Harry Potter and Misfits, 1 Corinthians 1:26-29

Buddy is my furever friend. He has a distinct personality from my prior dogs. In fact, we’re a perfect match as we’re both a bit strange. He knocks things over to get my attention, instead of barking, and licks his bowl to tell me that he’s hungry. He’s terrified of loudly chirping birds but will bark at large dogs that could crush him who he feels threatened by.

I believe one reason that the Harry Potter book series is so popular, besides being amazingly creative, is that Harry chose society’s misfits as his companions. Most people felt rejected by the cool kids when attending school, unwelcome in the popular clique. The fact that the “Chosen One” chooses the outsiders immensely increases Harry’s likability factor.

Harry rejects the offer to join the popular kids from arrogant, handsome, wealthy, pure blood wizard Draco Malfoy as he doesn’t want to discriminate against others. He knows the hurt of rejection, from suffering by living with the Dursleys. Instead, he surrounds himself with “misfits”: Hermione, the smart girl from a Muggle (nonmagical) family; Ron, the red-headed, freckled chess player from a large, not too wealthy family; Luna, the dreamy-eyed space cadet who sees and believes in creatures no one else sees; Seamus, the halfblood Irishman; Neville Longbottom, the clumsy dork; and Hagrid, the half-human, half-giant who loves dangerous creatures.

And guess what? God chooses misfits to join His team, also.

The Apostle Paul describes God’s choice of converts in 1 Corinthians 1:26-29 as follows:

“For consider your calling, brethren, that there we’re not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen,…so that no man may boast before God.”

In other words, God doesn’t choose people because they’re popular, or good or beautiful or rich, but, rather, He chooses misfits who are humble enough to realize their need for a Savior.

Jesus chose, as His top 12, men who weren’t considered high class in Roman and Jewish society: fishermen, a political zealot and a tax collector, Matthew, a member of the most despised group in Jewish society.

Jesus also spoke to a Samaritan woman, a disliked racial group of Hebrews who had intermarried with Gentile pagans; rescued an adulteress from being stoned to death; allowed a woman considered impure from uterine bleeding, to touch his garment; permitted a repentant prostitute to wash his feet with her tears and hair; touched lepers, the most outcast group of society; approached demoniacs; and had lunch with a short tax collector.

God doesn’t discriminate. He doesn’t go looking for perfect, wonderfully holy people to join His family and spend eternity with Him.

“We love because He first loved us.”—Apostle John, 1 John 4:19

God chooses ordinary, faulty people like me and you who are willing to come to Him.

God bless you.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

PS. God loves everyone. He chooses intelligent, lovely, charming and talented people as His children, also. After all, He created and gifts everyone in different ways.

***

As you can see, God loves you just as you are and welcomes you into His family. You don’t have to “clean up your act” first before becoming a child of His. Just welcome Him as your Lord, submitting to His authority, and He’ll partner with you to improve your personality. He does not reject anyone willing to open their heart to Him.

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.”—Jesus, Revelation 3:20

If you’d like to follow Jesus, the Great Shepherd, please pray the following:

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you that you love me and accept anyone into Your family who is willing to come. I call on Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Please forgive my sins. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. In Jesus’ holy name, amen.

If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you are born again. Just as your body needs daily meals, so your spirit needs soul food: the Bible. Please start reading it, daily if possible. I suggest starting with the Book of Matthew as it’s easy to understand.

Also, please join a Bible believing church or Bible study. If that’s not possible right now, please check out these three ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.InTouch.org, http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) or http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but as a new believer, you can be misled by bad teaching till you become familiar with the Bible.

And if you can, get baptized.

God bless you. May Buddy and I see you in heaven.

Peace With Your Enemies, Proverbs 16:7

Unhappy pal

For some reason, Buddy thinks it’s ok for him to sneak off by himself and have a snooze. But I’m not permitted to leave our home for even an hour. He raises a ruckus, barking and chewing me out for being away when I return. Even an hour’s absence is not permitted.

There is no peace till Buddy is satisfied that he’s made his point clear.

Every Christian I’ve met will say that they can read a particular passage of Scripture multiple times without thinking much about it and then, suddenly, those verses will pop out as if highlighted in bold or reveal new meaning. This happened to me this week as I read Proverbs 16:7:

“When a man’s ways are pleasing to the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.”

Since many nonbelievers are unashamedly hostile toward Christians without direct provocation nowadays, I wasn’t quite sure how this proverb could be true. But the Holy Spirit must’ve granted me insight as I read the following three verses in the same chapter.

Verse 21: “…Sweetness of speech increases persuasiveness.”

Verse 23: “The heart of the wise instructs his mouth and adds persuasiveness to his lips.”

And verse 24: “Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.”

When nonbelievers rebuke, mock or ridicule Christians, we can choose to respond defensively, rudely—or God’s way. It suddenly occurred to me that God “makes even his enemies to be at peace with him” means that, when we choose to respond kindly or gently, we’re responding God’s way. And reacting God’s way will prevent unnecessary conflict.

A few examples may help illustrate.

I sat in the lunchroom at work many years ago reading my Bible. A coworker walked in, noticed what I was doing and sneered, “I thought you’d have that memorized my now.” Instead of getting angry, I smiled and calmly said, “Not yet. But I’m working on it.”

If I’d responded defensively, I may have damaged my relationship with him. Instead, he laughed. And we remained on good terms.

Another time, the Holy Spirit clearly took over when a woman, whom I thought was a friend, started shrieking at me and calling me horrendous names because I didn’t vote for the candidate she chose to support. I calmly responded that I still loved her but had reasons for my decision. I have no doubt that God assisted by taking over my emotions, preventing a bad situation from spiraling into something truly nasty.

Now, I’m not claiming that I never lose control and speak defensively. My family, who know which buttons to push, can easily claim I don’t always respond calmly. But the more I understand how Jesus loves me, the more I comprehend what loving behavior is and what behavior to model. I’m far from perfect, but the Holy Spirit is keeping His promise to sanctify me (Philippians 1:6, 1 Peter 5:10,

A Christian on Twitter lamented that a coworker mocked him as “Holy man” or something close to that. He asked his followers if he should rebuke or ignore his taunter. I suggested that he “be gentle instead”. I hope he took my advice. Because, ultimately, we never accomplish anything positive by speaking rashly and inconsiderately.

Apostles Paul, James (the half-brother of Jesus), and Peter all admonished:

Be “kindhearted, and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead (1 Peter 3:9).”

God bless you.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

***

As you know, our words are vitally important. The Apostle Paul states in Romans 10:8-9:

“If you confess with your mouth Jesus Christ as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.”

To confess “Jesus as Lord” is to admit that Jesus is God (Matthew 1:23), Who came in the flesh to die for your sins. That you can never be good enough to earn your way into heaven. The devil and the demons believe in God, but don’t accept Him as their Lord, ie. their boss.

If you’re ready to accept Jesus as your great Shepherd, please repeat the following prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father, I call on Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Please forgive my sin. Fill me with the Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Teach me how to live a life loving You and others. In Jesus’ mighty name, amen.

If you prayed with sincerity, congratulations. For God promises to save those Who call on Him (Acts 2:21) and send the Holy Spirit to indwell the believer (Luke 11:13).

Please start reading the Bible, which is your soul’s food. Your soul needs daily feeding, just as your body does. I suggest starting with the Book of Matthew as it’s easy to understand.

Also, please join a Bible-believing church or study group. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these three ministries, which also have apps if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org, http://www.InTouch.org and http://www.AndrewFarley.org. There are other great ministries, but as a new believer, you can get led astray by bad teaching till you know what the Bible teaches.

God bless you. May Buddy and I see you in heaven.

Falling For Temptation—Again, Proverbs 7:25

Caught in the act, again!

Buddy began knocking things over last year to get my attention. Why he chooses not to bark, instead, is baffling. However, I think he now knocks stuff over because it’s fun. Fortunately, he seems uninterested in knocking over my electronic piano stand.

When I feel anxious, my main stress reliever seems to be browsing in a bookstore or library. Needless to say, the library has a much cheaper result. I traveled to the Tempe Marketplace this afternoon in search of the shoe store a lady told me sold the sneakers I needed. Turns out the store was nowhere in the mall area.

However, the Barnes and Noble bookstore was.

I told myself that I don’t need any new books and must read what I already have. But I have a thirst for knowledge—and now must admit—novelty.

I can walk by the bookstore, I told myself, and not look in the window.

Being how the windows are enormous, I couldn’t escape not looking through the window near the magazine racks. On the rack, in gigantic bold print was the word: “London.” The words “London,” “Cotswolds,” or “Wales” will always attract my attention.

Now, I greatly admire Nehemiah who had the presence of mind to say a quick prayer before answering King Artaxerxes (Nehemiah 2:4). I am not Nehemiah. I didn’t pray for deliverance from temptation—I walked in to examine the magazine.

After looking at the magazine, I decided it wouldn’t be of any true, additional benefit. But did I walk out? Nope. I figured, since I was already there, I would check out if a particular book I’d been wanting was still on the shelf.

It wasn’t. But I walked out the door with two other books.

That anxious feeling did good away—replaced by guilt. Fortunately, I didn’t spend much.

I could go into detail again about Adam and Eve, but there are several chapters in the Book of Proverbs, primarily written by Kings Solomon, that describe how temptation works in our lives. I’ll just focus tonight on the seventh chapter.

1. The victim passes near temptation instead of taking an alternative route—Proverbs 7:8.

Temptation:

2. Operates in concealment—Proverbs 7:9.

3. Is cunning, tries to fool you—Proverbs 7:10.

4. Advertises, entices, promises—Proverbs 7:13.

5. Promises desire fulfillment without penalty—Proverbs 7:18-20.

6. Flatters, makes you feel special—Proverbs 7:15, 21.

My main problem was walking past a storefront that I knew offered temptation during a state of mind that made me more susceptible to that particular temptation. God warns to keep your distance from anything you know is tempting “because the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak (Jesus, Mark 14:38).”

Proverbs 7:25 states clearly: “Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways, do not stray into her paths.”

It starts with desire (loving anything about London, my favorite city), then placing yourself within reach of that desire (the bookstore).

Thinking, then acting upon that thought.

Now the consequence of my failure today is not that great, unless I continue spending money frivolously. But I need to remember to “pray not to come into temptation (Mark 14:38)” when I’m feeling anxious—and stay away from bookstores.

God bless you. Thanks for reading.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy.

***l

It’s really difficult to resist temptation without the Holy Spirit of God working in your life. And the Law—rules on how to live—can only condemn you and tell you what you’re doing wrong, but cannot give you the power to resist doing wrong.

That old saying is true: When a sign tells you to “Keep off the grass,” the first thing you want to do is walk on that grass.

When a person gives their life to God, you don’t just get your sins forgiven, but also the Holy Spirit comes to live in your spirit so that you become spiritually alive. You are no longer “slaves to sin (Romans 6:6),” but can choose to obey God and resist evil.

Of course, you have to humble yourself to admit that you are a sinner and want to follow God, instead of submitting only to your own will and desires.

It can sound complicated. But God promises that: “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved (Romans 10:8).”

Are you willing to detour off the broad path of destruction and start walking the narrow path that leads to everlasting LIFE with Jesus (Matthew 7:13-14)?

If so, please confess aloud the following prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father, I need a new direction in life. I call on Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Please forgive my sins. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Help me learn to resist evil and temptation. In the name of Jesus, amen.

If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible as your soul needs daily soul food to be strong and healthy. I suggest starting with the Book of Matthew as it’s easy to understand.

Also, please find a Bible believing church or Bible study to attend. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these three ministries: http://www.InTouch.org, http://www.LTW.org or http://www.AndrewFarley.org. There are other godly ministries but it’s easy to be misled by bad teaching till you get to know the Bible fairly well.

God bless you. Bud and I will see you in heaven.

PS. Last year God led me into opening up about my failures in my blog posts so that I don’t come off as the self-righteous “church lady”. Only God is perfect. All Christians learn and grow in love throughout their lives. If you just gave your life to Christ, be patient with yourself. God is just beginning “a good work in you (Philippians 1:6).”

Celebrating My Re-Birthday, Romans 10:8-9

When I adopted Buddy, he didn’t come with his papers. So I don’t know his actual birthday. His official birthday is, therefore, his adoption day: August 21st.

I do know my re-birthday: March 7th, 1989. On that night I called the Billy Graham Crusade phone number on the TV screen and spoke with a Christian volunteer who led me to the Lord.

That night I had felt that something was wrong in my life, in my spirit, but couldn’t identify what it was. At that time, the local channels would broadcast the Billy Graham Crusades as paid advertising. So you didn’t have to pay to listen or travel to the convention.

I believed that Jesus was a real man who walked the earth. But I was raised in a cult religion that denied His deity. After I finally broke free from that false belief system, I tried to embrace atheism, but it was impossible for me.

