Born Again Christians Thread-No Bashing please

[live4christp1]

Just heard an excellent message on the radio.....David Jeremiah is still going through the book of Revelations and today he was speaking some more about the tribulation and 144,000 saints that are sealed during that time and who those people are. It was excellent!!!! He made a comment that I totally agree with "why, when the scripture is so blatantly clear, do we try to make it mean more than what is stated?"

He also talked about how even in judgement, God shows mercy....had never really looked at the texts he mentioned in the way he was speaking but he pointed out that even during the tribulation, there will those who are saved. He talked about how even through the flood he had shown mercy, said "how many years did he provide a witness and preaching of the coming judgement?" I didn't bring my Bible in with me today, but I am think it took 30+ years for Noah to build the ark (someone who has a Bible handy please give us the number) and during that time he (Noah) spoke to them (the people in the area) about what was coming. He mentioned several other and could have gone on and on. Talked about how when everything in Jericho was destroyed.....He had shown mercy to Rahab and those in her house.

Gods mercy is so amazing to me.

(Lamentations 3:22)
New Mercy - PCD
I thought that I had crossed the line
Walked away from love one time
Too many
I thought I'd used up all the grace
Set aside for my mistakes
So many

On my knees I found to my surprise
That your mercy renewed with the sunrise

You make Your mercy new every day
You change my life in so many ways
You cradle me in Your sweet grace
You fill me
Yesterday, today, forever more
There's one thing I know for sure
Fresh as the morning dew
You make Your mercy new
Every morning

Oh the wasted times that I have known
A prodigal away from home
Not knowing
Every day Your grace was multiplied
With forgiveness waiting to provide
To save the entire world
How much grace would it take
When the sun comes up
There will be enough

 

[luvthatduke]

Hey Cristy, you always have a great song to pass along, thanks!

 

[live4christp1]

Here is a little snip I found about the name Jehovah - Jireh, meant to get my book out and look at it last night but with homework, etc. time got away.

Jehovah - Jireh - The Lord will provide
This is one of my very favorite names of God and one that through the years has meant the most to me. Jehovah-Jireh means "The Lord will provide". God revealed Himself as the Lord who would provide way back in the first book of the Bible, Genesis. Abraham was about ready to sacrifice his son Isaac on an alter at the top of a desolate mountain in the land of Moriah. We know it was desolate because when they reached the base of the mountain, Abraham took with him the wood, fire, and knife that would be needed to complete the sacrifice. He must have known none of those things would be found at the top. He also took Isaac who was to BE the sacrifice and left two servants behind.

When they were near the top, Isaac said, "Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering? And Abraham said, 'God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering my son.'" Just as Abraham was about to kill his son, the Lord stopped him and showed him a ram caught in a thicket and told him to use that instead. God had placed that ram nearby in advance, knowing He was going to need a substitute for Isaac.

After the sacrifice was complete, Abraham named the place "The Lord Will Provide" which in Hebrew is YHWH-jireh. "Jireh" translates into "Provide" which is a word with wonderful Latin roots. Pro means "before" and video means "to see". So it means to see in advance or before the need is known. God is preparing an answer before we know that it is a need. (Genesis 22:1-14)

*** Anybody have stories of God's provision to share? ***

I remember when DH & I where new Christians. One Sunday when they started to take up the offering I looked and only had a $50 bill. Knowing that the money in the bank was committed to bills we had to pay, I was thinking to myself, "if I put this in, we won't have gas money, groceries, etc." But I didn't want to not give anything so I put it in. Later that afternoon I went to take a load of clothes out of the washer (top loading) and right on top of the clothes lay 2 $20 bills. No one had been in the house but us, and no one even knew anything about the offering that morning (only God). Apologies, as I may have told this story before.....

 

[Wishing on a star]

Thanks Cardaway,

I had just paraphrased what I had posted on that other thread, as I was too lazy to go try to find it, and to copy and paste it!

I do just want to mention here, that to Christians, Christ is 'God incarnate'. So, as a Christian, by definition, the 'chocolate' in this analogy would also mean 'Christ'.

Anyway, the whole point it is that is not OUR ability to call 'sin' or to 'bring somebody to God'!!! That is only within Gods power!

