Have you ever wondered if you could love God unconditionally, without expecting anything in return? We are told the two greatest commandments are: Luke 10:27 – “He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

Every morning as I pray I am asking God for certain blessings. I want Him to bless my family, those needing healing, my church, my Bible study group, my business and others. I told my two children that I can love others unconditionally, not expecting anything in return, but how do you love God unconditionally?

I started looking though my 100 or more books looking for an answer. I happened to pull out a little book that I read more than ten years ago: The Prayer of Jabez. I Chronicles 4:10 – “Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.” And God granted his request.”

I believe God wanted me to write on the importance of prayer. Most Christians want to stand before God one day and hear Him say: Well done! How can we be assured that God will say those two words to us after our time on earth? I took two hours to once again read the book emphasizing that we are repeatedly told, by Scripture, that God has blessings waiting for us that we would never receive unless we ask God for them. I want God to bless me by imparting His supernatural favor. We all want God’s unlimited goodness. I am convinced we may never receive those blessings unless we ask for them.

Matthew 7:7 – “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” James 4:2 – “You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God.”

Jabez was blessed, according to the Bible, because he refused to let any obstacle, person or opinion cause him to believe that God didn’t want to bless him. The Bible tells us that a simple prayer can change our future. No matter what our gifts, education or vocation may be, our calling is to do God’s work on earth.

Through my 595 blogs written over the past five years, I believe God has continually answered my prayers by providing insight and knowledge as to what has been written. My publisher advised me to begin writing blogs in order to advertise our book. I found it was a way of allowing Christ to live through me. Hopefully, the blogs have helped others to live a holy life. We are told, as Christians, we are to share the gospel with the world. People from over 100 nations have read these blogs, according to Word Press. Who would have believed this could be possible ten years ago? I believe those blogs would never have been possible without prayer and those prayers being answered.

I have learned that God can use average and normal people to do His work if they allow Christ to work through them. God is just waiting for us to ask Him to be used. 2 Corinthians 3:5 – 6 – “Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” Ephesians 3:19 – “May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.”

My prayer is for God’s supernatural power to work through my weakness. If I am not encountering some problems, from time to time, that means Satan is not worried about me. Matthew 6:13 – “And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.”

I believe that God has all kinds of blessings waiting for us. It is time we have the faith to ask Him to bless us. God’s blessings can be limited by us, not by His resources, power or His willingness to give. God’s nature is to bless. God will not give us a blessing that will hurt us. His blessings are in keeping with His will for each of us.

The answer to the questions is: God does not expect us to love Him unconditionally. He wants us to love Him with all of our strength because He has blessings He wants to give us. Don’t be afraid or feel unworthy to ask God for a blessing. THINK – He is waiting to answer our prayers.

Hebrews 11:6 – “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”

You must understand God has a purpose for every person. It is very simple: His purpose is for everyone to accept that Christ is the Son of God, then repent and accept Him as your Savior and be saved. Then He wants us to change our lives and live as Christ instructed. He wants us to be holy and to live a holy life. That will fulfill His purpose for your life.

Once we receive the Holy Spirit we have two choices: we can live according to the world’s ways or according to the prompting of the Holy Spirit, we can live God’s ways. From then on, it is how we see ourselves that determines who we become and how well we will do. You can listen to what the Devil tells you: as to who you are. It is better than you be what Christ tells you: as to whom you can become.

If we focus on Christ and eternity we will receive knowledge and heavenly wisdom to help us succeed. If we focus on what the world offers, we may not be capable of changing who we are or what we become. What our confidence and our attitudes tell us, determines our present success. The more we study the Bible, the more we trust and obey God the greater our success will be. If we listen to Satan we could become a victim. If we listen to the Holy Spirit we will become the victor.

Most of us have a problem focusing. The world presents all kinds of distractions. Are we just showing up for work or are we focusing on what work requires in being successful? The most important thing is: are you praying to God to help you do your best? When was the last time you asked God for guidance in what you should do and how to do it? Have you ever watched God change your circumstances? Are we continually asking God what is best for our lives? When you are given directions are you able to trust and obey Him? I have found that it seems the more wisdom I obtained; the more God answered my prayers. I also found that wisdom gave me the ability to focus on Christ. The more wisdom and the more knowledge I received the more doors were opened and the more doors that were closed.

Proverbs 3:19 – 20 – “By wisdom the Lord laid the earth’s foundations, by understanding he set the heavens in place; by his knowledge the watery depths were divided, and the clouds let drop the dew.”

I am constantly seeing God intervening in my life and in the life of others because I focus on looking for God’s intervention. The reason is because the Bible taught me to expect it and to constantly look for God changing circumstances. The more we study and prepare the more we expect and the more we are capable of letting the Holy Spirit change who we are and what we are capable of doing.

