Me Or Thee

The call has come. The game has begun. The rules have been explained. The outcome has been determined. Now is the hour of decision. Will we play by the rules and win, or will we ignore the rules and risk defeat?  

It seems simple enough; any wise individual will make the right choice. Or so you would think.

The game is life. We are all called to play. Christ is the rule maker. If we play by his rules, we gain entry into his kingdom. If we play by his rules, we win. 

Ah, there is the rub – his rules, his kingdom.  

What if I want to play by my rules and rule my kingdom? That is always an option, and many are those who make that choice. It is exhilarating – we get to be the king or the queen, and everybody else gets to be our subjects. What fun! Or is it?  

What if nobody wants to play by our rules? What if nobody wants us to be the king or the queen? What if everybody wants to be the king or the queen?  

Houston, I think we have a problem.

So, we acquiesce, and allow Jesus to be the King. Immediately, he makes us princes and princesses and gives us heavenly responsibilities in his kingdom. He gives us his name, and he shares his glory with us. Everything that he has he shares with us – his heart, his mind, his wisdom, and his wealth.  

He gives us time and opportunity to work with him building an everlasting kingdom where love and peace reign. Ultimately, we get to move into the eternal mansions that we helped build with our lives of service. All of our efforts in time turned into riches that will endure forever. All because we decided to play by the rules!

         ~ Brad Heilhecker 

Pray For The World

Lord meet every need 

Heal every hurt

Calm every storm 

May we cover our entire World in prayer always. 

                ~ XXOO Michelle Bollom 

A True Friend

Friends. Just the word conjures up visions of love, of joy, and of peace, of security in having found someone with whom we can be ourselves, someone who is willing to be themselves with us. 

No greater treasure is there to be found than a true friend.  

Money can’t buy one; service can’t earn one; friendship has to be freely offered and freely received; it is a gift, a priceless gift.

Friends bind their souls together in a pact which silently says, “We will weather life’s storms together; we will share a common fate.” 

 That is why divorce is so deadly; a friendship pact has been torn asunder.  

And it is why marriage should not be entered into unadvisedly.  

All friendships are to be taken very seriously, since, in this life, we may only have a few close friends.  

Friendships require a sharing of everything that we call “mine” – our time, our heart, and our love. They start with a small commitment which grows with time until that friend is a part of our daily thought and prayer life.

Amazingly, God, the creator of all, wants to be our friend. He who owns everything values our friendship above all else. He who has all power needs friends. That may be his only need.  

Let us share his heart and his mind; let us be his friend. He shares everything he has with his friends; he holds nothing back. He even has committed all of his resources to help us become like him so that we can see life from his perspective, feel what he feels, and know what he knows.  

He wants a relationship with equals. Though he desires for us to worship him, (for he is worthy of all worship and praise), he also wants to share himself with us. He just wants for us to value him as much as he values us.  

It is a reciprocal relationship. He first gives himself to us, and, in return, we give ourselves back to him. Together, we can do all things; the possibilities are limitless. It is exactly why eternal life, which Jesus said is knowing God, lasts forever.

     ~ Brad Heilhecker 

Seek

          Let’s seek God’s will and not our own. 

            ~ XXOO Michelle Bollom 

For Such A Time As This

For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this? –Esther 4:14 NIV

Have you ever had a secret that you lived behind? Have you ever wondered if your secret could be revealed and then used by the Lord?

I can’t help but to wonder if Esther ever felt isolated by her secret? Did she feel lonely while estranged from her family? Or did she feel privileged because she was chosen for royalty? 

Esther could have denied Mordecai and her people. She could have lived in denial of her secret. However, she chose to take a stand; even though, revealing being a Jew should have resulted in her death. 

Despite her social status, she knew that she wouldn’t have power over the revelation of her secret. Yet, she chose to stay true to her identity. She did not forget who she was. 

Let us not forget our identity in Christ. God has a plan for such a time as this. He uses all of us, if we take a stand and allow his truth to be revealed. Ultimately, he wants us to chose life through the revelation of who he is. Allow the Lord to be revealed to you and those around you today. Participate in this moment here on earth. God is no secret. He wants to use us for the glory delivered by his works.

