"Abraham was now old and well advance in years, and the Lord had blessed him in every way." Genesis 24:1 (NIV)
"You can't just know the what, you need to know the why - that's your motivation. If you don't know why, you will give up when it gets tough. "
The next ten years can be the greatest of your life. They can become a Decade of Destiny, where your life is focused and, as a result, you're able to make an impact in all you do.
To get where you believe God wants you to go and be what you know God wants you to be, there are several steps you need to take that will get you focused --
Step #1 - Determine your present position
You've got to know where you are before you can know where you are going. To do that, ask yourself two questions:
1. Where am I now? Where are you spiritually, financially, emotionally, relationally, physically, and occupationally?
2. What would I like to change? In all of those areas you identified, what would you like to be different?
God promised Abraham that he would be become the father of a great nation. But in Genesis 24, we find Abraham is now an old man and his son, Isaac, still doesn't have any children yet. Abraham assessed the situation and, as a result, he sent his servant, Eliezer, to find a wife for Isaac.
An important principle here is that it is never too late for you to make a change in your life, even though making the change may take longer than you think. This is why you can't procrastinate. You can either drift through the next ten years or you can have direction over the next ten years. God wants you to have direction.
Step #2 - Be specific about what you want
In order to get to where you want to be, you need to describe exactly what you want.
For instance, Abraham told Eliezer exactly what kind of wife he wanted for Isaac. He said, "Don't get a wife for my son from the Canaanite girls. Instead, go back ... to the land of my relatives and get a wife for my son" (Genesis 24:3-4 NIV).
You will never reach a vague goal. The more general it is, the less power it has. But the more specific it is, the more power it has in your life.
Ask yourself these four questions:
1. What do I want to be?
2. What do I want to do?
3. What do I want to have?
4. Why do I want it?
You can't just know the what, you need to know the why - that's your motivation. If you don't know why, you will give up when it gets tough.
When Eliezer heard Abraham's goal, he started asking "What if...?" If you listen to the what-ifs of your goal, you will fail because of worry and fear.
You don't need to focus on the how for now because, once you figure out the why, God will show you how. He will help you solve the problems that stand in the way of your goal.
Showing posts with label How Life Works. Show all posts
Showing posts with label How Life Works. Show all posts
GUNS, SLIDES, AND BREAD
In Matthew 16 the Pharisees and the Sadducees came to Jesus again and tested him by saying, "give us a sign, give us proof that you are God."
Jesus, did not play into this. He told his disciples beware of the impure yeast of these men. Jesus is reiterating the theme of diligence, excellence, and the notion of what I will term: SLIDE.
When we are at 100%, in our Family, in our lives; letting the slightest distraction make it's way through can have a larger impact than we at first, realize. The SLIDE little bits at a time slowly misdirects one off course in our lives, and before we know it we are at less than 50%.
We must realize that it will take over 100% effort to get back up to 100% from this point in the SLIDE.
THE PASTOR AND THE BURNING BIBLES
The right to stand for one's opinion against gays and abortion is a free right. The proposition to burn the Koran, certainly infringes upon the freedom of religion and is not in accordance with the teachings of Christ. Relationship, Faith, and the greatest of these is Love, none of which this action demonstrates.
My opinion as to why this is getting media is to make a mockery of Christians and to marginalize believers in Christ so that the enemy can spur more confusion and doubt throughout our world.
Christ is to judge, not us.
Furthermore, this only enables lawmakers to increase lawmaking. What I find unacceptable is that the website was unplugged in the name of a terms of service agreement violation. This is where the right to express one self has been violated.
PUBLIC ARTICLE:
(CNN) -- Military personnel threw away, and ultimately burned, confiscated Bibles that were printed in the two most common Afghan languages amid concern they would be used to try to convert Afghans, a Defense Department spokesman said Tuesday.
The unsolicited Bibles sent by a church in the United States were confiscated about a year ago at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan because military rules forbid troops of any religion from proselytizing while deployed there, Lt. Col. Mark Wright said.
Such religious outreach can endanger American troops and civilians in the devoutly Muslim nation, Wright said. "The decision was made that it was a 'force protection' measure to throw them away, because, if they did get out, it could be perceived by Afghans that the U.S. government or the U.S. military was trying to convert Muslims," Wright told CNN on Tuesday.
Troops at posts in war zones are required to burn their trash, Wright said.
The Bibles were written in the languages Pashto and Dari.
This decision came to light recently, after the Al Jazeera English network aired video of a group prayer service and chapel sermon that a reporter said suggested U.S. troops were being encouraged to spread Christianity.
The military denied that earlier this month, saying much in the video was taken out of context.
"This was irresponsible and dangerous journalism sensationalizing year-old footage of a religious service for U.S. soldiers on a U.S. base and inferring that troops are evangelizing to Afghans," Col. Gregory Julian said.
The military says a soldier at Bagram received the Bibles and didn't realize he wasn't allowed to hand them out. In the Al Jazeera video, which shows the Bibles at the prayer service, an unnamed soldier says members of his church raised money for them.
The chaplain later corrected the soldier and confiscated the Bibles, Wright said.
Military officers considered sending the Bibles back to the church, he said, but they worried the church would turn around and send them to another organization in Afghanistan -- giving the impression that they had been distributed by the U.S. government.
That could lead to violence against troops or U.S. civilians, Wright said.
Al Jazeera English, a Qatar-based international news service, said its reporters tried to get a response from military officials for its story but were unable to do so.
The U.S. military air base at Bagram is home to thousands of troops from all branches of the U.S. military. The vast majority of the troops do not leave the base and are in various support roles for U.S. troops across Afghanistan.
BIBLES, GUNS, SOLDIERS, AND WAR, NOT PERMITTED TO MIX
Soldiers unable to spread Christianity in a Muslim country. The soldiers fight for freedom, yet are inherently not free. the soldier is shooting to kill what difference does it make? An army fighting for Christ could well be even stronger, not weaker as the Generals may fear.
Such organizational behavior would have to be well developed prior to the engagement of battle to execute upon nevertheless. However, when one pulls the trigger, no doubt can there be as to for what this action is being performed.
The message is evidence to me that freedom is on the SLIDE. How far will it be left to go, before we realize we have been slow roasted. By the time we know it, the effort required may be extremely large. This is a wake up call brothers and sisters. We must come together as a nation, regardless of race, or religion, and put our differences aside to stand together.
Three branches together are stronger than one. United as one we must stand to stop the SLIDE now.
Jesus, did not play into this. He told his disciples beware of the impure yeast of these men. Jesus is reiterating the theme of diligence, excellence, and the notion of what I will term: SLIDE.
When we are at 100%, in our Family, in our lives; letting the slightest distraction make it's way through can have a larger impact than we at first, realize. The SLIDE little bits at a time slowly misdirects one off course in our lives, and before we know it we are at less than 50%.
We must realize that it will take over 100% effort to get back up to 100% from this point in the SLIDE.
THE PASTOR AND THE BURNING BIBLES
The right to stand for one's opinion against gays and abortion is a free right. The proposition to burn the Koran, certainly infringes upon the freedom of religion and is not in accordance with the teachings of Christ. Relationship, Faith, and the greatest of these is Love, none of which this action demonstrates.
My opinion as to why this is getting media is to make a mockery of Christians and to marginalize believers in Christ so that the enemy can spur more confusion and doubt throughout our world.
Christ is to judge, not us.
Furthermore, this only enables lawmakers to increase lawmaking. What I find unacceptable is that the website was unplugged in the name of a terms of service agreement violation. This is where the right to express one self has been violated.
PUBLIC ARTICLE:
(CNN) -- Military personnel threw away, and ultimately burned, confiscated Bibles that were printed in the two most common Afghan languages amid concern they would be used to try to convert Afghans, a Defense Department spokesman said Tuesday.
on March 3, 2009, at Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan.
Such religious outreach can endanger American troops and civilians in the devoutly Muslim nation, Wright said. "The decision was made that it was a 'force protection' measure to throw them away, because, if they did get out, it could be perceived by Afghans that the U.S. government or the U.S. military was trying to convert Muslims," Wright told CNN on Tuesday.
Troops at posts in war zones are required to burn their trash, Wright said.
The Bibles were written in the languages Pashto and Dari.
This decision came to light recently, after the Al Jazeera English network aired video of a group prayer service and chapel sermon that a reporter said suggested U.S. troops were being encouraged to spread Christianity.
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"This was irresponsible and dangerous journalism sensationalizing year-old footage of a religious service for U.S. soldiers on a U.S. base and inferring that troops are evangelizing to Afghans," Col. Gregory Julian said.
The military says a soldier at Bagram received the Bibles and didn't realize he wasn't allowed to hand them out. In the Al Jazeera video, which shows the Bibles at the prayer service, an unnamed soldier says members of his church raised money for them.
The chaplain later corrected the soldier and confiscated the Bibles, Wright said.
Military officers considered sending the Bibles back to the church, he said, but they worried the church would turn around and send them to another organization in Afghanistan -- giving the impression that they had been distributed by the U.S. government.
That could lead to violence against troops or U.S. civilians, Wright said.
The U.S. military air base at Bagram is home to thousands of troops from all branches of the U.S. military. The vast majority of the troops do not leave the base and are in various support roles for U.S. troops across Afghanistan.
BIBLES, GUNS, SOLDIERS, AND WAR, NOT PERMITTED TO MIX
Soldiers unable to spread Christianity in a Muslim country. The soldiers fight for freedom, yet are inherently not free. the soldier is shooting to kill what difference does it make? An army fighting for Christ could well be even stronger, not weaker as the Generals may fear.
Such organizational behavior would have to be well developed prior to the engagement of battle to execute upon nevertheless. However, when one pulls the trigger, no doubt can there be as to for what this action is being performed.
The message is evidence to me that freedom is on the SLIDE. How far will it be left to go, before we realize we have been slow roasted. By the time we know it, the effort required may be extremely large. This is a wake up call brothers and sisters. We must come together as a nation, regardless of race, or religion, and put our differences aside to stand together.
Three branches together are stronger than one. United as one we must stand to stop the SLIDE now.
WE ARE BEING TRAPPED
---------------------------------------------------
Good morning, brothers and sisters;
it's always a delight to see
the pews crowded on Sunday
morning and so eager to get into
God's Word. Turn with me
in your Bibles, if you will, to the 47th
chapter of Genesis, we'll
begin our reading at verse 13 and go through verse 27.
Genesis
47:13-27
Brother Ray, would you stand and read that great passage for us?
....(reading)....
Thank you for that fine reading, Brother Ray... So we see that economic hard times fell upon
Egypt and the people turned to the government of Pharaoh to deal with this for them.
And Pharaoh nationalized the grain harvest and placed the grain in great storehouses that he had
built. So the people brought their money to Pharaoh, like a great tax increase, and gave it all
to him willingly in return for grain. And this went on until their money ran out and they were
hungry again.
So when they went to Pharaoh after that, they brought their
livestock- their cattle, their horses, their sheep, and their donkey -
to barter for grain and verse 17 says that only took them through
the end of that year..
But the famine wasn't over was it? So the next year the people
came before Pharaoh and admitted they had nothing left except
their land and their own lives. "There is nothing left in the sight
of my lord but our bodies and our land. Why should we die before
your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for food and we with our land will be
servants to Pharaoh.." So they surrendered their homes, their land, and their real estate to
Pharaoh's government and then sold themselves into slavery to him, in return for grain.
What can we learn from this, brothers and sisters?
That turning to the government instead of to God to be our provider
in hard times only leads to slavery?.. Yes, That the only reason
government wants to be our provider is to also become our master?
Yes.
But look how that passage ends, brothers and sisters! Thus Israel
settled in the land of Egypt, in the land of Goshen.. And they gained possessions in it and
were fruitful and multiplied greatly." GOD
provided for His people, just as He always has! They didn't end up
giving all their possessions to government, no, it says they gained
possessions! But I also tell you a great truth today and an ominous one.
We see the same thing happening today,the government today wants to "share the wealth" once
again, to take it from us and redistribute it back to us It wants to take control of healthcare,
just as it has taken control of education, and ration it back to us, and when government rations
it, then government decides who gets it, and how much, and what kind. And if we go along with it,
and do it willingly, then we will wind up no differently
than the people of Egypt did four thousand years ago -as slaves to the government and as
slaves to our leaders.
What Mr. Obama's government is doing now is no different from what
Pharaoh's government did then and it will end the same. And a lot of people like to call Mr.
Obama a "Messiah," don't they? Is he a Messiah? A savior? Didn't the Egyptians say, after Pharaoh
made them his slaves,"You have saved our lives; may it please my lord, we will be servants to
Pharaoh"?
Well, I tell you this - I know the Messiah; the Messiah is a friend of mine; and Mr. Obama is
no Messiah!
No, brothers and sisters, if Mr. Obama is a character
from the Bible, then he is Pharaoh.
Bow with me in prayer, if you will...
Lord, You alone are worthy to be
served, and we rely on You, and You alone. We confess that the
government is not our deliverer and never rightly will be. We read in the eighth chapter of 1
Samuel, when Samuel warned the people of what a ruler would do, where it says "And in that day
you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves, but
the LORD will not answer you in that day."
And Lord, we acknowledge that day has come. We cry
out to you because of the ruler that we have chosen for ourselves as
a nation.
Lord, we pray for this nation. We pray for revival and we pray
for deliverance from those who would be our masters. Give us hearts to
seek You and hands to serve You and protect Your people
from the atrocities of Pharaoh's government.
Delivered by a Pastor of a predominantly black church in
Virginia
How much has changed in 4,000 years?
who is our real leader ....
In God We Trust...
****************************************************************
Good morning, brothers and sisters;
it's always a delight to see
the pews crowded on Sunday
morning and so eager to get into
God's Word. Turn with me
in your Bibles, if you will, to the 47th
chapter of Genesis, we'll
begin our reading at verse 13 and go through verse 27.
Genesis
47:13-27
Brother Ray, would you stand and read that great passage for us?
....(reading)....
Thank you for that fine reading, Brother Ray... So we see that economic hard times fell upon
Egypt and the people turned to the government of Pharaoh to deal with this for them.
And Pharaoh nationalized the grain harvest and placed the grain in great storehouses that he had
built. So the people brought their money to Pharaoh, like a great tax increase, and gave it all
to him willingly in return for grain. And this went on until their money ran out and they were
hungry again.
So when they went to Pharaoh after that, they brought their
livestock- their cattle, their horses, their sheep, and their donkey -
to barter for grain and verse 17 says that only took them through
the end of that year..
But the famine wasn't over was it? So the next year the people
came before Pharaoh and admitted they had nothing left except
their land and their own lives. "There is nothing left in the sight
of my lord but our bodies and our land. Why should we die before
your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for food and we with our land will be
servants to Pharaoh.." So they surrendered their homes, their land, and their real estate to
Pharaoh's government and then sold themselves into slavery to him, in return for grain.
What can we learn from this, brothers and sisters?
That turning to the government instead of to God to be our provider
in hard times only leads to slavery?.. Yes, That the only reason
government wants to be our provider is to also become our master?
Yes.
But look how that passage ends, brothers and sisters! Thus Israel
settled in the land of Egypt, in the land of Goshen.. And they gained possessions in it and
were fruitful and multiplied greatly." GOD
provided for His people, just as He always has! They didn't end up
giving all their possessions to government, no, it says they gained
possessions! But I also tell you a great truth today and an ominous one.
We see the same thing happening today,the government today wants to "share the wealth" once
again, to take it from us and redistribute it back to us It wants to take control of healthcare,
just as it has taken control of education, and ration it back to us, and when government rations
it, then government decides who gets it, and how much, and what kind. And if we go along with it,
and do it willingly, then we will wind up no differently
than the people of Egypt did four thousand years ago -as slaves to the government and as
slaves to our leaders.
What Mr. Obama's government is doing now is no different from what
Pharaoh's government did then and it will end the same. And a lot of people like to call Mr.
Obama a "Messiah," don't they? Is he a Messiah? A savior? Didn't the Egyptians say, after Pharaoh
made them his slaves,"You have saved our lives; may it please my lord, we will be servants to
Pharaoh"?
Well, I tell you this - I know the Messiah; the Messiah is a friend of mine; and Mr. Obama is
no Messiah!