Two things I learned many years ago was education and hard work was necessary to be successful. I also worked with people who had failed in their jobs. They did not have common sense and wisdom. You can have college degrees and all kinds of knowledge and do stupid things. However, wisdom given by the Holy Spirit can make all the difference in what you are able to accomplish.

Heavenly wisdom, from Bible study, made it possible for me to make changes. We often get in a comfort zone and become so stubborn; it seems we are incapable of changing. If we are not constantly changing our thinking about who we are and what we have the potential of doing, we may miss many opportunities.

The Bible taught me, while on this earth; I was to prepare for eternity. The more wisdom and knowledge I obtained now, the greater will be my opportunities in eternity. If I am going to live forever and who I become and what I accomplish here determines my life in eternity, shouldn’t I always be trying to do my best? Too many Christians live as if the life we live today will not make a difference later. That is not what Scripture tells us: Revelation 4:10 – “The twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:”

Do you want one crown or many? Psalms 149:4 – “For the Lord takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with victory.”
Are you willing to prepare now for success after death? What is 85 years now considering forever? The more successful we are living a holy life today gaining wisdom and knowledge; the greater will be our future opportunities. Are you focusing on what the world offers or focusing on what God has planned for the hereafter? If you get to heaven and find out that you missed special blessings because of how you lived on earth and learn that you could have had a better future. It may be too late!

Scripture has told me that often God caused fear in Bible characters prior to them receiving joy. For example in the Christmas story prior to John the Baptist being born. Luke 1:13 – 14 – “But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth,” Heavenly wisdom has taught me that if I am going through some fearful times God will replace my fear with a future joy. If you are having difficult times, it may be God preparing you for His blessings to follow. Scripture also tells me to prepare for the future.

Matthew 6:19 – 20 – “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.”

Matthew 6:1- “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.”

Why is Scripture telling us to store up treasures in heaven and that God has rewards for those who are humble? Do you want to live in eternity without any stored up treasurers or any rewards? Do you see the need for wisdom and the necessity to prepare for success in eternity? It takes discipline and focus! While you are doing this for eternity, God will make you successful while you are here, according to His Word.

God must make some of us hurt in order to get our attention and learn to trust Him. Are you having problems in your life? We are raised in and accept the world’s materialist goals and many Christian find it difficult to impossible in becoming separated from the ways of the world and allow the Holy Spirit to change them. God’s purpose for man was for him to love and worship Him and love others. If everyone was filled with love, there would be no need for police and armies.

Are you filled with the Holy Spirit? When the Apostle Paul was writing to the Corinthian church he told them: When Christians said “Jesus is Lord” it meant that they gave to Jesus the supreme loyalty of their lives and with their hearts they worshipped Him.

Paul further says that no one should say ‘Jesus is Lord’ unless they are led by the Holy Spirit. Christ was not someone who people discovered for themselves, it was God, in His grace, revealing Himself to them. Those who received the Holy Spirit had a change of life. Paul told them that as a member of God’s family they would be given a spiritual gift in order to help each other. What about Christians who have never received or discovered a spiritual gift, are they missing the Holy Spirit in their lives?

I Corinthians 12:7 – 11 – “A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge. The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing. He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.” NLT

Paul is stressing unity in the church and to have a healthy body every part is to perform its own function for the good of the whole. Unity does not mean uniformity and therefore within the Church there are “differing” gifts and “differing” functions. But every one of them is a gift from the Holy Spirit. A gift was not something I immediately detected. But as I grew spiritually, I found I had received the gifts of wise advice, a discerning of spirits, wisdom and faith. To a minor degree prophesy!

Paul says that all special gifts come from God and it was his belief that they should be used in God’s service. These gifts can be given to builders, carpenters, electricians, painters and others. They are not just preaching, teaching, writing, praying or healing.
When Paul refers to “the message of wisdom” it does not come from thought but from communication with God. Wisdom is our knowledge of God. Knowledge is being able to put God’s wisdom into practice.

When Paul talks about the gift of faith it is a faith that produces results. It is a passionate belief in a thing which makes people spend all that they are and have on it. Faith gives people the courage to take action. I would assume more Christians would have this gift than many of the others.

In the early Church healing was commonplace. A Jew who was ill would more than likely go to a Rabbi than a doctor. In all probability healing would result. When Greeks would go and spend a night in their temple to be healed, often they were. History proves this to be true. There is not the slightest doubt that there was healing in the early Church. Paul would never have cited them unless it was real. The Church has never lost the gift of healing. It seems to have been rediscovered in the 16th century. There were a lot of mental illnesses and it was attributed to the work of demons. It was a function of the Church to exorcise these demons. The Catholic Church continues the practice of exorcism.

