"I Never Feel Like Praying"

Of course obtaining things is not all that prayer is for, "but it is one of them". James 4:2 reminds us, "Yet you don't have what you want because you don't ask God for it."

When we are facing some kind of need, the place to start is prayer. It has been said that if your knees are knocking, kneel on them. Are you facing a conflict right now? Do you have a need right now? Maybe it is a physical need. You need God's healing touch. Or maybe it is a spiritual need. You need His power, His help, and His wisdom. Or maybe it is a financial need. You need His provision. Have You Prayed About It?

We are told in Philippians 4:6, "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God What You need, and Thank Him for all he has done." That is the objective of prayer: To get our will in alignment with God's and to put us in touch with Him.
We need to pray about all things all the time. Ephesians 6:18 says, "Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere."

Notice the use of the words "all" and "every" in that verse: "at all times," "on every occasion," "for all believers everywhere."

The apostle Paul was saying that we need to be praying all the time, never giving up, never backing off. So pray about whatever you are facing.

Let's Go,
~RB~

Why Are You Dating/Hanging With Him? Her?

I dedicate this short post to all the single Christians out there like me that sometimes find it very challenging to walk according to the Word in this area and also as a reminder that great blessings and a much deeper relationship with God comes from obedience ;-) What do you think?

2 Corinthians 6:14-18

Don’t team up with those who are unbelievers, Don't become partners with those who reject God, Stop forming inappropriate relationships with unbelievers. How can righteousness be a partner with wickedness? How can you make a partnership out of right and wrong? That's not partnership; that's war. Is light best friends with dark? How can light live with darkness? What harmony can there be between Christ and the devil? Does Christ go strolling with the Devil? How can a believer be a partner with an unbeliever? Do trust and mistrust hold hands? And what union can there be between God’s temple and idols? Who would think of setting up pagan idols in God's holy Temple? But that is exactly what we are, each of us a temple in whom God lives. For we are the temple of the living God. God himself put it this way:

“I will live in them
and walk among them.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
Therefore, come out from among unbelievers, leave the corruption and compromise;
leave it for good,"
and separate yourselves from them, says the LORD.
Don’t touch their filthy things, "Don't link up with those who will pollute you.
I want you all for myself,
and I will welcome you.
And I will be your Father,
and you will be my sons and daughters,
says the LORD Almighty.” (New Living Translation, The Message & GOD’S WORD Translation)

I know that it’s a popular teaching that “Everyone is a child of God” but If A person hasn’t accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior then they are by default a child of the Devil (1 John 3).
Peace,

WHAT? Is That The Real Question?

Titus 2:14 (The Message)

11-14God's readiness to give and forgive is now public. Salvation's available for everyone! We're being shown how to turn our backs on a godless, indulgent life, and how to take on a God-filled, God-honoring life. This new life is starting right now, and is whetting our appetites for the glorious day when our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, appears. He offered himself as a sacrifice to free us from a dark, rebellious life into this good, pure life, making us a people he can be proud of, energetic in goodness.

Once I am saved, can I become unsaved? Can a Christian lose his or her salvation? I hear these questions a lot and it usually have to do with “lifestyle” and not Bible doctrine on this topic. What is really a concern is that there are people who want to know how they can be saved and still live as though they are not. That is a very dangerous proposition.

Titus 2:11–14 states, "For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God. . . . He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds." NLT

Is that a description of your life today as a follower of Jesus? Are you totally committed to doing what is right? If you really have been saved, then there will be results in your life. Jesus said, "Just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions" (Matthew 7:20). People should be able to see spiritual fruit, changes in your life that will indicate to them that you are a true follower of Jesus Christ.

Writing to the church of Laodicea, Jesus said, "I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other! But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth!" (Revelation 3:15–16).

So, instead of trying to live in two worlds, it is far better to live as close to God as you possibly can, you in? Let’s Go!

WARNING : Jesus Gives It Straight With No Chaser, Can You Handle It?

"Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it."
— Matthew 7:13–14
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
— Matthew 7:21–23

Most folks today are enjoying a gospel message that deletes the message of repentance. They believe in an all-caring, nonjudgmental God who requires no repentance or a change in their lifestyle. They will say things like, "I believe in Jesus Christ, but my God is not judgmental.

My God would never send a person to hell. But I am a Christian.

"Hey, you can’t have it both ways. You can't make it up as you go.

This watered down gospel that most believe in today is extremely dangerous because it gives a sense of false assurance to the person who believes it. In the Bible we see false prophets who give false assurance. In Jeremiah 6:14, God says, "They have also healed the hurt of My people slightly, saying, 'Peace, peace!' when there is no peace."

Hey, how would you like to go to the doctor when you are having a heart attack, and have the doctor tell you, "Oh, you are fine, just walk it off(as one of my favorite football coaches would say) or You are being so dramatic! You will be OK. "There are ministers today who say, "God loves you and everything is fine. You can do whatever you want and live however you want to live. Let's just love one another and have a great time."

This is a false gospel. Yes, God loves us. Yes, God receives any person who comes to Him. But He asks us to repent. He asks us to turn from our sins. If we are not willing to do so, then we are not experiencing Biblical faith. And thus, we are not going to receive what the Bible describes as genuine salvation.


Peace,
Russell A. Biggs

What Is The Greatest Life To Live?

Drum roll please…….It is without a doubt the Christian life, why? Because God takes a life that was empty, aimless, and, worst of all, headed for a certain judgment and then turns it around and transforms it, you feel me? Check this out, He forgives all our sin, removes our guilt, and literally comes to live inside of us through the Holy Spirit, what, God living in me? Yes. Most importantly, He changes our eternal address from a place called hell to a place called heaven, you gotta love that, right?

