Are You Unprepared? Proverbs 21:31

Buddy wasn’t happy with me when I returned home today after being away for several hours. He let me know how he felt about it. He almost looks like he’s ready to do battle when I took the photo above.

Speaking of battles, one of my favorite verses from the Biblical book of Proverbs has been on my mind this week:

“The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but victory belongs to the Lord.”—Proverbs 21:31

After Moses died, the Lord appointed Joshua to lead the nation Israel across the Jordan River to claim the Promised Land for their territory. Joshua sent the priests carrying the Ark of The Lord ahead of the people before they crossed.

Later, God promised to fight on behalf of the people of Judah after “a great multitude (2 Chronicles 20:2)” of the enemies of the nation gathered together to attack them. Victory seemed impossible.

But Jehoshaphat loved and trusted the Lord. After requesting that the people of Judah fast, the king prayed sincerely from his heart, declaring their dependence upon the Lord to save them as the nation gathered before him. Then he took the following action:

“And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the Lord, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying:

“‘Praise the Lord, for His mercy endures forever.’

“Now when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated.

I think one reason Western Christian Civilization is in danger is because most Christians don’t realize that we’re in a spiritual battle, so they don’t bother to “prepare for battle.”

It’s my belief, and I cannot prove this, is that the lockdowns stopped corporate worship. And too many people have not returned to church once the lockdowns ended. The above two passages from the Bible demonstrate the importance of depending upon the Lord to defeat the enemies of our faith and of the necessity of praise and worship.

Thankfulness expressed to God for our blessings and declaring His magnificence, creativity, power and love, I believe are a vital part of winning spiritual battles.

Satan absolutely hates hearing The Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—praised because He loathes God. He knows his judgment is inescapable, so he’s doing as much harm as he can to those God loves: the human race, made in His image (Genesis 1:27).

We complain about people’s behavior and the seeming onslaught of wickedness in our modern culture, but they are not our true enemies: the powers influencing them are:

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.”Apostle Paul, Ephesians 6:12

To summarize:

Remember that you ARE engaged in a battle. Ignoring this fact will just make you a casualty.

Prepare your “horse” for battle.

Praise, worship and honor God Who indwells you and fights on your behalf. This also gives you confidence as you remind yourself how powerful that Big Guy on your side is.

And remember that your true enemy is not the hapless people in bondage to Satan; instead, have pity on them and ask God to save their souls.

Pray, requesting God’s counsel and guidance, then step forward in faith, crossing whatever Jordan River our Mighty God has asked you to cross.

God bless.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

PS. I hope you’ll memorize Proverbs 21:31 as it’ll remind you that victory comes from God. I cannot tell, or promise, what shape that victory will take.

***

You cannot defeat the forces of darkness in your own strength. But Jesus defeated Satan and the powers of darkness when He died for our sins and then was resurrected bodily on the third day.

“Having disarmed principalities and powers… (Colossians 2:15).”

So that He “might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives (Hebrews 2:15).”

People who don’t believe in an afterlife just grab all the gusto they can to build their castles and kingdoms in this life. It’s tough being in the rat race, because not all the rats can win.

But knowing Jesus can free you from having to grasp for every little tidbit of cheese you can scramble together. He promises eternal life in His kingdom to those who accept Him as their Lord—meaning acknowledging He’s God and your boss.

“Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”—Jesus, Matthew 11:28

The “rest” Jesus promises is for your soul. You can relax and find spiritual peace in His kingdom.

Are you ready to stop grasping for all the gusto, wearing yourself to a frazzle? Would you like God to start leading your life?

If so, please pray the following, out loud if possible:

Dear Heavenly Father, I’m tired of the battle, of trying to live life without Your help. I need rest in my soul. Please forgive my sin. I ask Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Please grant me Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. And please show me how much You love me. Thank you for hearing my prayer. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. God has given you spiritual life. Please begin to read the Bible daily, as it’s your soul food. Just as your physical body needs daily nourishment to be healthy, so does your soul. I suggest starting with the Book of Matthew and reading forward, as it’s easy to understand. And try to remember to ask the Holy Spirit to guide your understanding, as it’s a supernatural book.

And start attending either a Bible based church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest the following two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message).

God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.

An Immediate Response, Matthew 14:30-31

Goofy look.