 

[cardaway]

Thanks Cardaway,

I had just paraphrased what I had posted on that other thread, as I was too lazy to go try to find it, and to copy and paste it!

I do just want to mention here, that to Christians, Christ is 'God incarnate'. So, as a Christian, by definition, the 'chocolate' in this analogy would also mean 'Christ'.

I realize that, WDWHound explained that quite well in the thread where I posted the cookie deal. I disagree, and find it dividing for the sake of dividing, but I understand.

And thanks to you as well. It was kind of cool to see my cookie deal again even if your use isn't what I was going for.

 

[Buckalew11]

*** Anybody have stories of God's provision to share? ***

I remember when DH & I where new Christians. One Sunday when they started to take up the offering I looked and only had a $50 bill. Knowing that the money in the bank was committed to bills we had to pay, I was thinking to myself, "if I put this in, we won't have gas money, groceries, etc." But I didn't want to not give anything so I put it in. Later that afternoon I went to take a load of clothes out of the washer (top loading) and right on top of the clothes lay 2 $20 bills. No one had been in the house but us, and no one even knew anything about the offering that morning (only God). Apologies, as I may have told this story before.....

I shared this before but my tax return this year was the exact amount needed for DD's school tuition and material's fee.
I remember when we got the refund and we both did a little day dreaming of other uses we could use it for. But we both know that DD is where she is supposed to be at this time in that school so we paid the tuition.

Oh and when we speak about God being in control and how it isn't our job to save and judge etc., isn't that such a relief? I remember as a kid talking to a friend about God. He was asking me a million questions and I was sharing what I believed. He didn't come to know Christ and at that time I was really down on myself. It was later when I figured out that I planted seeds and God would do the rest of the work. ahhh....

 

[ead79]

God has provided for us so wonderfully as well.

Last year I was downsized and didn’t have a job from February through May. My grandmother had just loaned us a decent amount of money, which we would pay back to her with a modest amount of interest. It was a win-win for both of us since we would pay her a little more interest than CD’s at the bank would, but it would be a much lower rate for us than credit card interest rates. We were going to use the money to pay off all our credit card debt and buy the furniture we needed for our new life together. Well, we bought the furniture and had paid off one credit card, then I lost my job. But the Lord had looked out for us. We were able to use the loan money to live off of (in addition to my DH’s salary, which had previously been a good bit lower than mine). It saved us from having to worry about things like keeping the power bills paid, rent, and other essentials. God is good! Then when I got my new job, I got a pretty large pay increase at that time. He is our provider. Amen!

 

[Grandma Bear]

It is so wonderful to know that God's grace is sufficient to cover any need.

 

[live4christp1]

It is so wonderful to know that God's grace is sufficient to cover any need.

God's grace is amazing! Isn't it a wonderous thing???

Your Grace Still Amazes Me - PCD

My faithful Father, enduring Friend
Your tender mercy’s like a river with no end
It overwhelms me, covers my sin
Each time I come into Your presence
I stand in wonder once again

CHORUS:
Your grace still amazes me
Your love is still a mystery
Each day I fall on my knees
Your grace still amazes me
‘Cause Your grace still amazes me

Oh, patient Saviour, You make me whole
You are the Author and the Healer of my soul
What can I give You, Lord, what can I say
I know there’s no way to repay You
Only to offer You my praise

It’s deeper, it’s wider
It’s stronger, it’s higher
It’s deeper it’s wider
It’s stronger, it’s higher
than anything my eyes can see

 

[ead79]

Just bumping this back up this morning. I also wanted to tell you about a moving experience we had at our church on Sunday morning.

This past Sunday our choir sang (I’m in the choir) a song that we have sung for years. It has often been a part of our Easter Story (passion play with music) that is presented every year. However, our pastor is beginning a sermon series about the second coming, so the song was very fitting. Well, about halfway through the song people in the congregation began standing up. By 2/3 of the way through the entire congregation was standing. Speaking for myself and the other choir members I saw, it was so moving that it was almost difficult to even finish singing it. Truly a worshipful moment that we all shared. Sometimes I am so blessed by being a part of the choir. I deeply enjoy singing as a part of my worship experience. Here are the words:

