Signed, Sealed and Delivered!

Ephesians 1:3-14 (The Message)

The God of Glory

3-6. How blessed is God! And what a blessing he is! He's the Father of our Master, Jesus Christ, and takes us to the high places of blessing in him. Long before he laid down earth's foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love. Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure he took in planning this!) He wanted us to enter into the celebration of his lavish gift-giving by the hand of his beloved Son.
7-10. Because of the sacrifice of the Messiah, his blood poured out on the altar of the Cross, we're a free people—free of penalties and punishments chalked up by all our misdeeds. And not just barely free, either. Abundantly free! He thought of everything, provided for everything we could possibly need, letting us in on the plans he took such delight in making. He set it all out before us in Christ, a long-range plan in which everything would be brought together and summed up in him, everything in deepest heaven, everything on planet earth.

11-12. It's in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone.

13-14. It's in Christ that you, once you heard the truth and believed it (this Message of your salvation), found yourselves home free—signed, sealed, and delivered by the Holy Spirit. This signet from God is the first installment on what's coming, a reminder that we'll get everything God has planned for us, a praising and glorious life.

Who are we in Christ? What does it mean, this plan that He has for us? I suppose we all have questions that will never be answered until we get to heaven. It doesn't keep us from asking or wondering though, does it? We either believe all or nothing in Gods Word, there is no in between. When this revelation gets in our heart we will know WHO we are and WHAT we are entitled to because of Jesus. I have to know who I am! I have been doing a genealogy research to know more about my family, I wanted to know all about these people and where they came from. Same way in becoming a new creature in Christ, we should want to know all about our Heavenly Father and our new life. What are the benefits of being free from all our sins? What does freedom really mean to you? Signed, sealed and delivered when we believe just as the scripture states above. What wonderful promises that are ours. Please read the scriptures above and remember to be so thankful for what Jesus did for us on the Cross, this blood was shed for you and me, and all of us that will accept Him as Savior. I pray you will have a blessed rest of the week.

Memorial Day!

How many of you had dads that fought in World War II? I am sure the ones of us who did have lots of stories to tell. My dad was wounded several times and saw much more than a person needs to see. He never talked about it though which is normal among anyone who has been in war. A war where blood was shed to keep our country safe and free. As we are celebrating Memorial Day this weekend, we all should be focused on what has happened in this country from the beginning to present time. Everything was for freedom, all the bloody battles like the one at Shiloh. Hubby and I visited there when we lived in Germantown, Tennessee. I have never been to such a sad place! It absolutely broke my heart to learn of what these men endured. In all the wars that have been fought of course there was always blood spilled. People always fight for what they believe in, don't they? As I think about the present time, of course blood is still being spilled, but the big issue to me are the souls being lost. We truly are in a battle now from the time we get up until we go to bed. A spiritual battle that is raging because satan knows his time is short, he is on a rampage. You can see it everywhere. I have never in my life time seen so much going on. As my Aunt Donnie used to say, "we have more on our plate than we can say grace over". One tragedy after another! Surely one can see the time is winding down! Just watch the news and look what is going on in our country. This wonderful country that so many have died for! Abortions being the way for some to solve their problems, prayer being taken out of schools replaced with guns and condoms, people with evil on their minds continually, and the list goes on and on. Memorial Day is truly for remembering! Memories should change us when we know what can happen, like in Germany with Hitler. Listen sweet friends there is much to pray about! We must hold our Country up before the Lord, confess our sins and ask for our land to be healed. This is what God will do if we ask. As we remember and pray, lets make a commitment to be faithful to God and to our family and friends. God so loved the world, He did send His one and only Son to die in our place. This most important blood of all that redeemed so many and gave us hope for eternal life with Him. I hope you enjoy this holiday with your loved ones, be safe and have fun!

Thanking God!

1 Corinthians 1:3-6 (New International Version)

3. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thanksgiving

4. I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. 5. For in him you have been enriched in every way—in all your speaking and in all your knowledge— 6. because our testimony about Christ was confirmed in you.

What a wonderful promise from God Himself! We will be enriched in everything we speak and in knowledge. His promises are for us because of Jesus. Have you ever been in a situation where it was not clear what should be said? I am so thankful God hears and answers prayer , I experienced this very thing this past week and very quickly I asked God to give me the comforting words to speak. We should always be ready with a word of encouragement, but sometimes things happen really fast and it is hard to know what to say. This is just one of the many scriptures that tell us we can be ready to speak the words that might be the difference between life and death to a person. Let's always be ready because of this special grace given to us in Jesus Christ. I pray blessings on your special Lords Day. Also be thankful for the freedom that we can still go to church and worship our Lord!

Walking in Freedom

Psalm 119:44-46 (New International Version)

⁴⁴ I will always obey your law,
for ever and ever.

⁴⁵ I will walk about in freedom,
for I have sought out your precepts.

⁴⁶ I will speak of your statutes before kings
and will not be put to shame,

Because of Independence Day, we are allowed to walk about in freedom. God has blessed our country from the birth of this nation, so I am still paying tribute to all the men and women that gave their lives for this country. My dad was one of those brave men who served in World War I, he was only supposed to serve in four campaigns, but due to paper foul up, he served in five. When he came home, he was unable to hear for more than a year. The things he experienced was not ever talked about. Only when he was in his eighties did he relate a little information. War is horrible, and of course I can’t imagine what all he and others like him went through. Stories of death and dying all around, that grown men had to keep to themselves. He was wounded twice and received a box full of medals. If you have a loved one that has given their life or served in any of the wars, then you know what I am talking about. We need to remember what a price was paid for this freedom we walk in. The scripture above tells us when we seek Gods principles and live for Him, we will walk in freedom. Freedom from sin and death! Be Safe and have a thankful heart you are free!

The Cost of Freedom!

Ephesians 1:7 (New Living Translation)

⁷ He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.

In a few days we will celebrate Independence Day! There will be celebrations all across our country, picnics, parties, traveling and basically enjoying the few days off work. I just wonder how many will truly remember and pay tribute to the real meaning of “July 4th”. The bloodshed and heartache made it possible for us to live in a country where we really do have freedom. Men and women dying for their country, so the rest of us could be free. I wish there was some way that everyone just had to stop and listen to the story of our great country. It doesn’t matter if some people agrees or don’t agree, this country was founded on the principles of God. Godly men that wrote our constitution, men who purposely put God first! It is so very sad and upsetting to me to see our country begin to fall apart. What a great country we once had, when people really could have a dream and hope for the future. Of course if you are a Christian, you know this is not our home, we are just traveling through, and living by faith has always been the way. The future is not hidden from us, we know Jesus is coming back for His own. No, we don’t know when, but it will be soon. As you prepare for the holidays, please be safe and have fun. Remember the reason why our country is free, but the most important to remember is the cost of the Father when He sent His only Son to die for us so we could be free from sin and death.