We associate prophecy too much with foretelling the future. Prophets brought warnings, telling men and women that their way of action was not in accordance with God’s will. They brought advice and guidance, directing people into the ways God wished for them to go. That does not preclude Christians being able to see the future according to what Scripture provides.

He said some were given the gift to discern between different kinds of spirits. Some spirits came from God and some from the devil. We must observe and understand before making a judgment.

He ends with tongues and the ability to interpret them. Tongues were causing a great deal of perplexity in the Church. At a Church service someone would fall into a trance and pour out unintelligible sound in no know language. This was a highly coveted gift because it was supposed to be due to the direct influence of the Spirit of God. Paul never questioned the gifts of tongues but he was well aware that it had its dangers. To some it became a kind of self-hypnotism and very difficult to tell apart. Much of the New Testament does not mention or place much emphasis on speaking in an unknown language. If it was vital to one’s spiritual life, the Apostles would have made it a priority and they did not.

If a spiritual gift is given to each one of us who profess to be a Christian, then shouldn’t we know what that at least one gift is? When I was converted and accepted Christ, there was a tremendous desire to change my life-style. I was convicted of things that I knew had to change and the Holy Spirit made it possible to begin living as Christ had modeled for us. As Paul says I had to work out my salvation and learn what the Bible taught for new converts. I learned it was likely I would not change anything that I could tolerate financially, emotionally or spiritual. It would be difficult to change anything I deemed extremely valuable and was not a positive in a Christian’s life. Therefore, I had to accept some of my values had to change. Are you willing to change the world’s ways to Christ’s ways? If not—are you sure you are filled with the Holy Spirit?

Ephesians 4:17 & 18 – “So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.”

Galatians 5:16 -18 – “So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.”

It is important to realize that God has a plan for us. Within that plan God allows a lot of leeway for us to make our own decisions. It is difficult knowing whether we are following God’s desires for us or making our own plans. In order to determine whether I am following God’s desires and not my own, I must ask the following question: Am I living for the present or living for eternity?

For that to happen we had to accept Christ as our Savior so we could be forgiven of our past, present and future sins in order that we might become free. Do we believe that it is possible to completely change and live as a new person with different perceptions? Do we sense God’s power, His love and His guidance in our lives? Do we believe God wants anything but the best for us? Scripture tells us if we accept the truth, it will set us free to become whatever we dream to be. Do we believe that the Holy Spirit is in our lives to help us become what is best for us? Do others and we see supernatural changes taking place in our lives? The Bible tells us God wants each of us to live extra-ordinary lives and has placed the Holy Spirit in our lives to help us live that kind of life. He tells us we are to have love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Have we seen evidence of these changes?

Let’s check! Do we live like a son or daughter of a heavenly Father who has unlimited power and wealth? Do we think like a person of wealth, fame and power? Do we realize how precious God has made us and the potential we possess? Too often, after conversion, we continue to accept the role of a person having little value. The Devil tells us we are unworthy and will never amount to much. If we believe him our lives could end in failure. Well, do we want to keep living the way we have been or do we want to live the life God has planned for us? Our first step is to surrender our controlling and confrontational nature and seek the Holy Spirit’s guidance. We must trust that God has a better life for us than we are able to make for ourselves.

We must always be alert! Sometimes God allows obstacles or problems to come in our way to get our attention. God wants us to listen to Him, depend on Him, wait on Him and watch for Him to work on our behalf. As children we relied on our earthly father for their intervention into our lives. Why is it so hard to rely on our Godly Father to do the same? Many times God wants to demonstrate His power by intervening in our lives and building our faith and character. Different than earthly fathers, God works silently and is invisible. If we are not expecting God’s intervening into our lives, we may not recognize when His work is being done. Many Christians are just not knowledgeable of how God works.

Why do we sometimes get discouraged? Could it be we focus too much on our problems and not enough on God? Do we place more trust in our ability to handle a problem rather than trusting it to God? Do we believe God will intervene in our difficult circumstance or is He too busy doing other things? In our minds do we limit the power of God?

To answer these types of questions God requires that we put time into preparation. How familiar are we with the Bible and the promises God gives us? If we don’t know the answers and promises God provides to the above questions, we probably wouldn’t expect God to intervene. Therefore, we probably are not listening, expecting, trusting nor truly believing that our prayers will be answered. Shouldn’t we believe God wants us to see His power working in us, so our faith will increase and we can give Him the glory?

Acts 16:5 – 13 tell us that on Paul’s second trip to visit the churches he decided to go and spread the gospel to Asia. But Paul had a dream that God told him he should preach the good news to the Europeans. Had Paul continued on to Asia where he was headed, would there have been a Christian United States? Aren’t we pleased that Paul allowed the Holy Spirit to change his direction? The Holy Spirit may be telling us to change direction or keep going the way we are, but if we are not listening and recognizing His guidance, we may miss His blessings and find ourselves in negative circumstances.

God opens and closes doors, but we must be sensitive to the Holy Spirit to realize when doors are opening or closing. We probably will not recognize whether a door is open or closed unless we have allowed the Holy Spirit to guide us.

Following are ways the Bible tells us God works:

First through circumstances:

God closes doors to keep us from making a mistake. We must be careful not to break doors down just because we believe what’s on the other side is best for us. That is our controlling nature to always believe we know what’s best for us. The Devil told Eve that eating the apple would be best for her. Many times God will redirect us to greater opportunities if we will only listen. Do we listen to the Devil’s lies or the Holy Spirit?

Does God always have a purpose in mind when He changes circumstances? We must continue to believe that God wants what is best for us. Are we always sensitive to His Spirit’s leading? What percent of our decisions are based on what we want rather than what God may believe is best for us?

Also Through the prompting of the Holy Spirit:

We must live by the prompting of the Holy Spirit. Don’t expect the Spirit to speak your name or write you a message. Mostly it will be a very quiet prompting. Sometimes He is so quiet that many Christians are unable to recognize His prompting. The amount and degree of prompting may be a result of our obedience, trust and prayers. Live each day as if the Holy Spirit will open or close doors. God always respects obedience and our trust. Therefore, shouldn’t we expect doors to be swinging? Believe that God allows circumstances to happen that we might receive the greatest satisfaction out of life.

The reason the apostle Paul lived such a gratifying life was that he was willing to give His life for Christ and become totally surrendered. He was beaten, almost stoned to death and spent years in prison. We must believe commitment is rewarded. Sometimes God will shut a door because our disobedience disqualifies us. Be careful; don’t try opening a door that God closed. God will let you break the door down but watch out for negative results.

Disappointment may come from going through a closed door.
If I am having problems does that mean I may have gone through a door that God has closed? God lets us make mistakes. However, it does not mean that we broke through a closed door. God gives us free moral agency and there are times He allows negative circumstances to happen that we might be disciplined and have experiences in preparation for something greater.

Through my experience, I have seen horrible things happen to people and later see them blessed beyond one’s wildest imagination. There may be times when God does to us as He did to the Israelites. If we become indifferent and do most things our way, unintentionally maybe, in a sense we are rejecting God’s guidance. It is possible that God may say, go ahead and do it your way. I’ll leave you alone. When you fail, as the Israelites often did, they came back with a repentant heart asking for God to again take over their lives. During these times God may not be opening or closing doors. He watches while we go it alone. It doesn’t take too many failures and disappointing circumstances for us to realize that God can guide our lives much better than we can ourselves. Never stop praying for God to give us opportunities and to open doors.

We must be willing to wait for the Spirit’s guidance. Remember Abraham and Sarah didn’t wait and as a result the world is suffering today. King Saul didn’t wait for the High Priest to offer a sacrifice and did it himself. As a result, he lost his kingdom. God has a specific purpose for each of us. Pray that God will show us what that may be. It may be in marriage, our job, our ministry or helping others. There are so many ways that the Holy Spirit can use us. He will provide if we are willing.

What have we learned about open and closed doors?

Sometimes when we feel weak or worried we need to fix our thoughts on Christ. It may be we do not have the full strength, comfort and guidance available from the Holy Spirit. If life gets rough and problems seem to have no solutions and many things are going badly and disappointment sets in, we are told to fix our eyes on Christ and allow the Holy Spirit to give us guidance.

If doors don’t seem to be either opening or closing is it because we are not seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit? Don’t we think God wants to direct our path? From the time Adam and Eve sinned, God has provided a recovery process and a purpose for man. However, pressures and stresses of the day make it easy to ignore or forget that God has a plan for our lives. Though the plan may not always be specific, it is available for every believer. Which plan do you prefer to live, God’s or yours? Are we willing to surrender our lives?

Deception in politics and living life is becoming more evident every day. Some politicians and sales people think we are stupid, others believe we are just uninformed and some believe we just don’t care enough to become more knowledgeable. The Bible tells us as Christians the Holy Spirit can give us many gifts as we learn in the following:

I Corinthians 12:7 – 11 – “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.”

