Life’s Victories Carnival

When I came up with the idea to do a Carnival on this topic, my vision was of people telling their own personal stories of Victory in overcoming life’s challenges. I find mostly what people send, when you do these carnivals is your standard run of the mill self improvement information. There’s about a million or more self improvement writers and just about every one puts out the same type of article and information at one time or another.  You don’t find many that write a story or tale about their life that includes a lesson learned. Now I’m not criticizing  people who write  these type of self improvement articles because I have written many articles like this myself.   I’m only pointing out what I asked for. In truth for the most part what I asked for and what I got are two different things. Below are the blog posts that I felt most closely met the Carnival criteria.

Seth C. Burgess presents Mayor Peter Blandino of Newark | Wayne County Life posted at Wayne County Life.

Zhu presents I made It | Correr Es Mi Destino posted at Correr Es Mi Destino.

Jackie Powell presents Honest Fear posted at eskyoo.

Dimes2Vines presents When Our Grapes Come In posted at Dimes2Vines.

Tod presents Balancing Between Success and Failure posted at A Blog by Tod.

Sarah Clark presents Sarah…Phenomenally: Stepping into the phenomenal life. posted at Sarah…Phenomenally.

I included two articles I wrote in this Carnival that truly meet the criteria those article areLife’s Twists and Let Go You can Scale the Cliffs.

Until the next time keep growing and improving.

God’s Love Energizes Believing

Something got me going on this topic again. I don’t know what it is, but I feel that this is perhaps the most important topic a Christian can study. If a Christian learns to walk in God’s love, his life is changed. God’s love gives wings to life. His love sets a man free.

Recently I saw a verse in Galatians that got me thinking.

Galatians 5: ⁶For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.

The word faith here comes from the Greek word pistis- which means believing in this context.

The word worketh is the Greek word  energeō  which means- to put forth power, be at work, to be operative. Our English word energize or energized comes from this word energeō.  ENERGIZED I like this word.

Love is the Greek word agapē- which is God’s Love.

Let’s put this in simple terms, believing is energized by God’s Love. If our believing is energized by God’s love, then isn’t this the most important topic a Christian could focus on? All of life is based on believing. We are either believing positively or negatively in our daily life. When you walk in God’s love your believing is energized and brings about positive result.

1 Corinthians13: ¹Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. ²And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. ³And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.  ⁴Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,  ⁵Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; ⁶Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; ⁷Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. ⁸Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. ⁹For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. ¹⁰But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. ¹¹When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. ¹²For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. ¹³And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

The word charity in this chapter is the word agapē.

Agapē-

can only be manifested by a person who has received the gift of holy spirit from God. This chapter deals with works that born again believers can do.  With out God’s love all those works are nothing. Spending time in God’s Word and learning HOW to walk in His love is the most important thing a person can do in life.  

Recently I read something that peaked my interest in learning more about this topic. The writer mentioned that an atheist could partake in the divine love. In truth an atheist can receive the divine love via God’s Word, but an atheist could never manifest God’s love. An atheist does not have the spirit God gives to the person who believes Romans 10:9&10. An atheist is strictly a body, soul person who cannot know God. Though God’s divine love is available to the atheist via His Word a true atheist rejects what God says in his Word. Therefore an atheist could never manifest God’s love. Only a Christian believer can manifest God’s love.

Ephesians3: ¹⁶That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;
¹⁷That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
 ¹⁸May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
 ¹⁹And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
 ²⁰Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
 ²¹Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

 In God’s love (agapē

) you can comprehend the breadth, length, depth and height and be filled with all the Fulness of God. It’s in walking in love that the greatness of God’s Word will truly come to light for you. That love passes knowledge. Remember, knowledge puffeth up. Without the love that God makes available that  person is a sounding  brass or a tinkling cymbal.

Look at how much God loved us. He allowed his only begotten son to be put to death so that we could be saved. Could you give up your son or daughter so that the world could be saved?  God is the biggest giver I know. He is the largest supplier of love in the world.