Lord I stand in the midst of a multitude
Of those from every tribe and tongue
We are Your people redeemed by Your blood
Rescued from death by Your love
There are no words
Good enough to thank You
There are no words to express my praise
But I will lift up my voice
And sing from my heart
With all of my strength

Hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah
To the Lamb
Hallelujah hallelujah
By the blood of Christ we stand
Every tongue every tribe
Every people every land
Giving glory giving honor
Giving praise unto the Lamb of God

Lord we stand by grace in Your presence
Cleansed by the blood of the Lamb
We are Your children called by Your name
Humbly we bow and we pray

Release Your power
To work in us and through us
Till we are changed
To be more like You

Then all the nations will see
Your glory revealed
And worship You

Every knee shall bow
Every tongue confess
That You are Lord of all

Giving praise unto the Lamb of God
Giving praise unto the Lamb of God
Jesus Christ Lamb of God

 

[live4christp1]

Elisabeth,

That is a wonderful song. I think it is so amazing how God uses music to work in our lives .

We have had similar things happen in our congregation, also where the choir is singing at the start of the service and people just start pouring forward to the alters and so they just sing it through again and allow God to move at His will. We always have an alter call at the end of service......but those alters are open at any time during the service if the Lord is speaking to someone.

 

[Grandma Bear]

Elisabeth,

That is a wonderful song. I think it is so amazing how God uses music to work in our lives .

We have had similar things happen in our congregation, also where the choir is singing at the start of the service and people just start pouring forward to the alters and so they just sing it through again and allow God to move at His will. We always have an alter call at the end of service......but those alters are open at any time during the service if the Lord is speaking to someone.

Praise God!

 

[ead79]

Wow, that must be such a moving thing to experience. Since our church is so large, it would be quite a sight if many people came to the altars. Once when I was in high school we went to camp over the summer. We always started the worship sessions with praise songs. The Holy Spirit was moving that day through the music, so the speaker stood up and said that it was obvious God was moving through song that day. He felt that he shouldn’t give a message that day, but rather we should just continue singing. Everyone left that worship session so uplifted.

 

[luvthatduke]

Praise the Lord for the churches like yours
that allow the Holy Spirit to move!
DH & I have attended a few that absolutely
would be appalled at such things - very sad.
It is always such a gift to be filled
and then see others filled, also.
It makes me thirst for the experience of worship
with our King in Heaven!

 

[ead79]

Praise the Lord for the churches like yours
that allow the Holy Spirit to move!
DH & I have attended a few that absolutely
would be appalled at such things - very sad.
It is always such a gift to be filled
and then see others filled, also.
It makes me thirst for the experience of worship
with our King in Heaven!

You’re so right! Whenever I have found a song especially moving, I always find myself asking God if we can sing that one in heaven. I figure that if we’ve got eternity, then we can work my songs in, LOL!

I received this email today, and I don’t know if it’s true or not, but the sentiment is wonderful:

The brand new pastor and his wife, newly assigned to their first ministry, to reopen a church in suburban Brooklyn, arrived in early October excited about their opportunities. When they saw their church, it was very run down and needed much work. They set a goal to have everything done in time to have their first service on Christmas Eve.

They worked hard, repairing pews, plastering walls, painting, etc., and on December 18 were ahead of schedule and just about finished.

On December 19 a terrible tempest - a driving rainstorm hit the area and lasted for two days.

On the 21st, the pastor went over to the church. His heart sank when he saw that the roof had leaked, causing a large area of plaster about 20 feet by 8 feet to fall off the front wall of the sanctuary just behind the pulpit, beginning about head high.

The pastor cleaned up the mess on the floor, and not knowing what else to do but postpone the Christmas Eve service, headed home.

On the way he noticed that a local business was having a flea market type sale for charity so he stopped in. One of the items was a beautiful, handmade, ivory colored, crocheted tablecloth with exquisite work, fine colors and a Cross embroidered right in the center. It was just the right size to cover up the hole in the front
wall. He bought it and headed back to the church.

By this time it had started to snow. An older woman running from the opposite direction was trying to catch the bus.. She missed it. The pastor invited her to wait in the warm church for the next bus 45 minutes later.

She sat in a pew and paid no attention to the pastor while he got a ladder, hangers, etc., to put up the tablecloth as a wall tapestry. The pastor could hardly believe how beautiful it looked and it covered up the entire problem area.