These are gifts available to Christians. We are aware the Apostles had supernatural powers that were needed to carry out their mission of spreading the Gospel to the world. Jesus said to them: As the Father sent me, so I send you. The power they were given was infallible. What they said and what they wrote was always correct and it was completely accurate. They were given a power to perform miracles to confirm their words to an unbelieving world. The above gifts are those that we need to pray of receiving and are available to Christians today. I wish to point out the importance of being able to “discern” between what is good and what is evil. It is said four million Christians did not vote in the 2012 election and I believe they did not have the gift of a “discerning spirit”.

A person who intentionally lies may believe the end justifies the means. Scripture says it is a sin and a discerning spirit would point out that is not what any leader or sales representative should do. I see this in both political parties and in business. It disappoints me when these people are re-elected continuously or anyone misleading others to keep their jobs.

I John 4:1 – “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

It is the responsibility of every Christian to test what they read or hear. Does what they hear or read in keeping with what Scripture teaches? What kind of a lifestyle are our leaders living and what are the fruits of their leadership? A false prophet normally states they are a Christian or they practice Christian morality. They may claim to have a new truth and their expressed goal is to make life better for others. To find out if a person is teaching a false doctrine we would know if we could ask them what their beliefs were about Jesus Christ. However, most politicians state their belief is for abortion on demand, to make available same sex marriages and other beliefs contrary to Biblical teaching.

II Corinthians 11:13 – 15 – “For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.”

Satan and his servants most often deceive us by appearing to be charismatic and charming people who appear to be attractive, good and moral. Many people, including Christians, are attracted to smooth talking leaders who could possibly be a cult or Lucifer follower determined to form Satan’s one-world government. Most people never think that it is possible to have a person who has sold their sole to the devil as some movie stars and popular musicians claimed to have done. Is it possible that a national leader, under Satan’s influence, willingly mislead people for their own purposes?

A true discerning spirit can detect a particular leader who is peaceable, humble and refrains from vain desires of this world and refrains from gathering excessive material wealth. A person who exalts himself/herself, wishing to be counted number one, who is bold, imprudent and lives with a desire for many luxuries; a person who takes credit for all positive outcome and blames all negatives outcomes on others normally would be considered Biblically as a false prophet. A discerning spirit will help us from being fooled by external experiences. Is the person’s lifestyle consistent with Biblical morality?

I believe through prayer, if a Christian really cares, the Holy Spirit will provide a discerning spirit as to what he is told or when someone is trying to sell them something that is a scam. However, I have personally been deceived and taken advance of a few times in the past. Wouldn’t life be much better if we had a discerning spirit that at all times, we could differentiate between good and evil?

For years I have read: “They were filled with the Holy Spirit.” Then I would hear: “They were walking in the Spirit.” I understand how the Holy Spirit convicts, teaches, guides, intercedes, comforts and warns but didn’t know whether I was “filled or walking in” the Spirit.

The Bible states that those empowered by the Holy Spirit lived an abundant life, free from worry and have their needs met. That is a very outstanding promise and wouldn’t any Christian want that? Therefore, shouldn’t we then want to know how we can be filled with and walk in the Holy Spirit? I honestly believe that I have been living a holy life, have had that abundant life and have had my needs met but am I walking in and am I filled with the Holy Spirit? My study and research has concluded that being filled with the Holy Spirit is to be filled with Christ.

John 14:16-20 – “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.” (It is Christ’s Spirit that lives in us wanting to help us be filled with His Spirit and walk with him.)

God’s purpose for us is to make our life a reflection of Christ. This is done by surrendering our self-centeredness, getting rid of pride, lust, selfishness, covetousness, envy or jealousy and self-righteousness. It requires studying the life of Christ in order to develop the “mind of Christ”. We are to take on a servant’s heart and live a humble life as He did.

There are Christians with confrontational personalities and feel a need to have total control and are unwilling to surrender and allow Christ to live through them. Often they live in dysfunctional families and have problems with life. There are those who have never taken the time to study the Bible and learn that Jesus is trying to live through them. They struggle with feelings of unworthiness and often lack faith and confidence. They miss so much in life. Then there are those who talk the talk but never walk the walk.

I also learned that we are all filled with the Spirit who are believers. We are not filled a little bit, we are filled totally. However, many Christians do not allow Christ to walk with them. If your personality is such that you are unwilling to give up control or do not have the knowledge enough to realize that Christ wants to live through you; you are probably struggling with being a Christian and missing what God promises.

To be filled with the Spirit and walk in the Spirit requires a real commitment. Your chances of becoming Christ-like probably won’t happen if all you do is attend church on the weekend. It takes effort and discipline to commit to living as Christ lived and to change our personality. Jesus lived with the fruits of the Spirit as given in Galatians 5:22 – 23 – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. We see Christ’s love for God and for man.

We are to love as Jesus loved. John 13:34 – “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” We are to love those who may not love us. We are to do well to those who may not return the favor. We must be willing to give to those who need even though they may not be able to give anything in return.

Jesus says we must live a joyful life. John 15:11 – “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” `We must be positive and have hope in the future. We must live sensing God’s approval. There is joy in sharing the gospel to others and doing God’s will.

Christ says we must have peace. Philippians 4:6 – 7 – “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” We must be at peace with ourselves to walk with the Lord. We are told not to be anxious about anything.

I Peter 2:19 – 20 – “For God is pleased when, conscious of his will, you patiently endure unjust treatment. Of course, you get no credit for being patient if you are beaten for doing wrong. But if you suffer for doing good and endure it patiently, God is pleased with you.” (NLT) We must have the Spirit of longsuffering and patience. We must be able and willing to suffer patiently for Christ. God allows problems to come in order to build our character and our faith. He allowed Christ to suffer for each of us.

We are to show kindness to others. Mathew 25:39 – 40 – “When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’” A kind person is a giving person, a happy person who is not self-centered. They enjoy pleasing others and they have a pleasant personality. They are gentle and warm hearted, unselfish and generous. They are understanding and considerate. They are thoughtful and merciful and use kind words. They are helpful and courteous and excuse the mistakes of others. They treat everyone equally as they would like to be treated. There will be times when we must be stern or discipline others; it can be done in a kind way. Kindness will make us appeal to others. Wouldn’t you want a friend like that; then be one?

Faithfulness means absolute devotion to God or to a specific cause. Matthew 12:30 – “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.”

To be Christ-like we must be gentle. Matthew 11:28 – ““Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” We must be aware that we are continually in the presence of God. We are expected to have a gentle spirit.
We must have the self-control to not be tempted to sin. I Corinthians 10:13 – “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”

Realize that Christ’s Spirit is in us wanting to live through us. We know that He would not yield to temptation and He would not want us doing so either. We must not allow ourselves to live as the world lives but as Jesus would live. We are not to stop Him from living through us as God intended. If we do, we are allowing Satan to tempt us to live as the world lives.

Galatians 5:25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

In 1890 the life expectancy was 43 and today it is 82 allowing us to live, on average, an extra 39 years. It used to take more than a year to travel from New York to Los Angeles and some died along the way. We live at a time when we have many of the things they did not have more than a hundred years ago. We have electricity, cars, airplanes, trains, technology, immediate communications, household appliances, and a much better standard of living. There was a time when horse and buggy were the main transportation. There was no inside plumbing and you had to travel outside at night to use the lavatory. But we have many more advantages:

One of my blessings is to have been born in America. Where else do they have the freedom of speech and worship as we do? I am thankful for the career opportunities that exist. I am thankful for our Christian heritage. What other country has been blessed with the abundance that we have? However, it didn’t just happen. God made and prepared this country so that people could come who felt they didn’t have the freedom to worship as Scripture taught. It reminds me of what He promised to some Israelites.

Isaiah 41: 17 – 20 – ““When the poor and needy search for water and there is none, and their tongues are parched from thirst, then I, the Lord, will answer them. I, the God of Israel, will never abandon them. I will open up rivers for them on the high plateaus. I will give them fountains of water in the valleys. I will fill the desert with pools of water. Rivers fed by springs will flow across the parched ground. I will plant trees in the barren desert—cedar, acacia, myrtle, olive, cypress, fir, and pine. I am doing this so all who see this miracle will understand what it means—that it is the Lord who has done this, the Holy One of Israel who created it.”

When was the last time you thanked God for giving to we Americans such a beautiful country with a tremendous amount of natural resources? In addition, He took Christian men who were inspired by the Holy Spirit to provide our constitution and laws to guide us. You have allowed us to become the most powerful and prosperous nation on earth. One of our purposes is to become the world’s peace keeper and to spread Your gospel to all peoples in every nation. For the millions of America Christians we have been grateful. It was Abraham Lincoln that established the Thanksgiving holiday in gratitude to our Creator in 1863.

After 150 years we have done as many before us. We turned the purpose of the original holiday to material things rather than the giving of thanks to God Who deserves it. Instead of counting our blessings and achievements we are hearing too much whining. People are not content and satisfied with what they have; they want more and are not always willing to earn it.

