Nothing Can Separate Me..From Your Love

Have you ever had one of those moments where your Spirit jumps for joy and you feel like you've just came to a new epiphany that has been waiting there for you to discover. Then once you stumble upon it you have that "ah hahh" moment. Well I just had that moment hence me writing this blog. I was lying in bed reading my Bible. I am reading from Romans.I try to read at least when I wake up and go to sleep and through out the day if can squeeze it in (I know that's bad but I am working on it). After all I have no excuse since I sleep with my phone which has the Bible on it. But back to the story. I was lying in bed reading Romans, picking up from chapter 5. In that chapter, it talked about the difference between Adam and Jesus. Adam brought death through his sin and disobedience but Jesus gave us grace and the ability to grasp righteousness which gives us LIFE.

In chapter 6 which is the infamous piece when people are baptized as they come into the Kingdom of God. Honestly, I never realized the strength of these words. I hear them every time a person is baptized but there have been no real meaning to the scriptures until I just read them today. That chapter asks questions pertaining to Adam and Jesus. It's so much to write and I can probably go on for days but read it for yourself! From chapter 6 leading up to chapter 8, these chapters let us know that even though we are born into sin and we have sinful nature, we do not have to abide by it. It lets us know that even though we are trapped in these bodies momentarily we don't have to live as this body wants us to live because as we were baptized we were dying to the old ways. It not only signifies that but it also synonymous to the death of Christ. Before Christ, every one was a sinner, but after He died on the cross and rose again three days later our sins were forgiven. And that is the truth behind baptism.

In chapter 7, Paul (the writer of the book) makes the distinction between our mind and our flesh. The mind serves God while the flesh serve sin. He talks about how sin overcomes us and how it is so enticing. The law by which the mind abides by and the law by which the flesh abide by are contrary to each other, so which law are we to follow are the main arguments Paul is trying to make.

And that is the transition into chapter 8. Between these two chapters is where I jumped out of bed and behind the computer because at the end of chapter 7 Paul makes it seem that we should serve both the flesh and the mind by saying "25..I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. so then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin." But remember from chapter 5 to 8 he makes clear of our death to sin once we were baptized. He doesn't say it as plainly but he does. So with that being said, the law of the mind and of God supersedes that of the law of the flesh and sinful ways. Finally he ends chapter 8 with "38-39..For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, not angels, nor principalities, nor powers, not things present nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Nothing, not even the law of sin can keep us away from God. Nothing!

Perception, Understanding, Decisions

Understanding is key in relationships. Often times friends, partners and even relationships with God don't work out because the relationship lacks understanding. When you can't see eye to eye on a topic, it is because you are not understanding with the other person's understanding. Take the "love languages" as an example. You cannot love someone how you want to be loved but how they want to be loved even if it isn't appealing to you. It is the same concept. We also studied this in my Theories of International Relations class. It is all about each person's own perception. A person's perception encompasses their unique experience, their character, their way of thinking etc, and after you get passed all of that comes their final decision. But in real life, the process is much quicker and sometimes irrational choices are made.

With God, my perception is ever changing because my experience with Him is becoming greater. I am coming to new realizations every single day. It's overwhelming but I am taking it. When you look to the future and the end result, the pain is not that bad. With a change in experience comes a change in my character.I may not have been as forgiving as I should have but as He shows me forgiveness and all the above, my character molds to fit that.

I never really gave this decision making theory much thought until studying it in class. But it is very much true in our interactions with one another. Decisions to do or not to do something make up our lives just as there are atoms that make up other beings and so forth until you reach a solid product.

Perception shapes our understanding which then shapes our decisions that affect our daily lives.

God's Law is Supreme

Think about the economy and how countries measure whether or not their dollar is strong. Before the 30s and the Great Depression they used the Gold Standard. After the Depression they used the American dollar to measure dollar worth and that is still how they measure the strength of currency. This definitely correlates with our understanding of anything. The reason they use one base in measuring the strength of dollars is so no one is confused or lost and that they get their full worth when trading. In Proverbs it says to trust the Lord and not to lean on your own understanding. Previous to that verse they spoke on understand and how to obtain it and all. The truth is God’s word and in order to speak truth we have to gain knowledge from the Bible and live by it, even in our relationships. Again, we were created in His image. Also notice that man’s understanding is faulty because in light of the Great Depression they had to switch it up. But with God, in any and every situation, the base never changes. God’s law is supreme.