Then he noticed the woman walking down the center aisle. Her face was like a sheet.. "Pastor," she asked, "where did you get that tablecloth?"

The pastor explained. The woman asked him to check the lower right corner to see if the initials, EBG were crocheted into it there. They were. These were the initials of the woman, and she had made this tablecloth 35 years before, in Austria.

The woman could hardly believe it a s the pastor told how he had just gotten the Tablecloth. The woman explained that before the war she and her husband were well-to-do people in Austria. When the Nazis came, she was forced to leave. Her husband was going to follow her the next week.

He was captured, sent to prison and never saw her husband or her home again.

The pastor wanted to give her the tablecloth; but she made the pastor keep it for the church. The pastor insisted on driving her home, that was the least he could do.. She lived on the other side of Staten Island and was only in Brooklyn for the day for a housecleaning job.

What a wonderful service they had on Christmas Eve. The church was almost full. The music and the spirit were great. At the end of the service, the pastor and his wife greeted everyone at the door and many said that they would return.

One older man, whom the pastor recognized from the neighborhood continued to sit in one of the pews and stare, and the pastor wondered why he wasn't leaving.

The man asked him where he got the tablecloth on the front wall because it was identical to one that his wife had made years ago when they lived in Austria before the war and how could there be two tablecloths so much alike.

He told the pastor how the Nazis came, how he forced his wife to flee for her safety and he was supposed to follow her, but he was arrested and put in a prison.. He never saw his wife or his home again all the 35 years in between.

The pastor asked him if he would allow him to take him for a little ride. They drove to Staten Island and to the same house where the pastor had taken the woman three days earlier.

He helped the man climb the three flights of stairs to the woman's apartment, knocked on the door and he saw the greatest Christmas reunion he could ever imagine.

True Story - submitted by Pastor Rob Reid

Who says God does not work in mysterious ways.. I asked the Lord to bless you as I prayed for you today, to guide you and protect you as you go along your way. His love is always with you, His promises are true, and when we give Him all our cares you know He will see us through.

So when the road you're traveling on seems Difficult at best.. Just remember I'm here praying and God will do the rest. Pass this on to those you want God to bless and don't forget to send it back to the one who asked God to bless you first.

When there is nothing left but God, that is when you find out that God is all you need. Take 60 seconds and give this a shot! All you do is simply say the following small prayer for the person who sent you this.

Father, God, bless all my friends and family in what ever it is that You know they may be needing this day! May their life be full of your peace, prosperity and power as he/she seeks to have a closer relationship with you. Amen.

 

[live4christp1]

Thanks for posting that story Elisabeth, I have read it before I think in Chicken Soup for the Christian Soul. I'm pretty sure it is a true story. It was a blessing to me this morning.

 

[Tasha+Scott]

I have read that before too, Elisabeth...but I think I received it as a forwarded email, I don't remember. I enjoyed reading it again though.

 

[luvthatduke]

Great story, Elisabeth!

 

[Albertan mom]

Just wanted to say something to all those married couples out there-
I know it is very hard to do sometimes, but I think it is great for couples to just have alone time!

Our kids went to their grandparents house this week, and my hubby and I had a great week together!
We played cards, we talked, we slept in, we went out for supper, went to a movie, went shopping, went out for dessert, went on drives, went to the mall, and just spent time cuddling and enjoying each other!

Sometimes I am so busy being a mom, that I forget that I am a wife!

It was so relaxing. Even though we just stayed home, (hubby had to work a couple of the days) we had fun.
I think it so important for couples to take that time for each other, to re-kindle their love lives, and just concentrate on each other.

Just wanted to encourage you to take the kids to some relatives, and be alone!! Your marriage needs it!!

Happy marriage=happy kids!!

 

[Kerlynne]

Thank you so much for that reminder! I totally agree with you! I have seen so many moms get totally rapped into their children only, and i always think, gosh, when the kiddios leave the "nest" she will have a hard time. Like you said, I think it's important to keep those "fire's burning" You need to keep the interest, and to just stay in contact, what's going on. Like in the beginning of dating, just spending time with each other, getting to know each other.
Great reminder!