Be Quiet And Praise Him

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Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, bids us to trust God. “Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46) -and I encourage you to read the whole Psalm; it’s awesome. Psalm 27 is also a great one. There, King David asks, “Whom shall I fear?” “Of whom shall I be afraid?”

I discovered sometime ago that reading these out loud not only stirs my spirit up in faith, courage, and even patience, but it also puts the spiritual realm on notice. The powers and principalities, and hosts of spiritual wickedness are very real. (Read The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis) In Jesus’ Name, we have authority and power to over-rule them. (Luke 10:20) All that being said, put whatever it is in God’s hands, and just be quiet and praise Him. It is, after all, the Lord’s Day! This is one of my favorite praise songs. Thank you, Chris Tomlin.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Money, Honey

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Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, reminds us that we are not to value money the way the world does. We are to seek first, last, and always, the Kingdom of Heaven. “…and all these things will be added unto you,” the scripture says.

The message bids us us to get away from money values altogether. I think a better way to put it would be to say: Get away from valuing money altogether. When I read that statement, I think of guys and their power tools, their cars, and stuff like that. They almost worship them, don’t they? Yeah, women do too. I still drool every time I see a Lamborghini Countach. We have to be careful not to let money rule over our senses and good judgment. Money isn’t to be our master or god.

Unfortunately, money does answer everything, doesn’t it? Yes, it pays the rent and bills, living expenses, etc. But money, unless it is used according to God’s will and purposes, and for the sake of God’s glory, is actually just stuff under our feet that trips us up. By that, I mean that it’s like rocks, pot-holes, brambles, etc. Rocks get in your shoes and make your feet sore. I hit a pot hole once, and thought I’d ripped the oil pan right off the car. Brambles and burrs stick to your clothes and scratch your legs up. See the hassles?

But when we use money according to God’s purposes-which are pavement, provisions, preparations, and presents…oh, the places we can go, the things we can do, the peace, power, and pleasantness of life we can provide. Handling our money responsibly is part of God’s plan. It’s part of good stewardship. Good stewardship includes tithing and benevolence, planning for the future -we are to leave an inheritance for even our children’s children, and advancing the Kingdom of Heaven-making sure the Gospel is preached in all the corners of the Earth.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Here’s to That Hush Within

eden08122015

Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, reminds us that we need to just determine to get peace and be still within. That’s where the storms are, really, aren’t they?

When I think back on some of the worst times of my life, I find they were times that I didn’t walk away and get quiet within. I didn’t take time to stop and regain my inner peace. It doesn’t matter what it is, loss of a job, argument with hubby/wife, argument with your child, whatever crisis-and yes, those arguments are crises in your relationship because they can strain and even break the bond that’s crucial there, whatever it is, you need to just stop and regain your inner peace. Just a quickly as you realize it’s going downhill, you need to step away and let God take the wheel.

He’ll remind you who and whose you are. He’ll remind you how much strength and power you do have. But, strength and power are not ours to rule over one another with. Rather, the strength and power are ours to use to overcome the evil, the fear, the anger, the doubt, the loudness of the friction and strain on spirit-yours and theirs. The Bible tells us that our strength lies in quietness and trust. It’s hard to trust God when you’ve lost sight of Him within you. When the “whatever” is screaming in your spirit, His Word in your Heart is pretty much inaudible; and your brain just freezes. I know, I’m living proof. And I’ve been on both sides of that fence.

Sometimes, you can’t walk away physically right then. That’s one of the reasons the kingdom of Heaven is within us. It’s one of the reasons His Word is to be written on our hearts. It’s also one of the reasons we need to know our limits. We need to know when we’re heading for the cliff, long before we get there. I’ve found it’s a lot easier to just pray and kind of “refuel” with that Word, right when I suspect things are not as they should be. In relationships, especially, it involves integrity and truthfulness. It all really goes back to your standards and boundaries. Peace is important to everyone’s well being, and also essential to promote progress and success. Chaos makes it impossible to get things done, to learn, to teach, etc. That’s why it’s one of Satan’s favorite games to play.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu