Joy and Strength (Christian life and music)

God asks crazy things of us at times.   If there was a crowd on the scene when Abraham raised a knife to his son Issac, those onlookers would have thought Abraham... Crazy Evil Ungodly No longer worthy to be a leader We don’t always appear to be doing the right thing when we fully obey God, to be in our right mind. But look at the example we have in Abraham and his perfect obedience to God!  We learn about God's faithfulness.  We learn that God provides a solution always.  We learn that God is always trustworthy, even when He tells us to do unimaginable things. The lesson here?  So many! 1. It doesn't matter what "they" think 2. Obey God no matter what 3. Trust God no matter what 4. Just do it! 5. Do not hesitate in obeying God 6. Know God's character through obedience 7. God will always provide, make a way for us If you knew that you heard God telling you to sacrifice your son, would you do it?  I'm guessing no, you most likely would not. Yet God told Abraham

This verse is often quoted among Christians.  They sometimes take it to mean that if you are making a decision and you are confused, then it is not of God.  Or if you are confused about anything in life, then it is not of God and should be dismissed. But we need to work through things.  We need God's help to shed light on what is really happening.  If the enemy is casting doubt on our minds, then the Lord can clear that up and reveal His will in the matter, if we're listening. When I looked up the original Greek for the meaning of confusion in this verse, it was surprising.  It actually means  anarchy. When there is a political uprising, it can happen when the people take power into their own hands, disregarding the law and man-made hierarchy in place. In light of this verse in Scripture, I take it to mean that when I am confused about a matter, that the enemy of my soul is playing anarchist in my mind, trying to overtake Christ in me (ha!).  Poor devil.  He just can't get

Every good story has a protagonist (the hero) and an antagonist (the bad guy).  Sometimes, there are several "bad guys," many different groups of people that come against the hero or heroine.   As we read on in Nehemiah, we don't have to read too far into it to come upon Nehemiah's opposition.   Chapter three lists all of the workers and their various jobs in simply repairing the wall.  They haven't even started the rebuilding process yet. Then, in chapter four, the fun begins!  We read about all the ways the Jews' enemies try to thwart their work.   4:2 The opposition belittled the Jews' work. 4:3 They were sarcastic toward them. 4:5 They demoralized them. But then, after Nehemiah cried out to the Lord to save them from their enemies, for the Lord to bring them down instead of letting their enemies bring them down, we see... 4:6 The Jews continued their work and started rebuilding the wall, after repairing it. 4:6  This angered their enemies because their

I just started a Bible study on the book of Nehemiah.  Here's what I've learned so far from chapter one, and the first few verses from chapter two. Nehemiah had a mission from God.  He was to rebuild the the walls of Jerusalem. It was quite a job ahead of him.  He knew he was going to need help from the powers that be.  He needed to ask for King Artaxerxes' help. Before he approached the king, Nehemiah did a few things first. First, he mourned, wept, prayed, and fasted before God. He reminded God of God's faithfulness, His promises to His chosen people that He gave through Moses, and His covenant with them.   Nehemiah knew God, God's character, God's history with His people, the Jews.  Nehemiah confessed the great sins of his people as well as confessed his own sins before God.  Nehemiah was part of the problem.  Now, God was going to use him to bring about His solution. God chooses whom He chooses.  God knew Nehemiah's heart.  God knows all of our hearts. 

Satan tries to set up strongholds based on lies in our lives in order for us to bow down to them as gods. Our enemy is ever distracting us away from worshiping the Lord. Our enemy wants people, places, or things to lord themselves over us. This prevents us from keeping Jesus as Lord in our hearts, minds, and lives.  But if we persevere in doing as Christ wills us to do, we will eventually triumph. Make no mistake, it is a battle! Why? Because once we are secure in God’s love through worship of Him, there will be nothing we cannot do in His power and love! The enemy knows this. So exactly how does the enemy set up strongholds in us? Usually, they start small, like a foothold first. This is where we need to be aware of what is happening and nip it in the bud immediately. If we don’t, it will grow and become a stronghold. For example, let’s say you’ve been offended by someone. It doesn’t matter if it is a friend, foe, or stranger. The enemy wants to use that offense in your life to get yo