Making Straight The Path

Today’s message comes to us from Psalm 50. It is God calling us out; God calling us to account. There’s a good checklist within, from verses 14-20.

We’re told to offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform our vows to the Most High. This brings Jesus’ words home so powerfully to me. “Go first, and learn what this means: I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.” I learned something about blessing my enemies, and especially those who bait, curse, and persecute us. That thanksgiving sacrifice helps me refocus on my Savior, and what’s important to Him. I believe when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, all the Words in the Bible become “law” to us; or they should, anyway. 2Timothy 3:16 tells us this. I’m thinking of my dad whenever he would say, “What your mom says is law.” So, when we set out to do the will of God in all things, we’re essentially, taking, or making, a vow. We’ve made a vow to obey His Word.

As I read the psalm, I am convicted. There’s hope, though. Praise God! Verse 23 tells us: “The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; to one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God!” As we thank God, we’re glorifying Him, which brings us closer to Him, creating a stronger desire to please Him. This really pleases Him, and sets that salvation in motion. We’re shown the error, the thorn, whatever it may be. We’re guided by the Spirit to correct ourselves and remedy the problem. The path is once again made straight.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Stepping Into Christ

Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, reminds us that Jesus is our Savior every day, in every way. The message speaks to us of our refuge, our sanctuary, God. He is where we need to flee to from everything that threatens to overwhelm us.

He is where we need to flee to from ourselves. I think of Peter whenever I read this message. Peter, walking on the water, Peter, falling into the water, Peter, crying out to the Lord, “Save me!” We’re bid, in the message to enter that Presence of God and absorb His Divinity. It is that Divinity that has overcome the world, because that Divinity created the world. That includes us. It isn’t just the world around us that can cause us trouble. The world in us, or the flesh nature, can be horribly wounding, confusing, and overwhelming to our Divine nature, our spirit. Thank God we have Jesus to save us from ourselves.

The one scripture that speaks so loudly to me on this, is “The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.” (1 Cor. 2:16) This is telling us that we have a license to sin. It says to us that Christ Jesus is our judge. Therefore, we need not fear the condemnation of men, nor worry about their opinions of us, how we rate with them, etc. We are freed from that in Christ Jesus. We’re also freed from self condemnation. It’s a journey; not a test. Nor is it a trial. The trial already happened in Jerusalem when they arrested the King of kings and condemned Him to death.

Realizing Christ’s mind is ours is a powerful revelation, and an awesomely electrifying surge of strength, spiritually. It means I can learn from Jesus, how He viewed the Heavenly Father, the world around Him, all the stuff He had to deal with and listen to, and do. Jesus is not just a meek and weak little lamb. Jesus is the Lion of the tribe of Judah! Kingly, regal, in authority; that’s Jesus, our Savior. He’s by no means a bully. But, He definitely knows who and whose He is, and what rights and responsibilities He has. He never wavered, never altered His order/way of dealing with things, etc. When we can do that….WOW!!!!! You can almost feel the bonds of the “world” and all its “stuff” fall off, and freedom bursting up from within. That’s how Jesus could tell us, “In the world you’ll have tribulation. But be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world. (John 16:33) Thank you, Jason Upton for this awesome version of Freedom Reigns.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Stay With Him; He’s With You

Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, reminds us that it is not the scorn and mocking of the enemy that hurts…it is the scorn, mocking, the rejection and desertion of our friends that tears our hearts. Our Lord, Jesus, is wounded by our desertion. We don’t think about it as being desertion when we give up and go our own way in the storm. That’s exactly what it is, though; desertion. When I realized how much I was, not only hurting Jesus, but myself as well, I began to pray and ask Him , “please don’t let me let go of your hand, Lord.” I’m so happy to say there is no more letting go…now it’s just, “Okay, Lord, let’s go.” Praise God!

I hope this blesses you as much as it does me. It’s a great way to start the week out…worshiping our Savior, our Lord, our Joy! Thank you, Gaither Family

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Me And My Big Gulp Cup

Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, reminds us that the first step is always praise. It brings our God on the scene. Always turn to the LORD/Lord-He’s right there for us. Even when we’re ashamed of our feeble faith and failure, Jesus is still the Savior-even in your shame, and especially in the distress of your shame.