Thou Shalt Deny Me Thrice

Jesus told Peter that He knew that he'd betray Him. Peter denied it. When they were in the city and people began to recognize Peter as one who had followed Jesus, he denied it three times as Jesus had said he would. The first time he just shrugged it off. The second time he was a bit worried but still insisted he was not with Jesus. The third time someone said to him "you were with him,your speech say so." Then this is where Peter went delirious and began shouting and cursing like a wild man that he did not know Jesus Christ. The cock crew and Peter immediately remembered the words that Jesus had said unto him and he went away and cried bitterly.

We cannot hide, alter or deny our true identity. Although Peter denied Jesus, the people still knew who he was. No matter how much he tried to get away, the people kept coming to him and telling him that he was definitely one of the followers. Peter became so overwhelmed from the people's conviction that he became enraged. He wasn't mad at them but at himself. The thoughts that engulfed his mind were probably the time he had spent with Jesus and all that he was taught. Then Jesus' word came to mind.

Peter had it all wrong. The reason we learn Jesus' word and worship and praise and all of the sort is to help us rise in times of hardship. He remembered Jesus' word after the fact when he should have remembered before. He went out of his mind when he should have prayed for stability. I am not judging Peter because this had to be done to fulfill the Word that was spoken of God but I can learn from his mistakes.

Compassion Toward Me

God is compassionate, forgiving, loyal and all the above. As I read the book of Matthew, the word compassion is used a lot. Jesus always had compassion toward the multitude or to individuals who went after Him. Compassion means to feel sympathy for other's misfortune and the desire to alleviate that suffering. Forgiving means to remit, or cancel a claim on an account. Loyal means allegiance. All of those words only begin to describe what our God is like. He showed compassion on the people by forgiving sinner's sins and casting out demons. He was loyal to us by going to the cross for our sins. He is awesome!

He did all of this as an example to us. We should be like Christ.But we cannot be like Him unless we have those characteristics. The pride and the egos must be put aside in order to be like Christ; humility.

To keep a clean house and everything in order, you must tidy up as you go. If you are doing the laundry you wash everything. And those things that wouldn't come clean you wash again. And if it still doesn't come clean it goes in the trash. You don't kick trash under the bed because it will bring unwanted guests. You wash the dishes as soon as you use them, you dust and so on and so forth. That is the same in our spiritual life. You don't clean it every so often, you clean it all the time. It is a continuous routine. When you see something out order in your house you fix it and your Temple should be held to the same standard, if not more strict.

It takes a humble person to admit that their spiritual house is not clean. Dust is growing, trash is building up etc. As I read more and more about Christ it makes me sit back and think of my ways. I have unforgiveness in my heart but I know I must let it go. The reason I hold on to that is because of fear. Fear to get hurt, fear that I won't be as accepted. But God does not give us a spirit of fear. So to pick away at that which does not belong on my heart I do what I normally wouldn't have done. I say hi, I ask questions and try to involve myself more.

This is a humbling experience because although crazy thoughts run through my head on why I shouldn't open up the lovelier thoughts of God overpower and pushes "me" to the side. God is love and love is all that we should show.

Tithes, Offering & First Fruits

Last Sunday's sermon was about tithes, offering and first fruits and it was pow-er-fulllllll. She said that tithes will break the curse of poverty. The reason for tithes is to keep the House of God running. It's like rent and it has to be paid on time. So if you give to God's house He won't take your finances away. Offering is the blessing. If you give a dollar then you will get a dollar blessing. People get so aggravated when asked to give an offering but aside from the bills, there are leisure activities. Just as women like to get their nails done and guys like to buy splurge so does the church. Churches need money for the activities that you, your children and the other folk at the church like to participate in. The first fruit is the first of what you get. So if you are blessed with a new job and give your first fruits to the House, then you will receive blessing for all to come after.

She stressed the fact that all three were all distinct from one another and you cannot substitute one for the other. We want blessings from God but we don't want to bless Him. How odd!

I haven't always given what I was supposed to and I'd always feel guilty for not doing so. I'd always tell myself, "well He'll understand because I have to pay this bill." That also was an insult because of my lack of faith. God can and will return to you if you give to His Kingdom.I've gotten better and I don't look at it as less money in my pocket but as more money in His Kingdom.

Different Types of Worships

I invited some friends to come to Christian Fellowship with me but they declined. They didn't decline because something about the group bothered or conflicted with their faith but because of the type of people there. Every where we go we will always encounter people who are a different shade than our own or who worships differently than us. But in the end, we are still God's people.

The first time I ever worshipped with people who were different than me was the beginning of this year. At first I thought it was weird. Everything sounded so funny to me. But once I started to look passed than and really put myself in the discussions and what not it really didn't matter. They were just as hungry for God as my Sunday morning congregation at home. So I carried that experience with me to Christian Fellowship.

Worshipping with people who are different than you should not be a reason to NOT worship at all.