeated the words as they led you in a sinner's prayer. Christ was there with you. Problem is, you left that meeting and went right back to living the sin-filled life you had been living before that meeting and had no intention of changing.
~ Or Maybe ~
A family member or friend took you to church when you were young. You know the Bible stories and you know that Jesus died on the cross and even rose from the dead to go be in heaven. You know the teachings of Christmas and Easter. With all kinds of "head" knowledge but no "heart" knowledge, you continue living your sin-filled life.

No matter which of these categories you fit into, you live an unhappy, unfulfilled life. You feel alone. You may even be frantic. You could be worrying about where your next rent payment, electric bill payment or even meal will come from. You may be crying and stressed that you need to find a job in order to survive. Your marriage may be falling apart. Whatever the issue is in your life, you are not content. Bottom line, you are not at peace.

I'm here to tell you there is a BETTER WAY! There is HOPE for you. Just reach out and take it. Christ is waiting to forgive you of all your sins and lead you into His peace. But you must sincerely accept Him into your heart and turn from your sinful life.

You won't be perfect over night. There are not ten million rules you must follow. But you will know how to change your life as time goes on. The Holy Spirit will teach you and guide you. 

You have done things YOUR way,long enough, and look where it's gotten you. It's time to let Christ take over your life.

God WANTS to help you. The same God that hung the stars in the sky WANTS to bless you. The same God that feeds the birds WANTS to feed you if you put your trust in Him. The same God that went with Moses to Pharoah and demanded that he free the Israelites from bondage WANTS to free you from your bondage.

God has made many promises to you, if you will only trust Him. He is your strength in weak times. He is your shield against the daggers the enemy throws at you. He will protect you if you will put your faith in Him.

Jesus tells us in Matthew 11:28-30:
28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy-laden and overburdened, and I will cause you to rest. [I will ease and relieve and refresh your souls.]
29 Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am gentle (meek) and humble (lowly) in heart, and you will find rest (relief and ease and refreshment and recreation and blessed quiet) for your souls.
30 For My yoke is wholesome (useful, good—not harsh, hard, sharp, or pressing, but comfortable, gracious, and pleasant), and My burden is light and easy to be borne.

Christ's peace is right there, waiting for you to accept it.

In Christ's Service,
~ Darcel ~

Look in the mirror at yourself. I know it's hard to do sometimes, but you need to reflect on your life to make sure of where you're standing is with God.

With all that is going on with Israel, you need to evalutate your life. If the Rapture were to take place at this moment...if Christ were to take His believers up out of this earth to be with Him this minute...would you be among those to go with Him?

Christ warns us in Matthew 7:21-23
21 Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father Who is in heaven.
22 Many will say to Me on that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name and driven out demons in Your name and done many mighty works in Your name?
23 And then I will say to them openly (publicly), I never knew you; depart from Me, you who act wickedly [disregarding My commands].

Be honest with yourself. Do you say "Sure I'm a Christian. I pray to God. I know who Jesus Christ is. I believe in Him. ~Or~ Are you doing the will of God? Have you truly taken Christ into your heart and are living for Him? It's time to wake up before it's too late.

In Christ's Service,
~ Darcel ~