I read a biography on Charles Darwin and the “Origin Of The Species,” but found his work to be very unscientific and speculative.

A turning point came at an unlikely time: I took a class in Greek and Roman Mythology at my university to fulfill a requirement. A longtime school friend and I had loved reading myths from other cultures when we were kids, so thought I’d enjoy the class. The professor surprised me by frequently attempting to discount the Old Testament instead of focusing on what the class was supposed to be about.

The turning point came when the professor declared that the Bible couldn’t be true as “every culture in the world has a flood myth”. Her statement surprised me. I knew to question my teachers as my uncle was a college professor and I knew that he had kooky ideas. It seemed to me—and still does—that if there really wasn’t a worldwide flood, then only a few cultures would have this belief. But if there really was a cataclysmic flood, then ALL cultures would have a distant memory of this event, passed down through the generations.

So, thusly, an atheist college professor turned me back onto the path of salvation.

Years later I’d thought I was saved and was baptized, but didn’t truly believe in my heart that Jesus was “God in the flesh”, as Matthew stated in his gospel, Chapter 1:23. It seemed incredible to me that the deity who created the vast universe could be contained within a human person.

There’s more to my story, but I finally believed and became born again about 11:27 PM when the Holy Spirit entered into my body and brought life to my dead spirit. Formerly dead in my sins (Ephesians 2:1), I became alive. As Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 10:8-9:

“The word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

I became born again when I truly believed that Jesus is LORD, God in the flesh, a person of the holy Trinity.

So today I celebrate my 33rd birthday as a child of the living God.

If you’d not born again, I invite you to join me. Because my only regret is that I didn’t believe in Jesus as Lord invite the Holy Spirit into my life fifteen years sooner.

God bless you.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

***

If you’d like to celebrate a new birthday, to become a “new creation in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:17),” please repeat the below:

Heavenly Father, I believe that Jesus is God Who came in the flesh to die for my sins and was raised bodily from the dead to give me resurrection life. I call on Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Please forgive my sins. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to you. Thank you for saving me. In Jesus’ name, amen

If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you are born again. Please start reading the Bible, as it is your soul food. And your soul needs daily nourishment, just as your physical body does. I suggest starting with the book of Matthew, as it’s easy to understand.

Also, please join a Bible-believing church or Bible study. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these three ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way), http://www.InTouch.org and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but you need to grow in your knowledge of the Bible so that bad teachers don’t lead you astray.

God bless you. Celebrate your new birth today—and every year. This is your new beginning.

May Buddy and I see you in heaven one day.

Test The Spirits, 1 John 4:1-3, Part 1

As I’ve posted before, Buddy was terrified of going home with me after his foster mom released him into my custody. At that time I was a total stranger, but after he got to know my character and love for him, he relaxed and became a beloved member of our family.

Christianity is a supernatural religion. People who ask the Lord Jesus into their lives become temples of the Holy Spirit (Luke 11:13).

As a result, it’s not wrong to believe in the supernatural. But in the Last Days before the return of Christ, Jesus warned that demonic power will increase and to guard against being deceived (Matthew 24).

The Apostle Paul stated that even Satan himself “masquerades as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14)”.

And, the Apostle John warned that there are false, deceiving spirits that will also try to deceive us, pretending to be from the Lord but are not, 1 John 4:1-3:

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

“By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard is coming, and is now already in the world.”

Tonight I’d like to address the first portion regarding deceiving spirits.

1. Stand 100% on the Word of God. Jesus set the example when He defeated Satan’s temptations (Matthew 4:1-11). Many books and sermons give anecdotal information about the demonic. Never deviate from what is clearly taught in the Bible. And don’t forget that Satan and his followers also know the Bible and will try to either discredit it (Genesis 3:1-5) or twist its meaning (Matthew 4:6-7). Please pray for the Holy Spirit to guide your understanding when you read the Scriptures, help you handle it accurately and recall it. And to reveal any false beliefs that you may have.

2. Satan is much older, stronger and smarter than you are. Never consider yourself an expert in the occult. God will allow you to be humbled by not standing fast on His word.

3. Don’t go looking for spirits, particularly if you are not born again (Acts 19:11-20). Only God has power of the evil spirits and those to whom He has granted power through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. Too many people are hunting ghosts or exploring haunted locations, placing themselves in danger from the supernatural.

