Revelation

So, up until 2 nights ago, I've never had the courage to study Revelation.

Quite frankly, it just scared me! I remember, before I was a Christian, going with a friend to my 1st Precept study, and it was Revelation part 2, and Kay was teaching on the video...and I was convinced that everyone in that room was about to sprout a second head!

That seems so hilarious to me now!

Especially in light of what the very first few verses of Revelation say: 1:3..."Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near."

To think! I've been afraid of Revelation, when the Bible says that there is blessing for those who read it and for those who hear it, and heed it!

14 "To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, says this:
15 'I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot.
16 'So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.
17 'Because you say, " I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing," and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked,
18 I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.
19 'Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent.
20 'Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.
21 'He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.
22 'He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'"

Wow! How many people there are who live like verse 17! I say that without judgement...for I was one of them for so many years. I didn't realize that knowing that Jesus died on the cross for my sins, and living in light of that truth, are two totally different mentalities.

Women talk with me all the time and say things to the effect of, "I'm saved, but I just struggle like Paul says he did...the things I do, I do not want to do, and the things I don't want to do, I do."

In essence, they take Paul's comments totally out of context, and use them as a scape goat for their choices to abide in sin.

We can't be in both camps...if you're not sure of that truth, then re-read the letter above, to the angel of the church in Laodiciea.

We can't live for the world, and for Christ.

For, Romans 6 makes it clear that we can't have 2 masters.

If you are living in such a way that you are continually running back to a habitual lifestyle of sin, and you want to live for Christ, then I encourage you to go to God in prayer, and repent, and ask Him to show you what it means to make Jesus your LORD and Savior.

In the greek, the word "Lord", means one who has complete disposal of everything".

Is Jesus your Lord?

Or, are you holding on to the world, all the while trying to live for Christ through the power of your flesh?

Sweet friend, when push comes to shove, your flesh will fail you every time.

You cannot train your flesh.

Only through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, through Christ's shed blood on the cross, can you hope to live a life of overcoming, as is spoken of in this chapter.

Don't be deceived. The enemy would love for you to think that all you have to do is believe that Jesus died on the cross, and then that you are free to live however you please.

That is not faith.

That is not belief that is powered by faith in a risen Savior.

In fact, in Romans 5, Paul makes it clear that a belief system like that would be an overt abuse of grace..and that we are never to live like that.

Read Revelation 3:14-22, and ask God to search your heart, and to reveal to you if you are really His, or if you've just believed as the demons do.

To be His, you simply cannot live like the church in Laodicea, saying,"I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing".

Ask Him...even if you need to ask Him to give you the strength to believe...and repent.

To say that you believe in Jesus, yet all the while refusing to repent before Him, is not true salvation.

It's like the pastors who say that they'll never preach about sin or about the blood.

OH MY GOODNESS!

Without the BLOOD of Jesus, and without the admission of sin on our part...without seeing that we fall short of the Glory of God because of the sin in our lives...WHAT DO WE HAVE?

A FALSE GOSPEL! Paul said not to even let someone in the door who was teaching this garbage, yet many churches today have turned to this false gospel.

Please...ask God to show you the value of the blood of Jesus, and the filth of your sin, and through His love to wash your sins away in that precious blood...shed for you!

MMMMM....I can tell that Revelation is going to be rich!

Love and Hugs,

Me

Wisdom Searches

As most of you know, we are homeschoolers.

As such, I've been taking a hard look lately at what I want my children to get out of homeschooling, and I must admit, I really like what I'm seeing in them.

They are so loving to one another, and I see the fruit of the Spirit in their lives on a daily basis. I love those kiddos so much! Just when I think I can't love them anymore than I do...God gives me more!

Many mornings, we will do what I call a wisdom search...actually, I can't take credit for the idea, because I just borrowed it from another homeschooler, whom I greatly respect for the work she's done with her SIX children.

But...what we do is we sit down with the Bible and we turn to Proverbs, and I ask the Lord to direct me in choosing a proverb to learn with the children.