As I read the message this morning, I thought about the desert I was in sixteen years ago. I had long ago forgone the well of my father Jacob. I knew that wasn’t going to get me anywhere. I was dying of thirst in this desert my life had become. And, true to his nature, the evil one whispered in my ear, trying to keep me there. “There’s no Jesus here,” he whispered. “There’s no well here in this place.” Here’s where I have to thank God again for my Grandma. See, she always said I could do anything I wanted to do. She even told someone not to tell me I couldn’t do something. Thanks to her, I got this spirit of “yes I can,” in me. So, I said to that devil, “Oh, yeah? Is that a rock I see over there?!” LOL I’m laughing now, but let me tell you, when I got to that rock, and it turned into a wellspring… Jesus said, “I saved a cup for you.” And let me tell you, I drank and drank, and drank some more! I was so parched it wasn’t even funny. These days, I have to laugh every time I see one of those Big Gulp cups from Seven Eleven. Thank you, Jesus!

One of my favorite praise and worship songs is Sometimes It Takes A Mountain. Every time I hear it, I’m reminded that there is treasure in every distressing moment. And, sometimes, because I get so busy, or so distracted, stubborn, pouty, and even have gone off and away at times…I find myself distressed by the shame of failing, flailing, and faltering…but Jesus is faithful, and always there with arms wide open. He rushes in to save me in my distress, to correct me, and to encourage me to keep going. I hope this song blesses you; it always does me. *I don’t go off and away from the Lord anymore-I finally learned that’s where I want to stay-especially in times of distress.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Loving Him More Builds Faith

Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, reminds us that God is in every experience we have in life. His love is always there for us. Each experience, be it a good one, or one that makes you feel like the world’s coming apart at the seams, brings forth another particular aspect of God’s character. It also illuminates that character in us. Sadly, I must admit that it sometimes does not shine nearly as bright in me. Thankfully, God is loving, merciful, and patient. He always picks me up and dusts me off…and sets me on my feet again. “Keep going,” I can hear Him whisper.

As we love Him more, we seek Him more, and our faith in Him grows. As our faith in Him grows, we can’t help but love and seek Him more and more. What a wonderful Savior! I said this year’s blog would be more about walking it out. If there is one thing that draws me nearer to God every time and any time, it is praise and worship. Even one little line of a praise song can bring Him on the scene. LOL I’ve found this one from Elevation Worship. I hope it will bless you.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

The Bridge From Death To Life

Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, bids us to learn from our Lord, Jesus. It is in learning of, and from Him, that we begin to dwell, or abide in Him. Therein lies our power, our passion, our purpose, and our peace. The message tells us that teachers are to point the way to the Lord. Then we must accept Him, and learn of, and from Him.

“Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not come under judgment. Indeed, he has crossed over from death to life.” (John 5:24) As I think of this scripture in terms of salvation, I am reminded of my own salvation. As a young child, I attended church with my grandmother. Growing up, I spent a couple of summers at Bible Camp. As a teenager, I attended church alone; neither of my parents went to church. At the age of 14, I said the sinner’s prayer, and accepted the Lord as my Savior. But it wasn’t until I found myself alone with the Lord, at that well…(John 4:5)…that I really got saved. It was there that I realized I’d been drinking from the wrong well. (John 4:12) “Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us this well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock?” I’d read that verse probably 100 times before. This time, it hit me like a ton of bricks. This is exactly what happens in generational curses.

That’s when things began to change in my life; because that’s when I began to change. I began to seek out the Lord and study His teachings. I began to really look closely at my life, at my habits, my hurts, my thoughts and attitudes, etc. Then, I began to learn from the Lord (The Word-made flesh). We truly do cross over from death to life, as we begin to change our attitudes, our thinking, our words, and our ways. It isn’t a simple process, it’s a lifelong process…but, really, it is a simple solution. When we die to all those old dead and deadly ways, we can rise to the right ways; to ways that honor, create, and sustain life.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

All Of Them Were Written In His Book

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Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, reminds us that God is our savior every day! See, even those guardian angels need backup. LOL As I read the message at twolisteners.org, I thought of Psalm 139. It is so incredibly beautiful to me! I just want to throw myself into our Heavenly Father’s arms whenever I read it.

“Your eyes saw my unformed body; all my days were written in Your book and ordained for me before one of them came to be.” Psalm 139: 16 (BSB)

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Simplicity Helps In The Striving

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Happy Birthday, America! God bless the USA! May we have a beautiful and peaceful day, and may the spirit of unity as men and women of the human race prevail.

Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, reminds us that God is our friend, as well as our Heavenly Father, our provider, savior, healer, and judge. Getting to know Him in all those capacities really deepens and solidifies one’s relationship with Him. In knowing Him and walking with Him, we become like Him.