4. God never overrules your personality or ability to think for yourself. The Apostle Paul warned to always hold fast to the mind and that we have “the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16)”. Losing control of your mind, behavior, body and words is characteristic of the demonic (Mark 5:1-20, 9:14-29), not God.

Sadly, many Christians do NOT heed Apostle John’s warnings to test the spirits. Some so-called modern apostles claim to “slay people in the Spirit“, ie. cause people to lose control and fall to the ground. The only Biblical example of being slain in the spirit is in the Book of Acts. Ananias and his wife were slain by the Spirit for lying publicly to God. They were killed by God. It’s not recommended.

Also, some people claim to speak in tongues but are in an altered state. God NEVER puts you into an altered state. You are always fully aware and able to function if it’s from God.

My pastor related an instance where visiting Christians from Nigeria entered a church and heard Christians, supposedly speaking in tongues, speaking in their native Nigerian language. They were cursing God in Nigerian.

Even demons attend church. Jesus expelled a spirit from a man who was in a synagogue where people were worshipping God (Mark 1:21-26). False prophets and teachers can be found in churches. Don’t trust someone just because they claim to be a Christian. Be like the Berean church (Acts 17:10-11), who even tested what the Apostle Paul taught by checking the Holy Scriptures daily to see if what Paul taught was in line with God’s Word.

5. You are never told in the Bible to seek out supernatural experiences (except to prophecy or interpret tongues in 1 Corinthians 14:1, 13). When God visited Moses at the burning Bush; the angels visited Zacharias, Joseph and Mary, Daniel, Balaam; or the Transfiguration occurred, as a few examples, the godly people didn’t seek out a supernatural encounter. God initiated the encounters.

Do NOT visualize or ask spirit guides, animal spirits, aliens, fairies, ghosts or other supernatural entities to enter your life. Do not go ghost hunting.

6. God never contradicts His word. Any spirit that teaches anything that contradicts the Bible does not come from God. Therefore, the better you know what the Bible says and teaches, the less likely you are to be deceived. However, please remember you need prayer, also, because the religious leaders at the time of Jesus knew the Bible yet didn’t recognize the Messiah when He stood in front of them.

7. Don’t hold conversations with spirits. They are likely “deceiving spirits (1 Timothy 4:1)”. Don’t commit the same error that Eve did who stopped to hold a conversation with the devil (Genesis 3). Instead, hold conversations with the one true God in prayer. Jesus promised to meet all your needs (Matthew 6:25-34, 7:7-12).

8. Satan and demons can also perform miracles. The Antichrist will deceive most of the human race by performing miracles (Revelation 13). I personally knew a man who spoke in tongues who was demonically oppressed; his gift was not from God.

I didn’t write this blog to frighten you, but to warn you. There are too many media programs about ghosts, aliens and other supernatural beings and occurrences. And too many churches promoting unbiblical practices.

Always stick close to Jesus and His word (2 Peter 1:20-21).

“Be sober, vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8).”

The chick that stays under the wings of its mother (Matthew 23:37) won’t get eaten by the hawk.

God bless you.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

Note: I usually use the NASB, but tonight am visiting my parents so am using the New King James Version of the scriptures.

***

The safest place is always in our loving Shepherd’s field. Jesus invites every person to find abundant life by coming to Him.

“I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved…I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd gives His life for the sheep. (John 10:9,11).”

Jesus came to “destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8).” He wants everyone to come into fellowship with Him and spend eternity with Him. But we’re born spiritually dead, in rebellion to God our Creator, wanting to choose right and wrong for ourselves, to do “our own thing”.

If you’re tired of doing things your way and want to become a child of God, learning from Him how to live life and love His way, please pray the following:

Dear Heavenly Father, please forgive my sin. I’m tired of living life my way and bringing unnecessary trouble into my life. I ask Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. I give my life to you. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. Teach me how to live. In the mighty name of Jesus, amen.

If you’ve prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. But just as your body needs daily food, your soul needs daily soul food—the Bible. Please begin reading every day to grow in your faith. I suggest starting with the book of Matthew as it’s easy to understand.

Also, please join a Bible-based church or Bible study. If they not possible right now, I recommend these three ministries: http://www.LTW.org, http://www.InTouch.org and http://www.AndrewFarley.org. There are other godly ministries, but as a newborn Christian, you can be deceived till you know the Bible better.

And please get baptized.

“Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17).”

God bless you. See you in heaven.