It is only in your mind

1.It is only in your mind.
2.You are just seeing things.
3. Hearing voices?

The list above all happen in your head, Like get your head on straight, meaning straighten out your way of thinking. The land of imagination is found in your mind. Creativity comes from your mind not your hands. Even scripture tells us to take every thought captive, and put on the helmet of salvation. So much power is in your mind.  I think that without imagination it is difficult for a person to believe in a God who loves us. Loves us so much He sent His Son to die for us. Think about it. If you are a parent, you would sacrifice your life for your child. You however would not sacrifice your child for any reason, and definitely not for people who hate you. But that is what God has done for us. Hard to believe isn’t it.
John 3:16-17 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
It is only in your mind – you must believe. Sin starts as a thought before it becomes an act and belief is a thought that can lead you to salvation. Believe in Jesus and you will have eternal life. Isaiah 55:8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.”
You are seeing things – He will open your eyes to see more clearly. Ephesians 1:18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, Psalm 119:18 Open my eyes, that I may behold Wonderful things from Your law.
Hearing voices? – Do you hear Him calling you? John 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: Josh 2:11 Hearing this has melted our heart, neither has there remained any more spirit in any man because of you, for the LORD your God is God above in the heavens and in the earth beneath.
If you have not already done this, I pray that you open your eyes to see the true love of The Father, an open your ears to hear Him calling you. Then open your mind to believe Jesus is the Son of God and receive Him as Lord and Savior.
Matthew 13:16 “But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear.

Good news comes but sometimes you have to wait.

With so much of my testimony being about pain and abuse I thought it was time to share a small part but a part of my life that had a lot of impact and as painful as it was there was great joy when the news finally came.

This April it will be five years since my mother suddenly died of a stroke. Yes this is a sad fact. I love my mother and miss her. Yet I am not focusing on this right now.
You see when she died I did not know where she was with Jesus. We had finally started having a real relationship and mending old wounds. We were finally actually talking. I looked forward to our Thursday phone calls. Something I miss now that she is gone. I know this is sounding sad to you but it this story  does have a happy ending.
Okay a year and a half goes by after her death with this nagging question. Will I ever see her again? Did she receive Jesus as her Savior? I thought that I would go the rest of my life on earth without ever knowing till I was in Heaven. God was gracious to me and did not make me wait that long though. A couple of weeks before Thanksgiving I read an email from my Auntie Mary in Hawaii. In the email she included a video clip of the praise and worship from her church. As I watched the dancers and listened to the music play, I read her email which said, ‘This is where your Mom gave her heart back to Jesus’. My mother had recently went back to Hawaii for her aunties funeral and while there she went to church with my Auntie Mary. The news that I had so long waited for had finally come.
I still miss her and love her, but I am grateful that she is waiting for my by my Saviors side and our life together is not over. I thank God that this news finally came.

Here is a video of the praise and worship from that church.

Giving Thanks December 26, 2016 – Thankful For Salvation

Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.”

2 Corinthians 5:21 “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

Acts 4:12 “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”

Art and poetry  by Julie Sheppard

Today and everyday I am thankful for the gift of salvation. It is a gift given by our Heavenly Father through His Son and our Savior Jesus. There was nothing that I could do to earn this gift. It is a gift given in love and all you have to do is receive it by receiving Jesus. Thank You Jesus for being the perfect gift, I would be lost without you.

Acts 16:30b-31 “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

 salvation  (săl-vā′shən)  n.

1.  a. Preservation or deliverance from destruction, difficulty, or evil.

b. A source, means, or cause of such preservation or deliverance.

2. Theology

a. Deliverance from the power or penalty of sin; redemption.

b. In religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism, deliverance from the cycle of rebirth and suffering.

c. The agent or means that brings about such deliverance.

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[Middle English savacioun, from Old French sauvacion, from Late Latin salvātiō, salvātiōn-, from salvātus, past participle ofsalvāre, to save; see salvage.]

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American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Synonyms

• saving
• help
• rescue
• recovery
• restoration
• salvage
• redemption
• deliverance

Antonyms

• loss
• ruin
• doom
• condemnation
• downfall

Giving Thanks December 18, 2016 – Thanking God For My Mother’s Bible

Psalm 119:105 (KJV) Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

This Bible is one of my favorite treasures. I grew up not knowing that my mother had ever known or believed in Jesus. It wasn’t until I became an adult that I learned that she had been a Christian. Unfortunately after she married my father and he became very abusive, her relationship with Christ had been left behind. You cannot lose your salvation but you can turn your back on it and walk away. Finding my mothers Bible was the way I had found out about her faith. She told me when she met my father it was in her church’s rectory and she was a part of the youth missions. Unfortunately after they moved to the mainland their marriage turned to the worst and she stopped going to church and lived as if she never had attended. Yet this discussion led to others and over the years she talked more to me about praying for me. Then almost 5 years ago she died suddenly of a stroke. I was heart broken not knowing if she had repented and  returned to Jesus. It was hard enough to lose her in this life but I wondered if I ever would see her again. Then the year after she died just before Thanksgiving I received an email from my Auntie Mary who had written to tell me that my mother had received Jesus as her Savior some months before she died in her church New Hope Oahu, and then she included a clip of the praise and worship. Although I missed my mother terribly this was the best news. I watched the video with tears of joy and danced as I watched them hula as my mother used to love me to dance for her. I still cry when I watch these, but not with sadness of loss but because of the beauty of His love and mercy and the knowledge she is with Him waiting for me.