John 3: ¹⁶ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

So we know how much God loved us. We can see by the Word what Love is not, and we can see by the Word what it is, and what it does it does for us.

Here is a list of the things that the love of God is not.
1.   A sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal
2.   Nothing
3.   It envieth not
4.   Vaunteth not itself
5.   Is not puffed up
6.   Does not behave itself unseemly
7.   Is not easily provoked
8.   Thinketh no evil
9.   Rejoiceth not in iniquity.

God’s Love:
1.   Suffereth Long
2.   Is Kind
3.   Rejoiceth in truth.
4.   Beareth all things
5.   Believeth all things
6.   Hopeth all things
7.   Endureth all things
8.   Never Fails

Since this post could exceed over 10,000 words or more with the depth of this topic. I’m going to write in sections. This article is designed to get you thinking about God’s love and working God’s Word and researching  it yourself.  In my next article I’ll be writing about how to walk in God’s Love.

God, and the Origins of the U.S. Thanksgiving

It’s interesting to consider the origins of Thanksgiving in the United States, especially in light of the push by some groups to eliminate any association between the one true God and the Government. The seperation of church and state was not something our founding fathers desired. In fact George Washington made the following proclamation concerning the day we celebrate each year in November.

WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favour; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me “to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:”

NOW THEREFORE, I do recommend and assign THURSDAY, the TWENTY-SIXTH DAY of NOVEMBER next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed;– for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enabled to establish Constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted;– for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge;– and, in general, for all the great and various favours which He has been pleased to confer upon us.

And also, that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions;– to enable us all, whether in publick or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shewn kindness unto us); and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.

GIVEN under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine.

(signed) G. Washington

Perhaps the government we have today needs to take a look at this proclamation and consider returning our country to the Godly foundation our nation was originally built upon. The fact that we are now a nation that is violating the Word of God on a regular basis it seems logical to me that we should return to the solid rock our nation originally believed in.We need a united Government on this subject not a divided government.  It is essential  to go back to what our money says on each coin and bill, IN GOD WE TRUST.

Thanksgiving was founded upon acknowledging the providence of  the Almighty God . It was orginally set up for us to offer our prayers and supplications (specific requests) to God in thanksgiving for his kind care and protection of this country and it’s people. It seems to me our nation needs this foundation more than ever. It is the one true God that prospers  each individual as he believes God, and that same God will make a nation abundant in prosperity when that nation makes the Almighty the foundation of its beliefs.

“It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will , to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor.” Our founding president and our forefathers knew what was right. Thanksgiving is not just a day it is a day to day lifestyle. As you celebrate this Thanksgiving, go to God in prayer, and supplication with believing. God is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. Those who seek God in believing prayer will prosper in any economy. His abundance it ours to claim!!!

Let Go, 2012 Is not the End

The world is getting all hyped up on the prophecy that the end of the world is coming in 2012. I’ve been asked by several people if I think that this will happen. The only way I can think of to answer, is to go to the Word of God and let it speak.

In the book of Acts before Jesus Christ ascended the disciples were pressing him to know when the kingdom would be returned to Israel. He made an interesting statement.  Here’s what he said:

 Acts 1:⁶When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?  ⁷And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.

 Jesus Christ told his disciples that it is not for you to know the times and seasons which the Lord has in his power. Note it says that the times and the seasons are in God’s power. This of course is not talking of the end of the world as we know it. However Jesus Christ told his faithful follower that it is not for them to know the times or the seasons which the Lord has in his power.

There is even more information in 1 Thessalonians 5 ¹But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.  ²For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. ³For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.  ⁴But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. ⁵Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. ⁶Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.  ⁷For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.  ⁸But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. ⁹For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,

See if the day of the Lord is going to come as a thief in the night then the unbelievers of the world are not going to know about it before hand. Here’s my take on the end of the world predictions. If someone tells you that the end is going to come on a certain date in a certain year at a certain time, you are guaranteed that it will not happen then. No one knows the day time or hour that the Lord has put in His power.

The key is to get born again of the spirit of  God (Romans 10:9-10) and put on believing and love. We are not to be asleep spiritually but sober and vigilant in seeking God.  Those who are living God’s Word will be ready when the day of the Lord comes. Folks we are not appointed to wrath, but to salvation by one Jesus Christ. So live love and enjoy doing it. God’s abundant blessing are coming your way as you believe His Word.

We don’t live in fear of the future but we look forward to the return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Now that’s a great way to live and think.

Lifes Victories Carnival

So here we go for round two of the Lifes Victories Carnival. Victory is attainable as we set a vision for ourselves. Every time I have won in a game or anything in life I’ve always been focused on the goal or vision I’ve set. In a team situation the whole team needs to be on board with the vision you’ve set. Knowledge is absolutely necessary to get the victory. Some of the posts you are about to read have knowledge in them that will help you achieve victory. Other posts are stories of people winning in different categories of life.

Harold presents Cash for Clunkers – An Uncertain Future posted at The Car Enthusiast.

Michael presents Protect Yourself from Useless Auto Warranties posted at Car Information. Tips To Buy, Maintain, And Insure A Car..

Finances

Ashley presents Easy Ways to Save Money at the Gas Station posted at Saving Money Today. 

Ashley presents Money Saving & Goal Setting posted at Saving Money Today.

Debt Wizard presents Savings and Timeframes posted at Money Tips. Help With Money.

Joshua presents Teaching Your Kids About Money posted at Family and Parenting: Information For Families.

Jenny presents Stop The Credit Card Madness posted at Stop Spending Money.

Neal Schaffer presents LinkedIn Profile Tips: The 10 Mistakes You Want to Avoid and Why posted at Windmill Networking.  

Jeremy presents Things to Do After a Car Accident posted at The Car Spot. Jeremy presents How to Lower Your Car Insurance Payments posted at The Car Spot.

nissim ziv presents How to Reach your Career Goals and Objectives posted at Job Interview Guide.

doug boude presents Buying a New Home is Easy! Part 2 of 2 posted at Doug Boude (rhymes with ‘loud’).

Health- Eating and living in a healthy manner is so important to being victorious.

Cory presents Diet Vs. Exercise posted at Eat Healthy, Live Healthy.

Dr. Wilson presents How Chiropractic Can Help With Fibromyalgia posted at Tree of Life Chiropractic.

jonojonothan presents Scrawny? posted at Sambasixtytwo’s Blog.

Relationships and Self Improvement

This next post is interesting because it’s talking about your biggist critic yourself.

Karl Raats presents 5 ways of dealing with your inner critic posted at Pinching the Ostrich.

Ben presents How to be Assertive and Increase Your Confidence posted at Self Help Gold.

Victoria presents It’s Time To Call His Bluff | Tips To Get Married And Find Love. Dating Help For Women. posted at Time To Get Married.

Wise_Bread presents The Best Book I’ve Ever Read About Making Changes Stick posted at Wisebread.

Sarah Clark presents The Mother Load: Cleaner living through mom’s cooking posted at The Mother Load.
 
michael fehlauer presents When You?ve Lost Your Swing posted at Mike N Bonnie.

self_help_devotee presents Read This Today And Change Your Life Tomorrow posted at Things That Teach Us.

Ruda Krishna presents Live and Let Live posted at The Pathless Mind.

Health

I included this article on Tourette’s syndrome because the author could help someone who has just been diagnosed with the syndrome.  Anyone who has a disease like this could use the help in understanding what they are in for.

Janette Hanagarne presents New Series: How To Have Tourette’s posted at World’s Strongest Librarian.

Let Go, Forget the Past, but not All of It

Did you ever do something really stupid and then come to regret it? It could be in any area of life including spiritual, criminal, physical, sexual or even causing another physical harm. If you said no to this question then you must be Jesus Christ. He is the only person I know of that has never made a mistake.

The past can tend to come up and inhale your head. How you handle your own mind determines whether you forget the negative past or hold onto it.