This all comes about as a result of the power of the gospel of Christ being proclaimed and believed. Now some prefer a watered-down version of the gospel, a gospel that promises forgiveness but rarely mentions the need to repent of your sin, a gospel that promises peace but never warns of persecution, a gospel that says God wants you to be healthy and wealthy and never have any problems to speak of, a gospel that says you will so find the favor of God that a parking space always will be available for you.

But that is not the gospel of Jesus Christ that is found in the New Testament. Many like the idea of the Christian Life as a playground, but not a battleground. But wait, not only is there a God who loves you and has a plan for your life, but there is also a devil that hates you and opposes God's plan. What I am not suggesting is that once you become a Christian, you will be sick, poor, and miserable. But remember this, the essence of the Christian life is knowing and walking with God. It is about sticking with Him when the sky is blue and also when it is filled with clouds. It is about pressing on. Jesus made it clear that storms will enter every life. But as we seek to know and follow Christ, we will find happiness and better yet joy as a fringe benefit, let's go!

Peace,
R.A. Biggs

Vote: Best Actor in Bible-In Your Church-Your House

Let's say that the church is going to give awards like the movie industry gives Oscars, I am certain that Judas Iscariot would have won the "best actor" category for all time, because that is what he was. He was a spectacular actor!

As an extremely mysterious and paradoxical dude in the Bible, Judas Iscariot was notorious for his wickedness and treachery. You might even say that he was the traitor's traitor. We know that his life ended miserably in suicide because he betrayed the Lord for 30 pieces of silver.

Yet there was more to Judas than that. If we could be transported back in time and observe the 12 disciples, I think most of us would have had a hard time picking out the traitor Judas Iscariot.
We tend to think of him as a sinister-looking guy with shifty eyes. But I think He came off as a man who was upright, seemingly very considerate, and devout in his faith.

There are people like Judas in our churches today. They talk the talk. They carry their Bibles. They sing the songs. But underneath, they are phonies. They fool only themselves.

Judas had the privilege of being one of Jesus Christ's 12 disciples-handpicked by the Lord-yet he went and betrayed Him. There was a definite progression-or regression-to Judas' sin, starting with subtle shades of hypocrisy and culminating in full-blown possession by Satan.

Judas could go deeper into sin because he never really knew Jesus. Sure, he knew about Him. He could have even been considered an expert on Jesus, given the fact that he had walked with Him and been with Him in every conceivable circumstance for three years. But Judas never really knew the Lord.

There was a progression, and Judas reached this point of betrayal over a period of time. The Bible says, "There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death" (Proverbs 14:12 NKJV).
-Let me give you an example: On one occasion, Jesus went to visit his close friends, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. Martha saw an opportunity to cook up a fine meal for the Lord. Meanwhile, her sister Mary saw an opportunity to sit at the feet of the Lord and spend time with Him. She wanted to do something significant, profound, and sacrificial for Jesus, so she took a very costly jar of ointment and began to anoint His feet, wiping them with her hair.
As everyone watched this incredible sight, an indignant Judas remarked, "Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?" (John 12:4 NKJV) That sounded very spiritual, and Mark's Gospel tells us the others even agreed with him and joined in the criticism.

But John's Gospel gives us a significant detail regarding why Judas said what he said: "This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it" (12:4 NKJV).

Things are not always as they appear, are they? She who appeared frivolous and extravagant was the spiritual one, while he who appeared thrifty and spiritual wasn't spiritual at all.

Jesus rebuked all of them and said, "Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial. For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always" (vv. 7-8).

This warning went unheeded by Judas, and as we see here, it was Judas' love of earthly things that caused him to betray the heavenly.
On the night that Jesus was betrayed and arrested, two people failed the Lord. One was Judas. The other was Peter. One went out and hung himself. The other-after coming to his senses, going back to the Lord, and seeking His forgiveness-went into the open arms of Jesus.

At the crossroads, Peter and Judas parted ways forever. One went into the light. And the other went into the night. Where are you headed?

Peace,
R.A.Biggs

Where Am I, Where Are You?

“God, if you’re a God of love, then where are You in all this? Have You forgotten your children?” This is a question that ran through my mind one day as I was watching a report of millions of homeless hungry refugees.

One can conclude that either God is not completely in control, or He has somehow chosen to allow the atrocities that we see in this world to exist. Either way, it’s hard to understand.

As I wrestled with this, it occurred to me that the story of the Scriptures is about a God who is present and active in human history. God is not essentially somewhere else, but is active and present in this world. We see this in Jesus, do we not? The incarnation of God in Jesus sent a clear message, “I care. I have heard your cry, and I’m here to do something about it.”

So as I am watching those images and asking those questions, another thought came. I was asking the wrong question. Rather than asking, “Where is God?” the better question may be posed by God, “My people, where are you in the midst of all this?”

Isn’t this the concept in 2 Corinthians 5:20 “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. Take another look at that verse. We, the believers in Christ, are to be the physical representatives of God on earth.
If the world wants to know what God is like, the first place it should look is the Church, right? We are to embody the message and spirit of Jesus. As His representatives, God is making His dream for this world through us, not apart from us. I guess you could say that the Church is not only supposed to proclaim the message, we are to live the message.

Perhaps the next time we approach a situation in life and ask, “God, where are You in all this?”, if we are quiet enough to hear the voice of God, His reply might be, “I’m right here in the middle of it. Where are you?”

How should this change the way we live? How might this change the way you live?

READ THIS: Exodus 19:3-6; Ephesians 2:8-10; 1 Peter 2:9-10