Joy and Strength (Christian life and music)

Did you know that God hates some things?  He is love. But He still has hatred for some things. He hates sin.  He loves the sinner, but hates the sin. He hates lukewarm because it is useless. Think about it.  Can you even stand a lukewarm sip of coffee?!  I know I can't.  Coffee is meant to be served either hot or cold. If people are lukewarm toward you, that is another word for apathetic.  They just don't care.  To me, that is even worse than hatred. Jesus spoke plainly when He said that we are either for Him, or against Him. God wants us either hot or cold toward Him, but not in between.  Lukewarm serves no purpose - that is why God hates it! This Scripture in the book of Revelation is scary stuff.  And how can you be sure that you are either hot or cold?   The choice is yours to make. You make up your mind if you are for God or against Him.  No Switzerland here!  There is no neutrality when it comes to your relationship with and toward God. So what's a girl to do? Love Go

So years ago, I sat down to write an old-fashioned style hymn.  This is what the Lord inspired in me. I just sat down to sing it and whenever I do, I can't make it through with dry eyes. It is such an awesome truth and Reality that we will one day see Jesus face to face.  It is such an awesome Reality that we will be there in His glory with Him, though we have done nothing to earn a place there.  Out of His mind-blowing grace, we will be allowed to enter in where the streets are made of gold.  We will reign there with Him.  We will wear crowns. To imagine the next life in comparison to life as we know it on earth, well the difference is unfathomable. In Revelation 1:17, the apostle John says,  "When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man." God is that awesome and holy.  So falling at His feet when we see Him as He is is a Reality.   If any of you grew up singing the great hymns of old, the chord progression of my song will make sense to you.  It may even be comfort

Do you know what it feels like to be misunderstood?  Do you have people in your life who truly "get" you? If no two people are really like, including identical twins, then how can there be "kindred" spirits?  Can we be like anyone else if we're not like anyone else?! When we feel misunderstood, like others just don't "get" us, it can be frustrating.  We all want to be accepted as we are.  But what if "as we are" is not at all how others perceive us? Remember, people look at us through their, mostly distorted, lens.  We don't truly see others, either, most of the time. But the comfort lies in this:  there is one - the only one, really - who knows us through and through.  He "gets" us because He made us!  No one else on earth can claim this place in our lives.  Though our mothers birthed us and probably know us better than anyone, there is still one who sits far and above even our mothers when it comes to being understood:  th

I just finished reading the last few chapters of Revelation.  Wow!  Though I've read this awesome prophecy before, it never ceases to amaze me.  As followers of Christ, we will one day rule and reign with Him! But something stood out to me that I don't remember seeing before.  Revelation 22:3 reads like this: "No longer will there be any curse.  The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and His servants will serve Him." So we will continue to serve Christ throughout eternity.  How does that fit into the ruling and reigning with Him?  Two verses later, we read: "And  there will no longer be  any  night; and they  will not have need  of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illuminate them; and they will  reign forever and ever." Serving is reigning!  When we serve, we rule!  Like so many other ways of God's Kingdom, it is in total opposite to this world's system.  But not in the new world! As we serve Chr

From Day 1 of my fast, I had a greater desire to spend time with the Lord.  In addition to my usual morning quiet time, I spent my lunch hour with Him, too.  I listened to sermons online, or read, or wrote in my prayer journal.   I felt closer to God.  I had peace. Normally, I would usually spend my lunch hour watching a sitcom, or looking at cooking shows online - always looking for new recipes!  I had no desire for either during the fast. I kept a daily journal during the 40 days.  In the Bible, 40 is an important number.  Awesome things took place during either 40 days or 40 years.  I wondered what my 40 days would bring me, where it would lead and take me. I tried not to place too many expectations on the fast, on what the Lord would do  in, around, or for me and instead I simply hungered for more of Jesus.  Thank You, Lord. I wasn't distracted by food or "entertainment!"  It came more naturally now to focus on the Lord, staying close to Him, instead of thinking about