Her Bible is old and fragile but it is a map of the words she read and what ouched her heart and now these words comfort me.

I am thankful for the Word made flesh that saved my mother and for her Bible which is now mine.

 

Need A Hero?

Look around the world today and you know there is no way we are going to make it without a hero. We have all the fictional heroes that you can imagine. Marvel and DC comics, and mythology has given us a long list to choose from. Superman, Spiderman, Batman, Wonderwoman, Supergirl, Thor, and Hercules to name a few.

The problem with all of these characters is they can’t save you. They are not real. They are creations of someone imagination. We all see the need for help, and the danger and violence that consumes this world.Unfortunately most of us do not see the True Hero. The One and Only Savior Jesus Christ. It is sad, that many would rather believe in a work of fiction than a real living God. We live in a fallen and broken world created by our sin then we turn in anger and blame the One who loves us so much He sent His Son to pay the price of our wrong doings, our sins. There is only One true God and there is only One way to the Father. Jesus is the real hero and He is coming back! Get ready because you won’t know the time, but you don’t want to be like the lazy virgins who missed the Groom. Don’t turn to the world for your help. Hold out for the One Who gave His life for you.

John 14:6 – Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Isaiah 43:11 – I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no Savior.

1 Timothy 2:5 – For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

 

 

Gifts Old and New

This old Bible still has use. Although it’s pages are worn, and some are even torn and stained.

It reminds me of where I was and how far I have come.

This Journal and Bible came from two friends who are special to me. Dawn Kozma and Amy (Martin) Clifford blessed me with this wonderful study Bible. Both have been of great use for me in relationship with my Savior Jesus.

For these gifts are used everyday.

Photography by Julie Sheppard

These gifts also remind me of the gift Jesus gave to all who will receive. The gift of salvation. The greatest gift anyone will ever receive.

18. Dear Son (Letters from God Volume II)

My Dear Son,

    The journey you are about to leave for will be one that I wish You did not had to make. I do not wish to be separated from you for even the shortest period of time. For We are One and the same, but it is You that will leave Our home. This is so that You can do what must be done so that Our creation can be redeemed. This love of Yours for these lost ones I share with You. Yet it does not change what it does to my heart to know what You will endure while living there. It pains me to know that there will be many who will not believe in You, and worse than that, they will reject and mock You. You will not be understood. You will suffer abuse like no other ever has. The weight of sin and suffering of the entire existence of man will be carried alone by You. I am so proud of You, for doing this when You do not have to. Yet while You do know what will happen to You, this knowledge has not stopped You from making the choice to take the sins of man upon yourself. So that man can be saved from death and himself.

   We know that there will be many who will not believe that You are my Son for many reasons. Your entrance into their lives will be a humble one. You will be born to a woman that I have chosen. She is young and has not been with any man. The man who will be her husband is a carpenter and a good man. At first the news of her being with child will cause him to want to send her away. Yet I will send a messenger to him and he will marry her and be a father to You on earth as men know fathers to be. They are still a far way off from completely understanding me to be their Father even though they do sometimes call me Father. The time will come when You will leave their home and do that which You have been sent to do. When You speak, it will be with authority. You will walk to most places, and travel by fishing boats to other. You will not carry earthly possessions. When You do ride an animal it will not be a beautiful horse on but on a donkey. You will live a simple life among these men and women. You are Love and forgiveness made into flesh.

   Though there will be those who will deny You, there will be a day when all will know who You are and what You have done for them, and why You chose to do this most painful, yet most precious act for them. Now you know that there is the group of men we have chosen, who will come to know You better than their own brother. They will leave their homes, families and jobs to follow You.

     Your presence in their life will bring about a great change, and give them hope and purpose to their lives. You already know that they will stumble and be afraid when their doubts surface. But the Spirit will be released to them through you. They will call You teacher, and Savior. You will be the friend and brother that they never knew they could have. You will feed thousands with little, and heal them from blindness, not only of what they cannot see physically but what their hearts and minds cannot. When You open their eyes, they will weep tears of joy and humility. For You will heal both their bodies and their broken spirits. You will deliver them from their sin. They will learn everything that they need to live from You.

   You will restore to Us that which was stolen by the one who We had to cast out. He will be coming against You from the moment You are made flesh. He will do everything to destroy You, for he hates You. His hate is almost as great as Our Love. Yet I know that there is nothing to fear concerning this for We both know what the outcome will be.      

     However My Son there is no parent who would ever want to allow what You will suffer to happen to their child. They would rather suffer themselves to keep it from their child from hurting. Yet I cannot do that. For this act only You can perform. I Love You, and I will send to You the Helper, and the one who will announce Your coming is already there waiting for You. Now it is my turn to wait for You to return to Me. You will do this when Your task is done. How glorious is Your love and mercy. You are My Lamb, and You are My Lion. I will be with You in Spirit. You are My Son.

 

Love,

Your Father

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