Buddy’s a clever dog. He’s discovered that if he squeals, rather than barks, I respond immediately, because he sounds distressed, needing help.

The Apostle Matthew relayed an extraordinary experience with Jesus. Jesus had just miraculously fed over five thousand people by breaking and distributing five loaves of bread and two fish. Then He commanded His disciples to get into a boat and travel to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, while He sent the crowds away to spend some quality time alone on a mountain to pray to the Father God and refresh Himself.

Being God in the flesh (Matthew 1:23), Jesus surely knew that a storm was brewing, that would capture the disciples in raging waves. Yet, He later walked on the sea, not to rescue the disciples from danger, but to pass them by.

Per Msgr. Charles Pope, Jesus intended to pass by to display His glory, His identity as the incarnated Christ. (https://blog.adw.org/2014/01/why-did-jesus-mean-to-pass-by-his-disciples-when-he-walking-on-the-water/). The disciples did worship Jesus as God after He stilled the storm. After all, Psalm 107:29 clearly teaches that it is God Who has the power to still stormy waters. After the display of His power and supernatural abilities, they recognized it was God in human form they were following.

If you aren’t familiar with the Scripture, the disciples became frightened when they saw Jesus walking on the stormy sea. After all, it was likely pitch black and they wouldn’t recognize whoever was out on the water walking toward them. They thought they’d seen a ghost.

“But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Take courage, it is I: do not be afraid.’

“Peter said to Him, ‘Lord, if it is You, command me to come to you on the water.’ And He said, ‘Come!’ And Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’”—Matthew 14:27-30

Now, I certainly don’t condemn Peter for being frightened. He was a seasoned fisherman; those waves must’ve been massively high and scary, besides the flashes of lightning scarring the dark sky and the pounding thunder. But that’s not the point I’d like to focus on right now.

“And beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him…“—Matthew 14:30-31

When Peter called upon the Lord Jesus to be saved, Jesus acted immediately. He didn’t allow Peter to sink below the waves to “teach him a lesson.”

“Behold, the Lord’s hand is not so short that it cannot save; nor is His ear so dull that it cannot hear.”—Isaiah 59:1

The Lord is always eager to hear a person cry out, “Please, save me!” He will respond immediately. Jesus will reveal His glory, but then stop to reach out to pull any person out of the treacherous waters of sin and death who cry out to Him for salvation with an open and honest heart (Luke 8:15).

“For ‘whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.’”—Romans 10:13, the Apostle Paul quoting an Old Testament prophet, Joel 2:32

Please don’t wait till you’re sinking. Call upon Jesus right now for your salvation. He’s knocking on the door of your heart, waiting for you to respond to His voice (Revelation 3:20).

“‘For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies,’ declares the Lord God. ‘Therefore, repent and live.’”—Ezekiel 18:32

If you’re already a born again believer, Jesus knows every hair on your head (Matthew 10:30). Can you imagine how amazing that is? You shed and grow new hairs constantly. Yet, this incomprehensibly powerful God, Who has named every of the billions stars in the universe (Psalm 147:4) will also respond to the cries of His children when you call out to Him for help.

“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”—Psalm 147:3

Open up your heart to Jesus today. He loves and wants to hear your voice.

God bless you.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

***

Why delay? Cry out to Jesus right now for salvation from the stormy waves of this uncertain world. Jesus, being God and sinless, didn’t have to pay the punishment for His own sin, so He was able to pay for the sins of others as a substitute on our behalf. He was crucified on the Cross, then rose from the dead on the third day, proving that He is God.

Perhaps that went over your head a little. That’s OK for right now. If you give your life to Jesus, the Holy Spirit will teach you and help you to understand.

So are you ready to take a different path into your future? If so, please pray the following, out loud if possible:

Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin. But I believe You love me and sent Jesus to take the punishment I deserve. Please forgive my sin. I call on Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Please teach me, guide me and lead me into a life of love. In the mighty name of Your Son Jesus, amen.

If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily and ask the Holy Spirit to guide you into all understanding as you read. The Bible is your soul food. Just as your body needs daily nourishment to be healthy, so does your soul. I suggest starting with the Book of Matthew as it’s easy to understand, and read forward.