I am blessed for knowing God’s Word and what He promises. He allows me to have a personal relationship with Him. He provides me with His Holy Spirit into my life that guides and watches over me. He gives me my faith and what wisdom I have. I live a life of peace with a joyful, positive attitude. He inspired me to be motivated and be prosperous. There are times He has protected me from accidents and serious problems. His Spirit has taught me to have a servant’s heart, to be confident and stay humble. He has instructed me to share love and be generous with what He has given me. He teaches that we can all be successful. We can be successful parents, teachers or leaders in whatever endeavor we choose.

Why are so many Americans disrespectful and disobedient to God? They refuse to rely and be dependent upon God and put their trust in self or government. Why are there takers rather than givers? Show me someone having fame or fortune that has the same joyful and peaceful calmness that many needy Christians, living as Christ has instructed us, have.

One thing that God taught, we were to give a tenth of what we had to the Temple or His ministry. It had to be our very best, without spot or defect. Yet it is so hard for so many to be givers. What would motivate them to give to God’s ministry as taught by Scripture? What blessing could they receive?
Matthew 6:20 – “Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal.”

Being generous and giving is like storing up treasurers in heaven. I have wondered if someone like Billy Graham were taken to heaven like the Apostle John was and God said: Tell My people, every time Christians charitably give it is recorded in heaven. Those who give will receive a 20% return annually, compounded and that amount will be given to them when they spend the 1000 years with Christ on earth. Do you think Christians would give more knowing it was being recorded for their future use?

It shouldn’t just be on Thanksgiving that we count our blessings but, daily. If you watch carefully and patiently you will see God intervening in your life. These “It’s A God Thing” occur more than we realize unless we are alert and expecting. I count each as blessings!

When asked, how would I know God’s purpose for my life and how do I live according to His Will and His Ways? You will never answer that question satisfactorily to a non-believer but I believe a Christian will understand.

Recently, I was talking to my 19 year old grandson and the question was: what purpose did God create me to do? He is taking basic college courses hoping that he will find how to prepare for that specific purpose he was born to do and when and how will he learn what that purpose is?

I don’t know that I had the answer but I believe God created each one of us to help complete the work that Christ started and we are to help finish. Our purpose is to accept Christ as our Savior and become Christ-like so that we can live as God intended. Once I received the Holy Spirit I had the power, within, to live loving God with our all and loving others as ourselves. If I have accepted our purpose and living obediently and according to His Ways, I will be able to make an impact for Christ with those who are my friends and neighbors. Our created purpose is to become ministers for Christ and share the Gospel. If each of us were to do this, it would change the world in which we live. God created the Israelites to change the way the world was living by sharing God and they failed to do so.

Romans 8:29 – “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.”

God’s purpose for Christians was not an afterthought; it was determined before we were born that we would conform to the image of His Son or become Christ-like and become ministers for Him. This does not necessarily mean God has a specific career for us. It does not mean that God has a mate picked out just for us. What it does mean is that God will use our temperaments and talents to help us chose a career that we will enjoy. He will help us select a mate that is compatible and has Christian disciplines and faith. If a Christian selects a non-believer as their mate, God will not be in the selection process.

If we know our purpose on earth is to develop an unconditional love for God and others and have a servant’s heart and then share this with others, we can fulfill that purpose. As we head down life’s path our carnal nature, our self-centeredness, the storms we encounter and the devil’s seducing spirits will try to guide us too often onto the wrong path. That’s when we check our compass, the Holy Spirit, and make sure we stay directed to the path that leads to the ultimate goal, which is living with God and Christ forever. When we take that last breath, what is the most important thing we can take with us? Is it all of our material things that we have accumulated? Or, is it eternal security? Since there are so many death-bed conversions we must believe it is eternal security with Christ.

I also believe that God calls certain people to take specific ministry positions. God also opens and closes doors and I believed He did for me. However, we have a free moral agency to make individual choices. God can use us in whatever decision we make, if we are truly a committed Christian. He is more concerned about our attitude, our heart spiritually and our service to others.
Matthew 6:20 – “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.” Do you want to pass on with nothing stored up in heaven? Pray that God will help you live for the purpose you were created.

We must realize that if we meet God’s purpose and live according to His Ways, we can expect Satan to attack. Maybe not an attack as severe as what happened to the Apostle Paul but we will encounter problems. Satan will not find it necessary to attack us if we are not making a spiritual difference or any impact on others. The real question may be: how do we prepare for attacks with Satan’s purpose of discouraging us so we will stop making a difference and give up? How does Satan get us to cease our witness?

God knew that man could not live according to His Ways and fulfill our purpose without His Spirit giving us the power to meet and overcome what Satan is likely to cause. I believe the more we minister to others the greater the Holy Spirit’s power will become. If you are not doing anything for God you don’t need extra power. I never realized this until I started writing blogs five years ago. My understanding and insight is much greater now than it was years ago and I sense more direction from the Holy Spirit. I realize that what I write is not based on personal talents but what God permits and the Holy Spirit inspires.

