THESE GIFTS WILL COST YOU NOTHING TO GIVE THIS CHRISTMAS

As you prepare your heart, mind , house , food & gifts for Christmas ... consider giving some of the following:

GIVE LOVE ..... No occasion justifies hatred. No injustice warrants bitterness . Today LOVE God & LOVE others ,

GIVE JOY.... Refuse to be cynical ( the tool of a lazy , self- focussed spirit), refuse to be hyper critical of others , impart GRACE, JOY & GENEROSITY OF SPIRIT.

GIVE KINDNESS ..... Be kind to poor in body & spirit, for they are really ALONE. Be kind to rich people they don't realise their fears , or at times their poverty . Be kind to unkind people ...for such is how God treats you & I .


More  GIVES to come .

Praying.

UNDERSTAND THE ENEMY'S STRATEGIES AGAINST THOSE WHO WOULD LIVE FOR JESUS.

Imagine if you were satan .... how would you attack the church of JESUS CHRIST ?
This is not a great thought , but a necessary one! Understand that as Ephesians 6 : 10-12 reminds us we are in a spiritual war . The message puts it this way " ...This is no afternoon athletic contest that we'll away from & forget about in a couple of hours.This is for keeps , a life- or- death fight to the finish against the devil & all his angels."

REFLECT FOR A MOMENT :
If I were the devil , I would..............
Attack the family backbone of any & every nation, I would make divorce acceptable, easy & fashionable, because if the family crumbles so does the nation.

I would convince people that right & wrong are determined by a few who call themselves authorities & refer to their agenda as politically correct.

I would dull the minds of God's people + make them believe PRAYER is an option  and that faithfulness & obedience is up for negotiation.

I would convince & compel people to express their most depraved fantasies on canvas & movie screens, & I would call it freedom of expression .. even art..............
If I were the devil, I would............


Persuade people that the Church is irrelevant & out of date & the Bible is only for the simpleminded , deluded souls who have no education........

I would attack all of these things and more, ever so slowly , so as not to arouse the anger of Spirit-filled christians  . I would do this effectively so that by the time they realise what is happening it would be in fact far too late & in reality I would have strategically achieved my one main goal ......

to render the BODY OF CHRIST  powerless & ineffective.

You are JESUS' representatives on earth .......how do you plan to combat in the spiritual realm this enemy in JESUS' NAME ???

SPIRITUAL WARFRAE IS INEVITABLE FOR THE AUTHENTIC DISCIPLE OF JESUS CHRIST

Spiritual Warfare is inevitable & unavoidable if you are determoned to totally live for JESUS, and being ignorant of this or trying to ignore this subject won't make it cease or lessen in assault.
Therefore, we must learn to battle with supernatural authority;
. The safest place in this battle is at JESUS' feet and walking in His authority.
.Never allow anyone or anything distract , delay , defer or deter from God's call on your life .
.When we refuse to back down in fear the enemy of our souls becomes terrified.
.Submission 7 obedience to JESUS is your best defense , offense & weapon in your favour.
.Remember ... THE GATES OF HELL WILL NOT PREVAIL AGAINST THE ARMY OF THE LORD........................!
. Claim it , remind yourself daily that through JESUS you are VICTORIOUS .

Praying for my readers  & beyond .

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE KINGDOM OF GOD LIVING & THE SELF-CENTRED KNGDOM OF DARKNESS

God gives us all a choice : to consider ourselves 'divine'n& to say 'my will be done' or to submit to the love & calling of God upon our lives & be  open to say 'THY WILL BE DONE'. The amazing paradox of the latter is that we find ourselves & gain freedom as never before. Jesus wants the very best for us in our lives & it is we  who deny ourselves quite alot ( in  fact very much) if we choose to control our own destinies.
There are two  distinctly different poems that articulate accurately the complete difference between self & ego centricity , compared to JESUS being invited to be LORD of our lives .

"UNCONQUERABLE"
Out of the night that covers me ,
Black as the pit from pole to pole;
I thank whatever gods may be
For MY unconquerable soul,

In the fell clutch of circumstance ,
I have not winced nor cried aloud;
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath & tears
Looms but the horror of the shade;
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, & shall find me, unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll;
I am the master of my fate,
I AM THE CAPTAIN OF MY SOUL.
W. E . Henley

Compare that DNA to this reflection penned by Dorothea Day :
MY CAPTAIN


Out of the light that dazzles me,
Bright as the sun from pole to pole ;
 I thank the God I know to be
For Christ, the Conqueror of my soul.

Since His  the sway of circumstance,
I would not wince nor cry aloud;
Under the rule which  men call chance
My head with joy is humbly bowed.

Beyond this place of sin & tears,
That life with HIM & HIS the aid;
That spite the menace of the years
Keeps, & shall keep me, unafraid.

I have no fear though strait the gate;
He cleared from punishment the scroll;
CHRIST IS THE MASTER OF MY FATE,
CHRIST IS THE CAPTAIN OF MY SOUL.


Praying for all my readers and encouraging you to look to JESUS ...... He is so trustworthy .
JOHN 3:16