Also, please join a Bible believing church or Bible study, and get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries out there, but it’s easy to be misled by false teaching or legalism till you know the Bible fairly well. Pastors Chuck Smith, Chuck Swindoll, and Max Lucado have also written excellent books, many of which can be found in an American library system.

God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.

Supplement to: Who Are You Listening To? John 8:12

Buddy’s nearly 16 years old, so his kidneys are starting to weaken. An ER veterinarian recommended the probiotic supplement, Azodyl, to bring down his BUN and creatinine levels. I’ll find out if the treatment is effective when he has his next yearly checkup.

Fortunately, the supplements are small. But Buddy is clever. I cannot say the word “pill” as he knows what that means. I attempt to trick Buddy into eating the three pills a day by hiding them in shredded chicken bites.

Still, he often discovers the deception and spits them out.

About a decade ago, most of us wouldn’t know what “fact checkers“ referred to. We trusted that the news and information we received from so-called trustworthy sources were accurate.

If not, free debate and public discourse would reveal the error.

But, nowadays, too many people and, unfortunately including Christians, rely upon “fact checkers,” rather than open discourse, to verify the truth of news, information or other statements.

Here’s what deeply disturbs me: Too many people and, again sadly Christians, rely upon these self-proclaimed fact checkers to be truthful—which are nearly aways ANONYMOUS.

At least in a newspaper there is a byline identifying the article writer. But most fact checkers don’t identify the source so that the moral worldview of the writer can be researched. Or who is funding the fact checkers or own the fact checking resource.

In other words, too many Christians are accepting as fact information that may be filtered through a deceptive and ungodly worldview.

Before you accept a source as fact, please identify the specific person WHO is providing the information and research if they believe they are accountable to God for being truthful, rather than deceitful, and aren’t deliberately misleading to promote an unholy worldview.

Too many people don’t have a Christian background and have been taught “situational morality” in the public schools; in other words, the ends justify the means. If that means skewing the information or withholding the truth, it’s justifiable in their worldview to promote a particular behavior or action.

“Now He spoke a parable to them, ‘A person who is blind cannot guide another who is blind, can he? Will they not both fall into a pit?’”—Jesus, Luke 6:39

Jesus also said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”—John 8:12

Will you learn the truth by following blind guides?

Or by obtaining your information from those striving to walk in the light?

The Apostle Paul praised the Berean church for fact checking his claims by turning to the Scriptures to verify whether he was proclaiming the truth or not. (Acts 17:11).

Follow in the footsteps of the Bereans by testing the source. Don’t trust anonymous sources of information.

You might be believing disinformation.

Or spreading slander, which God hates (Roman’s 1:30).

God bless you.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

***

Are you following Jesus today? Or attend you wandering in the darkness?

Jesus dispels the emptiness in your soul by filling your spirit with His light.

“In Him (Jesus) was life, and the life was the light of men.”—Apostle John, John 1:4

The human race was made in God’s image (Genesis 1:27)—body, soul, and spirit—but when our ancestors rejected God’s moral authority, the Holy Spirit abandoned humanity, and our spirits died.

Jesus is the only way to resurrect your dead spirit (John 14:6), so that you feel alive deep inside.

Are you ready to accept Jesus as your Lord with the right to help you discern right from wrong? To guide you along the path of life (Psalm 32:8)?

If so, please repeat the following prayer, out loud if possible:

Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin. Please forgive my sin. Because Jesus died on the Cross for my sin and was raised bodily from the dead, I ask Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Please give me Your Holy Spirit and grant me eternal life. I want to live for You. Teach me about your love for me and others. Thank you for hearing my prayer. In Jesus’ mighty name, amen.

If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily as it feeds your soul. I suggest starting with the book of Matthew, as it’s easy to understand, and read forward.

Also, please join a Bible believing church or Bible study. You need the companionship of other Christians to grow in your faith and to resist the pull of our unholy culture. And get baptized.

If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be misled by false teaching or legalism till you know the Bible fairly well.

God bless you.

May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.

Supplement to: Who Are You Listening To? John 8:12

Buddy’s nearly 16 years old, so his kidneys are starting to weaken. An ER veterinarian recommended the probiotic supplement, Azodyl, to bring down his BUN and creatinine levels. I’ll find out if the treatment is effective when he has his next yearly checkup.

