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Our God is awesome. This blog is dedicated to that awesomeness. I look forward to the stories you have to share, also.

Friday, April 22, 2016

Satan's Biggest Lie

The Bible says that Satan is the father of lies. John 8:44 says “He was a murderer from the beginning and abode not in the truth because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own: for he is a liar and the father of it.” He deceived Eve in the Garden of Eden and has been tricking people ever since.

1. Satan convinced the world that he doesn’t exist. Did you ever hear anyone say, “The Devil made me do it? Satan is seen as a joke, an excuse to do what you want.  Lots of people don’t see him as a real person who challenged God and fell due to his pride.

2. Heaven and hell don't really exist. Jokes online state that someone is going to hell and he is driving the bus. He convinces people that these are only stories. A variation of this theme is that everyone is going to heaven, no matter what they did in life. 

3.There is no life after death. I remember asking my mother when I was a little girl, “What happens when you die.” She replied that nothing happened, it is just all over. I felt a great disappointment as I always thought there was more, that life continued. Now, I know souls are designed to live forever.

4. Another lie is that he is more powerful than God. His pride got him thrown out of heaven.  One hour watching news could convince you that he is winning. He does not want to remind you or himself that he has already lost.

These are all destructive lies of the devil to scatter God’s people and cause them to doubt and seek after pleasure and wealth.

5. But there is one more that is worse than all the others, I believe. It is that you have a lot of time.

We know that life is but a vapor, here one moment and gone in a heartbeat. James 4:14 says, “Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor, that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away.  

We may not have time to tell others about the hope that lives within us, the gospel of the good news that Jesus came to earth as one of us, died and rose again to free us from the weight of sin and despair.

Will we reach the unsaved loved ones in our families, in our neighborhood, in our country or the world? Do we really have plenty of time and should not worry about it? That is what the devil wants us to think.

Will we listen to the lies of Satan or turn away and embrace God’s truth and righteousness?

Antique watches-Public Domain Image from Pixabay
Bible quote in Public Domain  

Sunday, April 10, 2016

When you are a Christian, you will feel the Heat

In the second chapter of Daniel, we find the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and how God saved them from the fiery furnace.   

King Nebuchadnezzar made a 60-foot image covered with gold. He told all his people that when they hear the music of drums, cymbals, flutes and strings that they must fall down and worship the statue.   
He noticed that the three were not worshipping when the gongs sounded. He had them brought before him and questioned them. They said they would not grovel in front of the golden statue. 

He threatened them, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, If you do not worship at the sound of the music, I will have you thrown into a fiery furnace.” They still refused.

They told the king that God would bring them through it. Even if He did not, all would be well with them. They put their trust in God.

The king ordered his soldiers to fire up the furnace and make it much hotter than usual. He ordered strong men to bind the three men. The soldiers carried them up and threw them in. It was so hot that the king’s men died.

Soon, four men walked out of the furnace. Not a hair of their heads was singed. Their clothes were intact and they did not even smell like smoke. The only thing that burned was the ropes that bound them. The fourth man was an angel of God who kept them safe for standing up for their beliefs.

King Nebuchadnezzar knew that their God was the true God. "Then Nebuchadnezzar spoke, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king's word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God."

When you are a Christian,  you might not get thrown into a blazing furnace. But, you are bound to feel the heat of hatred, ridicule, name-calling or other types of persecution. Your God can protect you from the heat. Just trust him. 

Quote from King James Bible

Public Domain Image-No attribution required.