Satan entered Judas, Jesus’ disciple and Judas betrayed Christ to be crucified. Who else has Satan entered? Satan tempted Christ by offering Him to rule the whole world. Has he offered that position to anyone else? If he did, would they accept?

We are slowly losing our freedom as our politicians are preparing for a one-world government that the Bible predicts will occur. We must become aware that we are being conditioned to accepting the loss of freedom and our personal rights in order for that one-world government to happen.

An economics teacher once said: greed or ambition works in a capitalistic system. Envy and slothfulness promotes socialism. You rarely hear greed being hyped. However, envy is a great motivator, used often. Which economic system will give you the greatest freedom? Is it Socialism or a Capitalistic system? Do you think those who are envious of others and not wanting to work are going to provide to society the greatest freedom? They are willing to give up freedom for the offer of entitlements. The envious want the government (you) to give them what they want. They then will not have to be held accountable for their personal needs. They believe in financial redistribution and government support.

The capitalistic system isn’t perfect but it does promote entrepreneurship, the act of being an entrepreneur or one who undertakes innovations, finance and business acumen in an effort to transform innovations into economic goods. One group is willing to be committed and the others are unwilling to accept commitment or accept responsibility.
I never believed our country would be debating from where does our freedom come? Some don’t care where it comes from as long as they have it. If you are a veteran, most believe it is important to know. Too many take freedom for granted. Some believe they deserve freedom and pay little attention to how we got it or what must we do to keep it. Others believe freedom comes naturally and they were born to be free.

Mark 3:24 – 25 – “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.”
Matthew 12:25 – “Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.”

Have you noticed how our leadership wants to divide the rich against the poor, the minorities against Caucasians, non-believers verses Christians and Jews, the Democrats against the Republicans? Is the purpose behind it to divide and conquer? Why is it that politicians want to deny there is a God?

The debate that exists: does freedom come from our Creator or does it come from government, their laws or regulations? The majority believe individual liberty and freedom come from God. My greatest concern is that we are becoming a nation, so divided, that it may be too late to get us back to being patriotic to a free-market economic system and a true believer in the good that America does for the world. I see radicals and activists with a cause wanting to change America into becoming a socialist state with the redistribution of income. This is just the beginning of a world government under the United Nations.

What may cause us to lose our freedom? We are teaching our young people they do not need to be held accountable for earning a living. Have you noticed how liberal our colleges and universities have become? Many young people don’t believe they need to be committed to anyone, even in marriage or to any career. They don’t need to be givers, it is best to be a “taker” and live on government handouts. Do they think this will keep them having freedom and liberties? Does one believe it is satisfying to live their life always dependent on someone else? Who can possibly take our freedom? Is it OSHA, EPA, NLRB, ObamaCare, the United Nations or our government’s regulations such as what your children can eat at a school cafeteria?

John 8:31 – 32 & 36 – “Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”… So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.”
Galatians 5:1 – “So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law.”

Most Christians believe that all rights of life, freedom and the pursuit of happiness was given by God and found in Scripture. Our constitution was founded by Godly men intending to make sure that freedom would continually exist. I don’t understand why even some Christians believe socialism, with its many regulations and government control, is an improvement.

For most of us who have been veterans believe our freedom has been maintained because of a strong military force. It is conceivable that had we not been prepared, the world could have been controlled by Germany, Japan, Russia or other nations who believe we can be defeated. Yet, there are many who believe that we need to reduce our military and appeasement with an enemy will protect us.

History could have told us a few years back that we were headed for a financial disaster when people were buying homes they could not afford and prices were escalating to unrealistic levels. It seems we had about ten years of unusual prosperity and then the bubble burst. We didn’t learn from the 1989 real estate bubble, the 1990s technology bubble, bubbles in Japan and an oil bubble when oil went up to $140 then to $30 a barrel. Will we have another bubble? We never seem to learn from history.

Freedom is not being able to do anything you want. It is doing the right thing acceptable to the society in which we live & God’s laws. It is our right to do things and accept the consequences for what we do. Freedom does not eliminate one’s need for being accountable, being committed or being responsible.

I believe the only hope for America, at this point, is to have a tremendous spiritual revival. Study the history of Israel. When they rejected God, bad things happened. We Americans need an attitude change. God loves a “cheerful giver” so stop relying on big government.

Does the government really owe you? If they try to take care of you, they will soon “own” you? If the government becomes bankrupt and God ignores us, what occurs then? Where will your freedom come from? What kind of freedom do you expect under a one world government controlled by the Antichrist?