Let’s begin by looking at an example of someone who is continuously reminded of his failures. Alex Rodriquez of the New York Yankees has consistently had problems when it comes to the post season. He will be a tremendous hitter through out the year, but as soon as the playoffs begin he can’t hit. The media constantly reminds him of how poorly he hits when October arrives. To have someone constantly remind you of failure can be detrimental to the believing of any individual. Winners are able to focus on the positive in spite of the negative reminders. Back to Alex. As of this writing Alex is having a tremendous post season. Why is he doing better than previous years? I don’t know if the injury to his hip helped to get him more relaxed and focused? Perhaps he read Joe Torre’s book and comments about himself and decided to change his life. Whatever happened I don’t know, I just know that he’s changed  his mindset. He seems more relaxed about playing in the post season. He’s no longer just about Alex he’s more about team. In a recent interview he said that there were 5 guys he looked up to. Guys who had been to the playoffs before whose example he followed. The past is the past if it’s negative it needs to be forgotten. Alex seems to have done that. In fact Espn recently called him the new Mr. October. That’s a reference that was never given to Alex Rodriquez until he forgot the past and focused on what he does best, hit the baseball out of the park.

There are two men in the Bible  that made huge mistakes and went through majoring grieving because of those errors. They are Peter and Judas. Let’s look at the lives of these two men and see what happened to them to cause this grief. We’ll also look at what they did with their minds after they made the mistake.

It’s well known that Judas betrayed Jesus Christ, and turned him over to the authorities. This major mistake would cause Judas his life. Judas at one point was a great believer who saw and performed signs miracles and wonders as one of the twelve apostles.

Luke 9:1-6 1Then he called his twelve disciples together, and gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases. 2And he sent them to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick. 3And he said unto them, Take nothing for your journey, neither staves, nor scrip, neither bread, neither money; neither have two coats apiece. 4And whatsoever house ye enter into, there abide, and thence depart. 5And whosoever will not receive you, when ye go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet for a testimony against them. 6And they departed, and went through the towns, preaching the gospel, and healing every where.

At one point Judas was right in there healing people and and doing the Will of God. Once the betrayal came Judas quickly realized the error he made and took the blood money he made and cast it down at the chief priests feet.

 ^{Matthew 27: 3-5} Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, ⁴Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that.⁵And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.

Judas did not hang himself (impale himself on a stake) right away he stayed around for a while. Remember, Jesus when he was resurrected was seen of the twelve, of which Thomas was the one who was not present. Judas was still present. What conversations he had with Jesus Christ and the other disciples at the time no one knows, and the Word doesn’t say. I believe he would not have been in the group if he was not forgiven. Thats right God forgave Judas for the evil that the devil put on Judas heart. Judas was obviously full of remorse he cast the blood money that he earned at the feet of the high priests.  Judas would have  been there on the day of pentecost recieving the gift of holy spirit if he did not commit suicide.

Judas was never able to forget the past. It was to much for him to handle realizing that he was the reason God’s only son was put to death. His mind must have been full of turmoil and emotion. He needed to replace these horrible emotional feelings with the promises God has in his Word. Remember when God forgives he remembers it no more and it is cast as far as the east is from the west. There are promises Judas could have claimed to help over come his major mistake. He could have gone to the old testament and looked at the life of David who was a man after God’s own heart. Even after having a man put to death to get to Bathsheba, David was able to come back to God. Judas could have studied his life, read the Psalms he wrote changed his mind, and gotten born again on the day of pentecost.  Remember I said we want to forget the past but not all of it. Judas also could have gone in his mind to the good things he did for God. The Word he had spoken when he was sent out by Jesus with the other eleven.  He could have remembered the healing of different individuals on this journey.   Keeping the victories and God’s deliverance in his mind would have helped him overcome the negative thoughts. Judas had to be a person of great quality or God never would have had Jesus Christ pick him in the first place. Judas allowed his emotions to overwelm him which eventually opened him up to be driven to suicide.

Peter on the hand was able to overcome the mistake he made.  Remember he denied the Lord Jesus six times. Then went into major grief for doing what he said he would not do.

Matthew 26:74-75  Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man. And immediately the cock crew. And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.

Peter was deeply upset at denying Jesus and wept bitterly at what he had done.  It’s what Peter did with his mind afterwards that is important. Denying your Lord and savior is a big deal and had to be hard for Peter to overcome.
He obviously made the change because on the day of Pentecost he boldly spoke in tongues, and confronted the naysayers with the truth. He changed his mind and eliminated any fears. He went from being behind closed doors in the Gospels to boldly confronting those responible for the death of Jesus Christ.

It’s all what you do with your mind after you make a mistake that counts. Peter was able to go to the Word of God and change his thinking. He most likely remembered the different things God had done for him. Perhaps he read some Psalms I don’t know.  I just know he overcame his grief  and moved on with his life.

What about you? What do you want to overcome? Deliverance is available to those who desire it. All it takes is lining your thinking up with what God thinks about you.  Remember all things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer believing you shall recieve. Matthew 21:22

Psalm 139:14 I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

We are wonderfully made don’t ever forget that. See there are certain things God wants you to remember. He wants you to remember how wonderfully he made you. He wants you to remember all the things he has done for you. So when your brain tries to rise up and inhale your head, you  have His Word to chase the negative thoughts away with.

So forget the past just not all of it.

Tasting Victory the Logo

Christianity is about tasting Victory. It’s winning and breaking the tape as you cross the finish line with your hands raised in victory. God gave us the victory in Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. There are so many verses we can claim to achieve victory. I had a logo designed with a winner raising hands in victory because we can be victorious in any situation. I love this logo  it is exactly what I was looking for when I came up with the idea for this website. If you have the need for a logo or a website design check out Lake Affect Web Design . The owner Marlene Ferguson specializes in Web Design for Christian Ministries and Small business at a reasonable price. I’m more than satisfied with the work Marlene did on my Website.

Six Reasons Why Reincarnation Does not Exist!

 I keep seeing these things written by people telling of the cosmos and living previous lives. I too at one time believed that reincarnation was possible. I tried meditating and astral projection and thought it would be cool to communicate with the other side. I read books on the subject of reincarnation and thoroughly enjoyed the concept of moving on to something else after dying.  So, you ask what changed your mind? How did you go from believing in this philosophy to having a totally different outlook? After all, on the senses level it would appear that this phenomenon is true. There are shows on TV that basically promote  this thing called ghosts and reincarnation. I can sum up in two words what changed my mind. Those two words are The Bible.  So here are my six reasons why reincarnation does not exist.

1) Reincarnation was the lie that the adversary tried to sell to Eve in Genesis.

In the following verse  we see what God told Adam and Eve in Genesis.

Genesis 2:16-17 
 ¹⁶And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: ¹⁷But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Genisis 3:1-5  Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:  3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.

Somebody is lying here and I don’t think it is God. Notice that God said that the day that you eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil thou shalt surely die. The day that Adam and Eve ate of the tree they died spiritually. Physically they did not die that day, they lived over eight hundred years before dying. Once they lost the spirit that God gave to them, Adam and Eve became ashamed of the fact that they were naked and covered themselves. They had lost the spirit God had given to them sealing their immediate spiritual death that day, and ensuring their physical death in the future.

Notice that the devil tried to sell her on “your eyes will be opened, and you shall be as Gods knowing good and evil”. Isn’t part of the premise of reincarnation  that you continue to grow and mature in each life. You learn more and more on your quest to be like a god. The devil, as is his nature, out and out contradicts the one true God. God says thou shat surely die, and the devil says you will be as gods knowing good and evil. Somebody has to be a liar and it is not God.

2) There is no knowledge in the grave when one dies.

Ecclesiastes 9:5-6,10
⁵For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.  ⁶Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun.

 ¹⁰Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.

^{Psalm 146:4}  His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.

If the dead person’s thoughts perish and they know not anything then how in the world can there be reincarnation? If the premise of reincarnation is that you continue to learn and grow with each life, but the Bible says the dead know not anything then how can there be a growing and learning in each life? It seems to me that you’d be starting over from the beginning in each life, but if you don’t have any more a portion in anything that is done under the sun then how can you reincarnate? If there is no work nor device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave how could you learn and apply in the next life what you learned in this life?  The truth is reincarnation does not exist.

3) It is familiar spirits that help to promote the false reincarnation cause.

You’re watching a show on  psychic phenomenon and see the psychic  tell a person all about something they did that in their life that only they know  about. So how does a psychic know something about you that no one else knows? That’s an interesting question that deserves an interesting answer. Familiar spirits. A familiar spirit is an evil spirit that comes to the psychic and provides them information about you, or it gives  information about someone who has died. Satan can provide information to a psychic that is known in the five senses. Ever seen these shows where every day people talk of dishes moving around in their house when no one is near them, and then they see a spiritual image of what is supposed to be someone. So they bring in the house haunting experts who do some research on the history of the house, and discover that a man was murdered in the house or died there years ago. They then promote that the spirit of this man is trapped in the house and he is haunting the house. What we are actually dealing with here is a devil spirit that is familiar with the dead person’s life and therefore takes on the image and likeness of that dead individual. The dead person is DEAD.  These familiar spirits can also come to a person and give them knowledge of something that happened to someone who has previously died. This knowledge can make the person receiving the information feel as though they lived a previous life as that individual who is dead. Did they live a previous life?  NO! The information is provided by a familiar spirit which is a counterfeit.

4) The return of Jesus Christ is an absolute!

If reincarnation existed, there would be no reason for God to send His Son back to earth to gather together the believers! Why would God bother to have a return if when a person dies they go into their next life and continue to grow, or they go and hang out with God in heaven?

1 Thessalonians    4:13-18 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. ¹⁴For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.¹⁵For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.¹⁶For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: ¹⁷Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. ¹⁸Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

 Now wait a minute if the dead in Christ are going to rise but they are  already reincarnated and living in another place where they are continuing to grow in knowledge, what is the point of a resurrection if your already growing and improving. What about a Christian who has died and is with God, what is the point of resurrecting the dead to bring them to God if they are already there? If you said there isn’t any point in that, you are correct . The dead are dead folks. There is no consciousness in the grave. All people who have died in Christ are awaiting the return of Jesus Christ. Those who died without believing God and his son Jesus Christ are awaiting their resurrection and judgement.

The return of Jesus Christ is absolutely going to happen.  You ask what’s your proof? Remember I shared that Adam and Eve died spiritually when they ate of the tree. What Adam and Eve gave up in Genesis (spirit), Jesus Christ reestablished with man by his death and resurrection. When a man confesses Jesus Christ as Lord and believes in his heart that God has raised him from the dead, God creates in that individual the gift of holy spirit. That person goes from being a body soul person to being a body soul and spirit person. With holy spirit the person has access to the one true God by way of the nine manifestations of holy spirit which come with the gift that God gives. God is Spirit and His communication to a person is via the spirit that he gives to you.

1 Corinthians 12 7-13 ⁷But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. ⁸For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; ⁹To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;¹⁰To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: ¹¹But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will. ¹²For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. ¹³For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

Any person who has received the gift of holy spirit has the absolute proof that Jesus Christ is resurrected every time he operates the gift of holy spirit, by way of the nine manifestations of holy spirit. It is indisputable and undeniable,  Jesus Christ is coming back as King of Kings and Lord of lords.

5.  Death is an Enemy not a Welcome Reincarnation Friend

 1 Corinthians 15:26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

If reincarnation truly existed then death would not be called an enemy. Why would death be called an enemy when you get to go from one life to another, and grow in your life long quest to be god like. It seems to me that if you go from one life to another and you grow in the process then death should be considered a good thing.

If death is an enemy then there is nothing good about it. Death is sad, it’s a disaster, it is bad. There is no eternal life in death. Eternal life comes by way of accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and believing God raised him from the dead. Eternal life comes by God creating in the believer the gift of holy spirit which is now that individuals direct connection to the Holy Spirit God.

1 Corinthians 15: ⁵⁵O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? ⁵⁶The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.  ⁵⁷But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Death is a sting it’s an enemy, there is no victory in the grave. The victory comes by way of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 2:14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;

Well look who the author of death is. That’s right, the author of death is the devil. Could death be good? In a word NO!  The devil is the great deceiver, he is evil and he is a counterfeit.

6. Death is Like Sleep

God refers to death as sleep in Thessalonians. When you go to bed your next waking moment is the next day. What’s cool about this is there is no consciousness in the grave for the believer who sleeps in Jesus. His next waking moment is the return of Christ. Therefore when a person dies, for him it is the return of Christ, because there is no memory or consciousness in the grave. I know many Christians believe that when you die you go straight to heaven to be with God. Truth is what God had written concerning death in Ecclesiastes is not changeable until Christ comes back.

In conclusion, the Bible holds true. Those people that have eternal life are the ones who have confessed- Romans 10:9-10  That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Although the concept and thought of living life after life, and growing in your overall knowledge and wisdom in each new life, sounds wonderful it is quite simply a lie. A false doctrine promoted by the author of death (the devil) whose main goal is to steal, kill and destroy.

So don’t get fooled by all the hype and lies promoted by the adversary. Reincarnation does not exist! Eternal life is available to those who want to believe the Word of God. It’s that simple.  If you confessed and believed Romans 10:9-10 while  reading this article you have eternal life, and God created in you the gift of holy spirit which is your direct connection with the father.

There is much more to learn on this topic of the gift of holy spirit and it’s operation.  God wants you to know the truth He has set forth in his Word. The meek and hungry hearts will get their answers.

Let Go

The other I day I mentioned to my wife that I was looking for an idea for an article to post on my blog. She thought for about a half a second and suggested that I write about Letting Go. You see, sometimes people like to hold on to things in the physical, mental, and spiritual areas.

In this article I will handle the physical. We have a philosophy in our household that if you do not use something within six months you get rid of  it. You ask why would you do this? Well it keeps the house uncluttered. Have you ever been in some one’s house and noticed that they were pack rats. I’m talking about stuff all over the house. Stacks and stacks of junk. I can think of a few houses I’ve been in where there is stuff all over the place. Including one room in my parents house when I was growing up. My dad was kind of a pack-rat. My dad held onto some stuff because this room had junk everywhere and he didn’t want to get rid of it. The funny thing is my mom is a pure polly perfect house keeper. When my dad fell asleep (died) my mom cleared the clutter out really fast. (I have to say that both my mom and I and my brothers would gladly have the clutter back if my dad was still alive.)

 Getting rid of excess clutter will make you feel better. The less of a mess your house is the better you will feel. Let’s face it if there is debris all over the place, your brain is also going to feel like it is filled with clutter. What you are around you will become. A mess in your house is a mess in your brain. When things are decent and in order I can almost guarantee that you will feel better mentally.

Not long ago we helped some neighbors move. We were amazed that this couple had about six times as much stuff as we do. We’ve got two more people in our household and we have much less. They had about as much stuff as a family of eight or nine would have. Everyone who was helping them move kept saying “you guys have way to much stuff.” So here’s a key, hold onto the things that really mean something to you, but get rid of anything that is not a family heirloom, if you haven’t used it in six months it needs to go.

You will find that not only will you feel better mentally, but also things will be easier to find. My wife who was off for the summer worked really hard on removing clutter and labeling things in our home. It sure is alot easier to find things that you don’t use very often when labels are used. If you do what I’m sharing here, when you do decide to move your life will be simplified. Your move will be so much easier.  If your friends are helping you they won’t be complaining that you have to much stuff.

Also what you aren’t using very much may be something that another person really needs. You could give it away or sell it, either way you will recieve back. If you sell it you make money off of it. If you give it away you will absolutely recieve back, because you reap what you sow. 

Luke 6:38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.

So clear the clutter and get blessed. Let Go!  I expect you will not be disappointed at what you’ve done. Keeping things simple and clearing out the mess is a great way to begin to feel free in the mental categories of life, which is the subject of the next post on letting go.

If you don’t know where to start here are a couple of books that you can pick up to get going: Clutter Busting: Letting Go of What’s Holding You Back
and Let Go of Clutter. Have a great day and enjoy life.

Don’t Quit

The kids came running in and you could see the defeat in their faces!! We were going into the bottom of the seventh inning which is the final inning in Little League. The team had just gone down five runs to a team that they had easily defeated earlier in the season but, five runs seemed in surmountable. The long faces and the slow sad run in told the story. Our team was going to lose.

No a thousand time no!! Don’t Quit. Mind you I’m only an assistant coach on this team, but I made a decision to stop the players in their tracks and laid a speech on them I’d never given before. I told them that “the game is not over yet. You need to change your mind and believe that you can win this game. Change your confession and  get rid of the long faces, you can win this game!! It’s never over until the fat lady sings, and she hasn’t begun to sing. So start confessing in your heart that the victory is yours. Confess that you are going to hit the ball. Stay focused we are going to win this game the, victory is ours. Now get in here; hits on three, one, two, three HITS.”

You could see it in the way the boy’s were carrying themselves after the speech that they thought that they could win. There was chatter in the dugout as each different boy came up to bat. The long faces were gone and each player had a look of focus. My son was the first person to bat in the bottom of the seventh and he hit the ball to left field,  and stood on first with a single. The next two batters were walked. Suddenly the bases were loaded with no outs and a good hitter was up. He smacked the ball out into center field, and we were  down three  runs.  With runners at first and third and no outs, we decided to steal second base. In Little League with a runner on third the catcher will not throw down to get the runner for fear of the man on third scoring. Our next batter hit it on the ground towards the second baseman which scored a run and put us two down with one out. Our dugout was getting louder and louder with cheers and enthusiasim. For some reason the other team did not think about changing pitchers, and that was OK with me. The next batter walked and stole second. At this point I would have tried a different pitcher, but they didn’t they only came out and talked to him and allowed him to continue. They walked the next batter to set up the double play, but that backfired when the next batter was also walked. This scored a run and made it so we were only one run down. The momentum had switched and the mood in each dugout showed it. Both benches were standing and the tension on either side was thick. We were down at the bottom of our order, and the victory was pinned on kids who did not have many hits through out the year. As our batter stepped up to the plate I called out to him to “stay focused and make good contact with the ball,” in other words don’t try an kill it, just make contact. The first pitch was a ball and he took it. It was ball one, and our batter had a green light to swing away on the next pitch. It was like a slow motion movie for me as the pitch headed to home plate I could see the batters eyes get real big as he SMACKED  the ball the up the middle. Their short stop just missed snagging the ground ball as our runners dashed for home. The throw from the out field came sizziling in to home plate as our player slid under the tag. SAFE the umpire bellowed. Our team went nuts as the other team slowly walked off the field.

After the brief celebration we coaches called out line up. Thats right in Little League the players shake hands after a game. Which leads me to wonder how come Major League Baseball does not do this? We tend to look up to these guys as examples.  Why can’t the two teams shake hands after a game and say “Good Game” to each other?  Most of them probably played Little League baseball so I know that they did this in their younger years. Anyway just a thought.

The whole point of this article is never quit. No matter how many runs your down or how far behind you are,  a game  or an event is never over until it is over. Focused believing is required in your mindset. Champions stay focused, and that focus begins in their preparation and training.  Staying diligent in training will help you to stay focused, when the lifes challenges come. Believe me, challenges will come, in any endeavor you get involved in, but winners win, they don’t give up. Just as our team did not give up that day.

Next Page »