No, brothers and sisters, if Mr. Obama is a character
from the Bible, then he is Pharaoh.
Bow with me in prayer, if you will...
Lord, You alone are worthy to be
served, and we rely on You, and You alone. We confess that the
government is not our deliverer and never rightly will be. We read in the eighth chapter of 1
Samuel, when Samuel warned the people of what a ruler would do, where it says "And in that day
you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves, but
the LORD will not answer you in that day."
And Lord, we acknowledge that day has come. We cry
out to you because of the ruler that we have chosen for ourselves as
a nation.
Lord, we pray for this nation. We pray for revival and we pray
for deliverance from those who would be our masters. Give us hearts to
seek You and hands to serve You and protect Your people
from the atrocities of Pharaoh's government.
Delivered by a Pastor of a predominantly black church in
Virginia
How much has changed in 4,000 years?
who is our real leader ....
In God We Trust...
****************************************************************
The Remnant of Israel
Brothers and Sisters,
Romans chapter 11 makes three enormous promises concerning the Messianic remnant of Israel. This seemingly insignificant group of people in the eyes of the world will actually be the key to:
Restoration in the Church
Revival in Israel
Resurrection of the Dead
For more on this, please submit your request by commenting on this article.
Nevertheless, the thought that came to mind today through the Holy Spirit was the following:
my opinion is that nation states and national boundaries are disappearing in some form and fashion. protectionism, travel and living restrictions, immigration control, may impact this, However, my question is?
Is ISRAEL in the future and in terms of bible prophecy a specific geographic location OR is it in terms of the people regardless of geographic location? If geographic location is removed from the conclusion, then prophecy that ISRAEL will never be destroyed becomes even more viable.
It is disheartening that where i once saw worlds with no border's, all it takes is the fear of economic hardship and men become afraid. the result: laws are forged to gather power, protectionism emerges.
I say to you brothers and sisters, no law made by man shall over ride FAITH in Christ. For it is the law made by men to gain more power and take away the people's freedom. FAITH in Christ contains nothing of this and breaks no moral or ethical law. therefore FAITH in Christ, as it is written in the Bible, is above the law of man, the result; ultimate freedom.
Romans chapter 11 makes three enormous promises concerning the Messianic remnant of Israel. This seemingly insignificant group of people in the eyes of the world will actually be the key to:
Restoration in the Church
Revival in Israel
Resurrection of the Dead
For more on this, please submit your request by commenting on this article.
Nevertheless, the thought that came to mind today through the Holy Spirit was the following:
my opinion is that nation states and national boundaries are disappearing in some form and fashion. protectionism, travel and living restrictions, immigration control, may impact this, However, my question is?
Is ISRAEL in the future and in terms of bible prophecy a specific geographic location OR is it in terms of the people regardless of geographic location? If geographic location is removed from the conclusion, then prophecy that ISRAEL will never be destroyed becomes even more viable.
It is disheartening that where i once saw worlds with no border's, all it takes is the fear of economic hardship and men become afraid. the result: laws are forged to gather power, protectionism emerges.
I say to you brothers and sisters, no law made by man shall over ride FAITH in Christ. For it is the law made by men to gain more power and take away the people's freedom. FAITH in Christ contains nothing of this and breaks no moral or ethical law. therefore FAITH in Christ, as it is written in the Bible, is above the law of man, the result; ultimate freedom.
FAMILY WORK BALANCE
FAMILY WORK ARK by LAMP is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.
BE ATTITUDES
Using http://www.bubbl.us, I put this diagram together. I found it interesting that Behavior + Attitudes, can form BE ATTITUDES.
In my non professional opinion, Values and Beliefs can significantly determine Behavior. What you do really can determine how you feel, so I considered Attitudes. Our attitude can be affected by nutrition and behavior in this sense.
Some powerful and difficult ATTRIBUTES I included to really give this idea some support are the Fruits of the Spirit.
This ATTRIBUTES Diagram connects to an overall diagram that offers a framework of the incredibly challenging work family life balance. I will post this in the near future. The future diagram will really bring this family work life model together. Talk is cheap, putting this as in all things into action, is the accomplishment.
GOD's ARK BeAttitude by LAMP is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
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