Our most recent one was Proverbs 10:19 "When there are many words, transgression ( I used the word sin with the kids ) is unavoidable; But he who restrains his lips is wise." I won't tell you which of the kids really NEEDED to learn this proverb, but I'm guessing you'll figure it out if you know them. ;)

We have a lot of fun with these, because my acting background comes out and the kids and I make up charade-like hand symbols to help us remember the verses.

They loved this one, because they got to make their little hands do the "talk talk talk" sign, like you do when you're telling a story about someone who won't ever be quiet. And then they squeeze their little lips together with their hands, to remind them to "restrain" their lips, as they point to their brains for wisdom.

It's a hoot to see them do it, but they REMEMBER the verses this way...and they have FUN!

We also recently learned a verse from Psalms. It's Psalms 119:114 "You are my hiding place and my shield; I wait for Your word."

OOOH! I love that verse! Isn't He though...isn't God the most wonderful hiding place one could ask for?

And what better shield in this tough world could we ask for than Almighty God?

I also love the "I wait for Your word" part.

I love that my kids are learning at such young ages that they can trust God, and that He loves them and will protect them.

And...I love that they are learning the value in waiting on Him, and on His word!

Tomorrow is our Precept class for kids, and I think I'm going to do a wisdom search with the kids.

I was inspired today as I saw the work that one of my sweet friends did in a science class with our homeschoolers...she had them so active and MOVING...and they LOVE going to her classes!

So, I think tomorrow, we're going to take the kids' Precept class to a different level for those little busy kiddos. We're going to act out the precepts that they learn, in the hope that the Word will plant in rich soil in their little hearts, and bear much fruit.

I'll keep you posted!

In the meantime, would you please be in prayer for the Precept team? There are leaders in countries all over the world that are taking the Word of God to some of the most remote and/or volatile areas right now.
Korea, Peru, Russia, Romania, South America, the UK, and so many others.

Just this month, Mia and Costel of the Eurasian team will be going to Iraq...please bathe them in prayer.

For those of you in Phoenix, Precept training is coming to Mesa in June! This will be a super opportunity for you to get trained to either study or to lead others in how to study the Bible!

For more info, go to www.precept.org and click on Training Workshops, and then on Arizona...you'll see all the details.

May you have a super day with the Word of God and the God of the Word!

Love you!
Jes

Obeying His Call

It's interesting to me...I heard someone say the other day that they take issue with the concept of obeying God...that the word obedience is tough for them.

I feel so differently about it. Not that I'm perfect, but I sure strive to be more and more obedient to Him as I mature in my walk with God.

To me, obedience is a gift...because it implies that I have a personal enough relationship with God that He makes clear to me the things that He wants from me.

That's a huge gift...that God loves me enough to show me the things in my life that don't honor Him and have to go...and that He gives me a choice as to whether I will obey Him.

I guess it all goes back to who I was before Him. You see, I spent years living for me, and they were empty pain-filled years.

So now, when God speaks to my heart..whether through His Word or through His still soft voice, or through the words of a trusted fellow believer, I want to obey.

He revealed something huge to me the other day...and I have chosen to obey.

I was listening to a tape on leadership by Kay Arthur, my mentor and cherished friend. On it, she was talking about how temptations will come for the believer, but that through Christ, we have all we need to rise above them. She was explaining that when they come we need to go right to God about it, and draw near to Him.

As I was listening, I was thinking about how Shane and I both feel a real call on our hearts to spend the rest of our days teaching people how to study God's Word.

And, I was thinking about this verse in Scripture, from Hebrews:

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

So I asked myself, what is the sin that so easily entangles me? Is there one?

I mean, anyone who knows me knows that I'm vigilant about protecting my marriage and my children. I don't spend time with men without my husband present. Even with my pastor, should we meet for some reason, it's done at the library in the middle of the kids play area, with my children right there.

I'm just very careful about situations with the opposite sex. I don't want there to be any chance for entanglement...ever.

There are lots of other things that God has made clear to me through my time as a believer about how He wants me to live. And, I try very hard to obey Him in those.

But still...that day I asked myself...is there anything else? Is there a sin that would easily entangle me?

And you know...there is. God made it clear that day. I know it's not sin for everyone, but I believe that when God reveals an area of our lives that could be used by the enemy to easily entangle us...that for us, is an area that we need to avoid like sin...because it could easily become sin.

For me, it's alcohol. I'm not an alcoholic...I am clear on that. Yet, when I am in a group of people where I feel safe and relaxed, and there is alcohol there, it's too easy for me to drink too much.

What's too much? For me, for a long time, I thought it was 2 drinks.

But now, I think it's any.

It's just not worth it when I think about it compared to the race that has been set before me.

If one drink is going to put me in a position where I could possibly be filled more with drink than I am with the Holy Spirit, then I don't want anything to do with it.

And the truth is, having one just makes having two that much easier for me.

The Lord really showed me that day that He doesn't want me to have anything more to do with it.

Someone asked me, "what about at home..when it's just you and Shane...what about a glass of wine with dinner?".

My answer to that is I'm not really sure...we're so cheap that we don't buy wine to have at home that often. So, drinking a glass of wine at home with my hubby wouldn't be the sin that easily entangles me, anyway.

My best answer to that is, I'm not sure..but God is, and I trust that He'll make it clear...and as He speaks, I will obey.

Funny isn't it, how when your life isn't all about you anymore, the things you once held so tightly to just don't seem to matter in comparison to being a faithful servant to your King?

At least, that's how I see it.

I'm Bursting to Share This With You...

I know this blog is about sharing with you what I'm learning from God's Word...and some days I feel like my head is so full of all that He's teaching me that I can't possibly do it justice by trying to write it down without first having time to digest it...thus, the weeks without posts.

But...I gotta go off topic a bit tonight.

Shane and I have started watching American Idol, and are really hooked. OK, so I hate the name...REALLY hate the name...but that's beside the point.

It's interesting to me, because we didn't watch the first several seasons of it...at that time I was a new believer, and my pendulum was WAAAAAY on the side of total separation from anything of the world.

God is gracious, though, and He used that time to prune me and mold me and purge the garbage from my life...and now I feel the freedom to do some things that at that time, would have been sin for me, but now are no longer.

So...enter American Idol. :)

I missed it last night ( can you say my hot hubby took me out on a hot date for Valentine's Day?!), so I went to the AI sight tonight to see who made the top 24.

Then, I decided to read their bios... I am DUMBFOUNDED by how many of them gave credit to Jesus, and still others who gave credit to God.

A few of the contestants have really stood out for me from the beginning, because of the total humility that they showed in their auditions.

One is Chris Sligh and the other is the sweet girl from TN who has been a backup singer for years. ( I'll get her name and post it, as I have drawn a blank...but she is PRECIOUS!)

Her name is Melinda Doolittle, and she says that her goal in life is to represent Christ well and to do everything 150%. YEAH! LOVE HER!

What really stood out to me as I read those bios is this...we need to pray for these young folk ( oooh...that made me sound oooooold!). We need to lace them up in prayer...that they will not compromise, that they will stay strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might, that they will fulfill their missions as ambassadors for Christ to the Hollywood community.

Would you please join me in this?

When you read the bios of Chris Sligh and Rudy...you'll see that they give each other credit, as well as Blake.

All of them were in the best ever group audition..it was a true ensemble and it brought down the house.

And, when asked who their American Idol was, they listed one another...such humility...such love. It ministered to my heart!

Pray for them...they are on the front lines with the youth of America.

Pray that souls are saved through their witnesses during this time.

Pray for their families whom they've had to leave behind to follow this dream.

Pray that God is Glorified in all they say and do.

Pray a hedge of protection around them.

Who knows...they may be there just for "such a time as this", as Mordecai said to Esther in the book of Esther...when she had to step up and follow God's plan for her to save the Jews.

It's no secret that Hollywood is "getting" that many of us have grown exhausted from the gunk that they put out for us to be "entertained" by.

They are trying to find things that they think will appeal to Christians...but done through people who don't know Christ, that's like a stripper trying to design clothing that would appeal to an Amish woman.

So...let's pray that the powers that be in Hollywood will be so drawn to this group of young Christians on American Idol, that lives and families will be surrendered en mass to follow Christ.

Pray and ask God to go before and behind them...to hedge them in and keep them solid.

OOOH! It's really exciting stuff!

God never ceases to amaze me. I love Him so much and can't wait to be with Him one day soon!

Love you, LORD!!!!!

Love ya'll too!
Jes

I've been tagged...

Shawn has tagged me and given me the challenge to tell you 5 things about myself that most people don't know.

So here goes....

1. When I go to the theatre and see a really great movie, I always leave crying because I so passionately want to make great films and/or great theatre, and have wanted to do that all of my life.

2. I was invited to audition for the Julliard School when I was a senior in High School...the reason that it didn't happen isn't worth going into, but it was a huge honor to be invited.

3. Just after I gave my life to Jesus, when I was 29, the Lord tugged and tugged at my heart to pick up the phone and call my friend Paul and tell him what a hypocrite I had been for all the years that he had known me.

Paul was an athiest, yet it was clear that he wanted there to be a God...it's just that many of his friends were like me...we talked Christianity and yet lived just like the world. We were believers that Jesus had died on the cross..yet, had not submitted our lives to His ownership. HUGE difference!

So, I kept feeling tugged by God, but didn't call Paul because I had just married Shane and all I could think was "it's not right to have male friends anymore".

Several weeks later, a mutual friend of Paul's and mine called to catch up with Shane and me. I asked him at that time how "Paulie" was, and the phone went dead.

I said, "I have just heard...just this week, of 2 friends who killed themselves...if you tell me that Paul killed himself, I'm hanging up the phone!"

All he could say was, "He did, Jes. He did."

Paul's suicide framed the rest of my life. I'll never again pause when I know that the Lord is calling me to share the good news of the love and forgiveness that Jesus offers us. Never!

My life today is focused on sharing the Gospel with the lost, and on teaching people how to study God's Word for themselves.

4. I studied acting with Dennis and Randy Quaid's acting coach, Cecil Pickett. He was brilliant.

5. Every night, without fail, I go into my childrens' bedrooms after they are fast asleep, and I lean over their sweet little cheeks, and I kiss them and tell them what blessings they are...and how much I love them. I want that to be the last thing that they hear every night. They are such amazing, precious kids!

Now I tag:
Stephanie
Laura
Davina
Melissa

Lessons from Genesis

In the kids' Precept Bible study class, we're studying Genesis. Today we went through the whole 1st chapter of Genesis and I asked the kids the 5W and an H questions...

Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?

It was so awesome to help them learn how to interrogate the text of Scripture.

They got to see, from God's Word, that all the animals, and plants, and trees, and fish...etc., all of them were made "after their kind".

We talked at length about how doggies bear puppies, and cats bear kittens, and cherry trees grow fruit in keeping with what they are...cherry trees bear cherries.

BUT...man and woman were not made "after their kind"...they were made in the image of God.

They learned who the "Us" is in "Let Us make man in Our own image".

We talked about how when the little girls in the class grow up, they won't have baby monkeys or baby fish..they'll have baby humans, per God's design.

And we talked about how not one of us in the class was carried in the womb of an ape.

And when I asked them how they knew this to be true...they GOT IT! Yeah! They said, "Because that's what the Bible says!" !

Hooray!

These kids are LITTLE...most of them...the youngest is 4, and already she is learning that God's Word is absolute.

They also learned that the first thing that God blessed was the animals...and we talked about why they thought that was...the answers were precious.

Then we talked about how God blessed man and woman...and how that truth makes us so very special to God....and that the fact that God made us in His Own image....how very unique and important that makes us.

They also learned that we will rule over the angels one day...they thought that was awesome! :)

I never expected to love teaching these little ones so much...I just took on the endeavor in obedience to God's call to do so...

But, oh my goodness! It's such an honor to be used by God to plant such amazing, eternal seeds of Truth in their little minds!

I love them so much!

What a gift to be a part of their lives!