Fortunately, the supplements are small. But Buddy is clever. I cannot say the word “pill” as he knows what that means. I attempt to trick Buddy into eating the three pills a day by hiding them in shredded chicken bites.

Still, he often discovers the deception and spits them out.

About a decade ago, most of us wouldn’t know what “fact checkers“ referred to. We trusted that the news and information we received from so-called trustworthy sources were accurate.

If not, free debate and public discourse would reveal the error.

But, nowadays, too many people and, unfortunately including Christians, rely upon “fact checkers,” rather than open discourse, to verify the truth of news, information or other statements.

Here’s what deeply disturbs me: Too many people and, again sadly Christians, rely upon these self-proclaimed fact checkers to be truthful—which are nearly aways ANONYMOUS.

At least in a newspaper there is a byline identifying the article writer. But most fact checkers don’t identify the source so that the moral worldview of the writer can be researched. Or who is funding the fact checkers or own the fact checking resource.

In other words, too many Christians are accepting as fact information that may be filtered through a deceptive and ungodly worldview.

Before you accept a source as fact, please identify the specific person WHO is providing the information and research if they believe they are accountable to God for being truthful, rather than deceitful, and aren’t deliberately misleading to promote an unholy worldview.

Too many people don’t have a Christian background and have been taught “situational morality” in the public schools; in other words, the ends justify the means. If that means skewing the information or withholding the truth, it’s justifiable in their worldview to promote a particular behavior or action.

“Now He spoke a parable to them, ‘A person who is blind cannot guide another who is blind, can he? Will they not both fall into a pit?’”—Jesus, Luke 6:39

Jesus also said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”—John 8:12

Will you learn the truth by following blind guides?

Or by obtaining your information from those striving to walk in the light?

The Apostle Paul praised the Berean church for fact checking his claims by turning to the Scriptures to verify whether he was proclaiming the truth or not. (Acts 17:11).

Follow in the footsteps of the Bereans by testing the source. Don’t trust anonymous sources of information.

You might be believing disinformation.

Or spreading slander, which God hates (Roman’s 1:30).

God bless you.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

***

Are you following Jesus today? Or attend you wandering in the darkness?

Jesus dispels the emptiness in your soul by filling your spirit with His light.

“In Him (Jesus) was life, and the life was the light of men.”—Apostle John, John 1:4

The human race was made in God’s image (Genesis 1:27)—body, soul, and spirit—but when our ancestors rejected God’s moral authority, the Holy Spirit abandoned humanity, and our spirits died.

Jesus is the only way to resurrect your dead spirit (John 14:6), so that you feel alive deep inside.

Are you ready to accept Jesus as your Lord with the right to help you discern right from wrong? To guide you along the path of life (Psalm 32:8)?

If so, please repeat the following prayer, out loud if possible:

Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin. Please forgive my sin. Because Jesus died on the Cross for my sin and was raised bodily from the dead, I ask Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Please give me Your Holy Spirit and grant me eternal life. I want to live for You. Teach me about your love for me and others. Thank you for hearing my prayer. In Jesus’ mighty name, amen.

If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily as it feeds your soul. I suggest starting with the book of Matthew, as it’s easy to understand, and read forward.

Also, please join a Bible believing church or Bible study. You need the companionship of other Christians to grow in your faith and to resist the pull of our unholy culture. And get baptized.

If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be misled by false teaching or legalism till you know the Bible fairly well.

God bless you.

May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.

Move That Mountain! Matthew 17:20

Buddy’s getting a little hard of hearing. Or perhaps he’s developed that “selective hearing” so many family members tend to develop. I’ll call out to him to come into the house, but he’ll keep roaming and sniffing, totally oblivious to my commands.

And then I surreptitiously open a cookie bag…

And, suddenly, Buddy leaps to alertness.

Similarly, it’s said that the pupil doesn’t hear the message till they’re ready to receive it.

Or, in my case, it could be an instance of forehead thumping, dense thinking that needs to be penetrated.

(I’m posting three photos because the last one is the photo that shows up in links.)

Christian motivational writer, John Mason, recommends reading something positive each day to maintain a godly, positive mindset in our negative, fear mongering culture. So I pulled from my bookcase a positive thinking book that I’ve read about ten years ago but kept shelved since.

