My Thoughts - My Journey

Acts 8:35 - " Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus." When Philip encountered the Ethiopian eunuch, he “preached to him Jesus.” Philip did not preach a system of religion, or conditions of salvation disconnected from the atonement. He proclaimed Jesus as the Son of God Who bears the sins of the world. T o do otherwise is to make grace void and to turn conditions of salvation into pure law.  When Philip encountered the eunuch, he preached not a plan, but a Man. Jesus is at the center of our salvation. It is only through Jesus and His gift of grace, mercy, and forgiveness that we have a hope of life eternal. Far too often, religious groups get caught up in the traditions and doctrines of their particular heritage and they glaze over where our focus, belief, and teaching should be.  Matthew 4:19, Jesus says, "Come, follow me." Jesus is our "pattern." Most people like the comfort of having rules to fol...

As disciples of Jesus, it matters what we believe about "hell." Although it will not impact us individually, we are speakers/teachers for God. We need to know what the Scriptures really say in order to speak His Truth. Many have been turned away from God, many have become athiest because they cannot believe what countless teach.  It seems there are a multiplicity of people who have been more influenced by Greek Philosophy than by the Truth of the Scriptures. This has cast a ve ry poor reflection on our heavenly Father. When we say that we speak in God's Name, then we need to be sure that we are doing exactly that. What we say can and does directly impact evangelism, as well as, the character of our Holy Creator. We don't change His Truth to make it more pleasing to others. In other words, if the Bible teaches that He will keep people in an aware state and torture them throughout eternity, then so be it because we need to teach what it says in the Scriptures.  ...

I want to really pay attention. I need to listen well to what God is saying. I look for verses that I can savor word by word, letting them sink in deeply … interrupting me, rearranging me, redirecting me. His Word is the protective covering over my plans, my mind and my heart. To let me run free without it, will surely find me tripping over my own selfishness, insecurities and weaknesses. So, with His love letter, He reminds me to pause, pause, pause.  Pause and let the Holy S pirit intervene in our natural flesh response. Pause so we don’t make the conversations all about ourselves. Pause and remember we are not always right. Pause to see the blessings, so many blessings, and say "thank you" at least once a day. Pause to serve, pause to give, pause to encourage when everyone else rushes by. Amen! † ".....Pay attention to what I say; turn your ear to my words. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart; for they are life to those who find th...

Patricia Harrod-Wyrosdick 1 hr  ·  "Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him." Colossians 2:6 When you walk with someone, you talk with them. When I go on walks with  Ashleigh  and  Michael , we walk together, but we also talk.....a lot. When the Bible refers to walking with God, it’s the same idea. It’s not as though we’re trying to beat God in a race. Rather, we want to keep pace with Him. We don’t want to lag behind, and we don’t want to run ahead of Him. We want to stay in sync with Him. We want to have a conversation with Him....we talk and allow His Holy Spirit to speak to us. That is walking with God.  One of my favorite Scriptures is Genesis 3:8.... "And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day." From that, God has a conversation with Adam and Eve. How awesome is that? Amen! †

I was listening to a minister this morning via an online service. He mentioned that he had an opportunity to baptize a man, but the man was a moonshiner, and didn't want to give up his occupation. 😊 Therefore, the minister did not baptize the man. Jesus changed water into wine.....would He have baptized this man if he had faith? Baptism is near the beginning of our journey as a believer. We are babes in Christ and perfection is not required. Perfect knowledge is not required. In addition, the texts tell us not to get drunk....why? Not because of the alcohol, but because of what too much alcohol can lead to. Drinking alcohol is a personal choice as long as it is done in moderation....and, of course, some should never drink any alcohol. My issue here is that this minister refused baptism based on the man being a moonshiner. There are many people....yes, even Christians, who make beer and wine. That one decision of this minister could have discouraged this man of faith to wher...