RantandRave

This is a hot topic among Christians.

Couple of questions:

What do you do for devotions?
Is it a planned time?
Do you use organized materials(ie devotion book)?
If married do you do devotions together? Do you pray together?

It is important that we are in the Word of God, that we allow the Word of God to become worked into the very fabric of who we are as individuals living our lives for Jesus Christ. The Bible is not there just to read like an ordinary book, glancing over the words, skipping words, phrases, meanings. But the Word of God is God given, breathed, meant to study over, to infect our minds, apply it to our sinful hearts and minds, lived out in our everyday goings.

I believe that it is equally important that we are in prayer with God. I always struggle over what prayer is to be, to look like. Some often use it as a sounding board to vent frustration, anger, confusion, and still others just use it as a giveme list of things that they must have and need. I must confess that I have used prayer in my own life as all of the above. But over the last few weeks I have mulled over something that my Grandmother used to say, "I don't pray, I just talk to God!" How do you pray? Is it only in the heat of the moment? We should be about talking to God. We should praise God each day that God chooses to breathe life into our dry bones as Ezekiel says. Giving God glory for allowing the pleasure of this Earth that was created by Him, and ultimately we are responsible for.

God is Good and we should be about living out His Word and we should be about talking to Him giving Him glory and honor only due to Him.

Labels: Bible, devotions, glory, God, honor, praying, Word of God

So I have been wondering about this statement for quite a while. I type this phrase into Google and received no direct hits. But anyways I have been pondering this statement on how we as God's children should live our lives as we take part in our daily activities.

The word "holy" appears 532 times from Genesis to Revelation, so one can guess that "holy" is a big deal for God. Holy is being dedicated or devoted to the service of God, both man and thing. The Bible has several areas marked off "as/is Holy". The ground is holy, the Sabbath is holy, the priests' room, the law is holy, and etc.

Above all of these things, out of 532 times holy is mentioned in the Bible, about 75% of the time it is in reference to the Lord God is Holy. There can be no doubt about it, God is holy. God our maker, govenor and preserver of our faith is Holy.

And as God's children, he calls us to be holy. There are several different verses in the Bible in which God has told to "Be Holy" "Be Holy for I am Holy" is the common verse in which is said given any situation in which we are called to be Holy. This exact phrase is mention several different time within the Bible. We are called to higher standards, We are called to God's standards of holiness.

Holiness is a battle. It is a battle against the devil and everything that he wants for our lives. Pain, agony, guilt, shame, these are what Satan would have for us if we chose to not to battle him. But as I have said Holiness is a battle. A confessing Christian is one who has the Holy Spirit with him to fight the battle against the evil one. As Brengle says, "It is not a fight against ourselves after we are sanctified, for Paul expressly declares that "we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against wicked spirits in heavenly places" (Eph. 6:12—Helps To Holiness)

In our everyday ventures, we should seek to bring glory to God, from which holiness will be seen. As we seek to live our lives for God, we should seek to bring the Fruits of Holy Spirit with us. Make it apart of our DNA, for after all we are made in the image God. So it is already there in our DNA, but I believe that most of us have lost it, lost the art of the Fruits of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-25 says, "But the spiritual nature produces love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There are no laws against things like that.Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified their corrupt nature along with its passions and desires. If we live by our spiritual nature, then our lives need to conform to our spiritual nature. We should live by our spiritual nature.

God calls us to live holy lives for a Holy God. Holiness is what we should long for, is is what we should seek, then we will be able to bring light to the darkness of the world. The light of Jesus Christ, the Savior of our lives.

2 Corinthians 9:8 says, "And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work."

Are fighting against the darkness? Are we looking for the light that will bring all darkness to light in our own lives?

(Just something that has been weighing heavily on my mind)

Labels: brengle, God, Holiness, holy, spirit

Well I have not posted in about a month, life has drastically change for Susanne and I. On March 18 I watched as this woman, my wife, gave birth to our baby girl Elaina Wray. Susanne was awesome even more awesome that words can describe. I watched as the Susanne pushed and pushed until our baby entered the world, full of beauty and hair.

I stood next to Susanne as the nurses handed Elaina Wray over to Susanne, I looked and realized that these were the two most important girls in my life. I saw Susanne crying, Elaina crying, and yes myself crying of this blessing from God, was given to us healthy and awake.

Elaina now just over three weeks old and full of spunk and personality. She has her Daddy's (just getting used to that) hair, messed up and spikey. I have never been in a situation where someone relys on someone else so much than with Elaina. The past three weeks, in order to live, she relys on us to feed her, to keep her safe. That is an awesome responsibility of myself and Susanne.

God bless Elaina Wray and God bless her parents as they are figuring out what they heck they are doing. God has chosen to form and create her, and has given us the responsibility to raise her according to His ways.

I promise I will have some pictures later.

Labels: baby, Elaina, God, Jesus, responsibility

Hope for a brand new day
in which we can say
my God, "How Great thou art".

Hope in which we can to our part
to bring about salvation
to God's wonderful creation.

Hope for the coming one
who is the only Son
of our great and glorious God.

Hope is that we are the odd
to go against the grain of society
so that we ultimately practice sobriety.

Hope is that as God has a place
for us , he sheds His grace
upon us in this hour of need.

Hope is for which we beg, we plead
for the Savior's voice to say
that this is the day.


Been wondering about the hope for which we should have for the coming day of our Savior Lord and King Jesus Christ. For that is the day that He will bring about salvation to the His creation. I hope you are blessed in reading. Please comment and tell your thougths. Blessings

Labels: creation, God, Great, hope, Jesus, salvation