Now Pastor Peale has many critics, some valid as he wasn’t a perfect man, but he believed that the challenges of life could be met fearlessly and overcome through faith in Jesus. That faith is relevant for daily living, not just confined to a Sunday sermon. A fellow Cross Country runner gave me one of his books in high school, which was my first positive introduction to Christianity, as I was raised in a cult religion that taught Christians were false teachers serving Satan. Until that book, “You Can If You Think You Can,” I’d been told God was a scary guy who wanted to throw a fireball at me if I got out of line.

That’s a bit of an aside to my head slapping moment.

Jesus’ twelve disciples asked Him why they couldn’t cast a demonic spirit out of a boy, which was trying to destroy his life.

“He replied, ‘Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, “Move from here to there,” and it will move. Nothing will be impossible to you.’”—Matthew 17:20 (NIV)

I’ve always been puzzled by this verse. Can we really command nature to obey?

Pastor Peale likened this verse to believing faith.

Then the big “Duh” moment came: Jesus was using the ancient Jewish tradition of hyperbole, using exaggeration to make a point.

When Jesus says to “pluck out your eyes,” “if your eye causes you to stumble” (Mark 9:47), He wasn’t advocating dismembering ourselves to avoid enticements to sin that torment us through our human vision, such as lust, envy and coveting. He was using hyperbole to emphasize that we must be careful what we’re looking at and how we perceive those images. We can choose to gaze at the one fruit from the one tree God says not to eat—or we can choose to look at all the delicious fruit He permits on many other trees available to us (Genesis 3).

In the same way, Jesus doesn’t discount that there will be mountainous challenges blocking our life path. In fact, we may be on the path God wills for us to travel, yet encounter those steep climbs that can discourage us from continuing onward.

Buddy keeping a vigilant eye on me.

But with faith in the Lord, Who promises to hear our cries and help us, we can expect that mountain of difficulty to be navigated successfully or removed out of our path.

“From my distress I called upon the Lord; the Lord answered me and put me in an open space.”—Psalm 118:5

“I sought the Lord and He answered me, and rescued me from all my fears.”—Psalm 34:4

“On the day I called You answered me; You made me bold with strength in my soul.”—Psalm 138:3

Jesus promises to answer if you have enough faith to merely ask for help and guidance.

So what mountain of difficulty do you need to ask Him to help you move or overcome today?

Hope this helps you.

God bless.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

***

So what is faith? Is it grunting out enough belief? Or feeling like you have enough faith?

Or is it the object of your faith?

We all have faith in something. For the average person, it’s faith in oneself to be good enough to earn God’s favor to earn a ticket into heaven.

Or enough faith to know we’re too rotten to earn a pass and lose hope of ever getting through those pearly gates, so why not live it up, because hellfire awaits anyway?

But the truth is: Faith needs an object.

And that focus of faith should be Jesus, God in the flesh (Matthew 1:23). Believing in anything, or anyone else, as our basis to enter heaven is mistaken.

Having faith in our own efforts—or lack of them—will never measure up to God’s standards. He demands perfection to enter heaven (Matthew 5:48).

But the Good News is that one perfect sacrifice for our sins was offered to pay our sin debt—“Once for all (Hebrews 10:10)”—by Jesus. As God in the flesh, Jesus was the only perfect God Man to satisfy the entrance requirement to heaven. Since He had no sins to pay for, He was able to substitute His death on the Cross for the punishment our sins deserve.

Are you tired of trying to measure up, to be good enough, to earn God’s approval? Jesus invites you to find rest and peace in Him from your self efforts and asks you to trust in Him:

“Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”—Matthew 11:28-29

If you’re ready to give you life to Jesus and travel a new path in life, please pray the following, out loud, if possible:

Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin and ask you to change my life and heart. Please forgive my sin. I ask Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. I give my life to You. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. And teach me about Your love for me and others. Thank you for hearing my prayer. In the mighty name of Jesus, amen.

If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily. Just as your body needs daily nourishment, so does your soul; the Bible is your soul food. I suggest starting with the Book of Matthew as it’s easy to understand.

Please join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to get misled by bad teaching or legalism till you know the Bible fairly well.

God bless you.

May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.