The end of the message tells us to seek simplicity in all things. As I thought about this in terms of relationships and generational curses, I was brought to the ten commandments. I thought about the precepts and statutes of God. He makes them perfectly clear to us, doesn’t He? This makes, and keeps, the doing and being simple; don’t you think? This is because we know what is expected of us, and what to expect from Him. (Psalm 93:5) “Your decrees are very trustworthy; holiness befits your house, O LORD, forevermore.”

When we apply this principle to overcoming generational curses, to parenting -remember that new-born child within you -keeping it simple by knowing (1) what to expect. For example, when you’re living in an alcoholic or drug addict’s house, you never know if that person is going to be sober or drunk or high, or how incapacitated he, or she might be. (2) What is expected of you as far as rules and requirements. This is the standard(s) and boundaries thing. (3) What do you expect in and from this situation, environment, relationship, etc. And, last but not least, what do you expect from you. Lining ourselves up with God’s Word, and His will for us, helps to keep the expectations realistic and simple.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

The Child Within

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Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, reminds us that we must become as little children to enter the kingdom of Heaven. “And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

As I said before, I’ve been studying about generational curses and how to overcome them. Humankind has lived under a generational curse since Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden. In studying this out, I discovered just how much God really is in control. You see, in putting enmity between Eve’s seed (man) and Satan’s seed (unclean spirits and demons), God insured that we would be able to see the truth behind the lie. We can see the devil and the lie for exactly what they are; evil, and meant to destroy us.

Generational curses happen as a result of disobedience to God, or removal or displacement of a standard and/or boundary. “Thou shall…and Thou shall not…” When this happens, we end up with sin that rules over us. We have addictions, abuse, co-dependency, and dysfunction. We are not getting the truth that empowers us to live successfully. Thankfully, God has made it possible for us to become His children, and to re-raise, or be resurrected by Him. This is what it means to bring up a child under the admonition of the LORD/Lord. That child is the child within; your spirit. You see, it isn’t your flesh that suffers the damage of faulty and flawed parenting -not usually, anyway. It is your spirit. I read a passage just today: The LORD reigns; He is robed in majesty. The LORD is robed; He has put on strength as His belt.” (ESV) When I read this, I thought of that voice saying, “Go get me that belt!” That stuff was meant to break the bad spirit(s) off of us. But, most of the time, it breaks our spirit, doesn’t it? Remember Jesus said that the Father has given Him everything; and He, Jesus, has given it to us, in turn. That means you can read that passage of scripture this way: “I reign, I am robed in majesty. I have put on strength as my belt.” The admonition of the Lord strengthens us in our spirit, so that we can reign as kings and queens in life. The first step is to be born again.

You can do that by asking Jesus to come into your heart and be Lord of your life. If you don’t know the LORD/Lord, now’s the time – today’s the day of salvation. And Jesus will save you everyday; from all the old stuff that would hold you back or trip you up.

Pray this prayer: Lord Jesus, please come into my life and be my Lord and Savior. Please forgive me for my sins; I renounce them all right now. I want to become a child of God, and learn to walk according to His Word and in His Way. Please make me yours from this moment on.

I encourage you to find a believer to pray with you, and I’ll be praying for you. Today can be the best day of your life; the turning point to a better life -everyday.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

The Holy Of Holies Wrapped In Flesh

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Today’s message from God Calling – A. J. Russell, reminds us that Jesus took on our humanity, so that we can take on His divinity. That means we can live in divine power, peace, love, joy, unity, etc. All the Fruits of the Spirit are ours in Christ Jesus. In essence, when the veil was torn, the gates of Heaven opened wide to us.

I wrote this psalm some time ago, 2009, in fact. It came to mind as I read the message this morning.

How Beautiful is the Love of my Savior: How beautiful on the mountain are those nail pierced feet…and the hands, scarred and calloused, that reach for me. How beautiful is the voice that says, “Come unto me.” Oh, how beautiful is the love of my Savior. How beautiful, the precious blood shed on Calvary. How beautiful the prayer He prayed for you, and for me. How beautiful is the life He gave to set us free. Oh, how beautiful is the love of my Savior. How beautiful is the heart that’s filled with mercy and grace. How beautiful the day when we shall see His face. How beautiful is this King that opens wide Heaven’s gate. Oh, how beautiful is the love of my Savior…

I used to walk and collect cans and plastic bottles on Sunday mornings back then. I would walk and praise the Lord as I went along. the more I praise Him, the more praise He gives me. I got this one started one Sunday morning, and finished it under a little shade tree at the shelter I was living in, later that afternoon. God never fails us. Thanks to Jesus, we can live in divine power, in every sense of the word. We just get so distracted, overwrought, and overwhelmed, that we forget that-and all too often.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu