Great song, You surround me.

This song is from the celtic worship compilation, this song is by Brian Doerksen. This is such a great worship song, especially your private praise. The ladies voice is great also, very nice. What a great way to view our Heavenly Father. He deserves all our praise. If you like irish type or celtic, look it up. Here are the main lyrics.

You surround me, you indwell me, you’re beside me, ever present, always near.

You’re the whisper… calling my name gently, love eternal, reaching to me, jealous for me.

I….. will stay with you forever, arm and arm we’ll walk together, you will never let me go.

I….. can’t live my life without you, my whole will to live is for you. You’ve awaken me to know.

 So good, be blessed.

Romania

Last May '08, I went to Romania with a group from church and that trip has changed my life. We went to support Forget Me Not ministry and help out in the Tinca village. Much prayer went on when I was there about why God had me there, what He wanted from me, and has continued since I got back. My picture above with the kids on the bridge are those in the center, where they are learning about Jesus, being loved, and given hope. After much prayer and consideration, I turned in an application to be considered joining the ministry. I'm not sure what God has planned for me, but I am willing to do whatever He asks of me. I don't have anything holding me back from leaving. I would of course miss family, but I would be able to see them still, and hope they would want to come visit and see what's going on. God is so good and I know I can trust Him. He knows what's best for me, and where I can best be used and serve. To God be the Glory, let us raise up holy hands and praise Him, He alone is worthy of our praise, He is unparalleled, He is unprecedented, and most worthy of our Love.

Deut 6:4-5

4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:

5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

KJV

I love what Brother Lawrence wrote, " O loving kindness so old and still so new, I have been too late of  loving Thee. You are young, my brethren; profit therefore I beseech you from my confession, that I cared too little to employ my early years for God. Consecrate all yours to His Love. If I had only known Him sooner, if I only had some one to tell me then what I am telling you, I should not have so long delayed in loving Him. Believe me, count as lost each day you have not used in loving God."

Amen.

Blessings, R.B.

Follower of Christ?

What does it mean to be a "Christian" or follower of Christ? What defines or what does that look like?

The title "Christian" has taken on a negative connotation over the centuries, because of people and groups using christendom in a negative way, or used it to push their own ideals or objectives. So clarity is sometimes needed as to what that title means. It is said from poles and information gathering, that around 85% of Americans consider themselves to be "Christian". This is usually a lump sum of all denominations including catholic. I find that hard to believe and with a certainty can say that it can't be true. If it were true, would the U.S. be to way it is?

I know one of the biggest complaints from people, of faith or not, is the hypocrisy in religion. That is why living out what we, (I) confess to believe is so important. People judge and watch us to see if our faith is real. We are called to be witnesses and that means we are literally living advertisements for Jesus.

Acts 1:8

.....and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."

NKJV

People judge Jesus and His claims by the way we live. People are asking, is this thing for real or just another religion and a bunch of rules to follow? Is there lasting change, does it fulfill a need or longing desire?

We have a great responsibility if we are going to claim to be associated with Jesus.

I love this verse.

Acts 4:13-14

13 When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.

(NIV)

To be a believer or follower of Christ is not just accepting God's forgiveness, and going on to live our lives as we always have. There must be an inward change, and that change shows itself in the physical outward evidence in the way of "fruits of the spirit".

Rom 12:2

2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will.

(NIV)

Gal 5:22-25 

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 

(NIV)

The next biggest sign is Love. So much is talked about love in the NT.

John 13:35

By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

John 14:15

5 "If you love me, you will obey what I command

Rom 13:9-10

..and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself."   10 Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law

Gal 5:14

14 The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself."

2 John 6

6 And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.

(from New International Version)

At last, I leave you with this,

Eph 4:1-6 (NET)

I, therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live worthily of the calling with which you have been called,2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you too were called to the one hope of your calling, 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

Acts 5:38-42 (NET)

38 So in this case I say to you, stay away from these men and leave them alone, because if this plan or this undertaking originates with people, it will come to nothing, 39 but if it is from God, you will not be able to stop them, or you may even be found fighting against God.” He convinced them, 40 and they summoned the apostles and had them beaten. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus and released them. 41 So they left the council rejoicing because they had been considered worthy to suffer dishonor for the sake of the name. 42 And every day both in the temple courts and from house to house, they did not stop teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus was the Christ.

With love, R.B.

Why I do what I do

Why do I want to serve, what compels me? Do I feel I have to serve God? Do I do it to try to earn something with God?

Robert S. McGee writes:

What a waste to attempt to change behavior without truly understanding the driving needs that cause such behavior! Yet millions of people spend a lifetime searching for love, acceptance, and success without understanding the need that compels them. We must understand that this hunger for self-worth is God-given and can only be satisfied by Him. Our value is not dependent on our ability to earn the fickle acceptance of people, but rather, its true source is the love and acceptance of God. He created us. He alone knows how to fulfill all of our needs.

All believers have the perfect basis for a proper sense of identity or a good self-concept, one dependent on who they are in Christ and, please note, one dependent on the value God places on their lives rather than on the value they or others may place on their lives. Whose opinion is the most important? Yours and mine, or God’s? Do we properly grasp how foolish it is to live our lives for the opinions of man?

—ABCs for Christian Growth

14 For the love of Christ controls us, (or compels us) since we have concluded this, that Christ died for all; therefore all have died. 15 And he died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised. 16 So then from now on we acknowledge no one from an outward human point of view. Even though we have known Christ from such a human point of view, now we do not know him in that way any longer. 17 So then, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; what is old has passed away — look, what is new has come!18 And all these things are from God who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and who has given us the ministry of reconciliation. 19 In other words, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting people’s trespasses against them, and he has given us the message of reconciliation.

2 Cor 5:14-19 (NET1)

I know that I am saved by grace by faith and not by my works, 

For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 it is not from works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we may do them.

Eph 2:8-10 (NET1)

Because of God's love for me and praying for His burdens to become my burdens, I want to serve and help others. We are to love one another, this is the greatest commandment. We can do all things but if we don't have love, it's worth nothing.

If I give away everything I own, and if I give over my body in order to boast, but do not have love, I receive no benefit.

1 Cor 13:3 (NET1)

And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love

1 Cor 13:13 (NET1)

So love is the driving force behind what I do. Love for others, love for God number 1, and to share His love with others. To share the hope that I have in Christ that they also may have the assurance of eternal rest with Him. God is light and in Him is no darkness at all, may we, may I be the light that shines in the darkness. Light dispels darkness and brings about hope and new beginnings. May God be that new beginning, for in Him all things begin and end. Without Him, what hope do we have? I leave that with you.

Time of seeking and waiting

It may see odd to the culture to say, I am actively waiting, but that is what God wants us to do. By waiting on the Lord, I am not sitting with my hands folded doing nothing. I am pursuing Him by reading His word, reading Christian books that help me focus on Him. I am in prayer and looking for open doors. As hard as it is sometimes, I am trying to be sensitive to the Spirit and the leading or promptings I get.

To say it's always easy would not be true, but God is faithful and trustworthy to fulfill His promises.  

Jer 29:11 For I know what I have planned for you,’ says the Lord. ‘I have plans to prosper you, not to harm you. I have plans to give you a future filled with hope.

Our hope needs to be in the Lord and not in people. No matter who that person is, they will let you down. They are human and it's just a fact they will fail you. God is not like man, 

Isa 55:6 Seek the Lord while he makes himself available; call to him while he is nearby!

55:7 The wicked need to abandon their lifestyle and sinful people their plans.

They should return to the Lord, and he will show mercy to them, and to their God, for he will freely forgive them. 55:8 “Indeed, my plans are not like your plans, and my deeds are not like your deeds, 55:9 for just as the sky is higher than the earth, so my deeds are superior to your deeds and my plans superior to your plans. 

         

I want to follow His ways and His path, because I don't know best and He does. I don't trust myself to know the best way. In Prov 3:5-6 it says,

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart,

And lean not on your own understanding; 

6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,

And He shall direct your paths. 

Psalms 25:4-5 

4 Make me understand your ways, O Lord!

Teach me your paths!

5 Guide me into your truth and teach me.

For you are the God who delivers me;

on you I rely all day long.

(NET1)

I feel like God is leading me towards pursuing missions. I am open to whatever it is He wants me to do. I am taking a missions class right now called "Perspectives". It is a great class and I am learning much. I have turned in an application for a few different ministries, and waiting to see what doors open. I am ready to walk through, but I think God has me waiting and preparing me for what He has. No matter what, I am trusting in Him. That's all for now.