~ Baring His Beauty

   Tiffany Thomas 

You Are The One I Love

I see the mask you’re hiding behind

I see the pain you’re covering up

I look past your countenance

And see your heart filled with pain

I am the Great Physician 

I fill the empty spaces in your heart 

with My presence

Your past I erase with My blood

And as you move closer to Me

My light fills every dark place

in your life

I rejoice over you with gladness

I quiet you with My love

I rejoice over you with singing

You are the one I love

My grace covers you like a veil

I will heal your heart and deepest pain

I will betroth you unto Me forever

Like a wife longs for the affection 

and love of her husband

You will desire Me with your whole being

You will search for My presence 

at any cost

Prepare yourself to be One with Me

My end time bride

I will come for you

You will no longer call Me your master

For you will know Me intimately

My presence will be your dwelling place

Your heart will beat 

in sync with Mine

I will be your Bridegroom

your closest companion

your best friend

The One who died 

so that you can be free 

From everything 

entangling you

I long to hold you 

close in My arms

So that you will find rest 

Against My chest

It’s time for you 

To embrace My love

Escape with Me

Come sit at My feet 

and drink from Me

Look in My eyes 

what do you see?

I am so in love with you my daughter

Loosen yourself from entanglements 

keeping you bound

It’s in My presence that healing is found

I rejoice over you with gladness

I quiet you with My love

I rejoice over you with singing

You are the one I love

~ Ebigale Wilson 

 

I Wanna Be Different

Enjoy this weeks Song Sunday. ~XXOO Michelle 
Micah Tyler – Different 

Divine Appointments

We need to put God in charge of our appointment calendar, for he knows with whom we need to meet, when and where we need to meet them, and why and how we need to meet them.  

It is written: “A man’s steps are ordered by the Lord. How then can anyone understand his own way?”

Our part is to listen closely to his quiet, yet firm leadings. His part is to prepare the engagement, straighten our paths, and oversee the whole operation. Then, after each victory, we will thank him and praise him for his wisdom, knowledge, and strength!

If we are honest, we know that we don’t have the ability to direct our lives. Our power is limited to the ability to say either “yes” or “no” to Jesus. After that, the ball is in his court.  

Our fate is determined by that simple “yes” or “no” response.  

May our yes’s far outweigh our no’s!

      ~ Brad Heilhecker 

Kingdom Of Heaven

What about you and me, Lord? Tell me about you and your love for humanity. Tell me about your kingdom. Tell me about you.

You are living your life in and through me. You suffer greatly for your children to turn to you and be saved. Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom of love and light. You are love and light.

Heaven will be a big family reunion where everyone has good news to tell, and everyone is thrilled to be with everyone else. You will be at the center of everything, yet it will all be about us and how we came to know you. We will love and worship you even as we delight in being with one another. There will be singing and dancing and hugging and kissing even as we are praising and delighting in you, unhindered from any and all concern.

On earth, we can find heavenly experiences, as we yield to your working in our hearts, as we pray for one another, praise and bless one another, and comfort and encourage one another. You will come and make your home in our hearts and minds and bodies. You will whisper your secrets to us, hug and kiss us, and direct our thoughts, prayers, and actions. You will heal us from all of our fears, anxieties, and infirmities. You will guide us in all of your ways. You will strengthen us with faith, hope, and love.

                ~Brad Heilhecker 

Perchance

You indeed see the rain. But, do you see, also, the flowers? It isn’t raining affliction for you. It is raining tenderness, love, compassion, patience and 1000 other flowers and fruits of the Blessed Spirit which are bringing into your life such a spiritual enrichment as all the fullness of worldly prosperity and ease was never able to beget in your innermost soul. 

       ~ selected from McConkey’s Chastening

The entire exert is pictured below from Streams In The Desert 2 September 18th by Charles Cowman. 

For the time being no discipline brings joy, but seems sad and painful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness right standing with God and a lifestyle and attitude that seeks conformity to God’s will and purpose. ~ Hebrews 12:11 AMP 

So Perchance….

per·chance

pərˈCHans/

by some chance; perhaps…. 

We can all welcome the rains and storms of life as an opportunity to grow stronger and more beautiful. ~ XXOO Michelle Bollom