The Power of Words, Proverbs 18:21

I felt badly recently when I became impatient with Buddy and yelled at him as he kept whining when I was trying to solve a problem. His wince made me realize that words, just like a fist, can punch and hurt.

“Life and death are in the power of the tongue.”—Proverbs 18:21

Our words can inspire people to try harder or to accomplish great things.

Or our words can discourage people and drive them to despair.

Great leaders are often remembered, not just for their great deeds or accomplishments, but also for their inspiring oratory.

“Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.”—JFK

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only love can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”—Martin Luther King Jr

“Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”—Abraham Lincoln

Sometimes it can be discouraging to blog regularly, yet not many people read what took hours to create. But does that make my words or message any less worthy? Do numbers or recognition determine the value or a person or thing?

Or do we all have intrinsic value apart from recognition or financial success?

YES! We’re all made in God’s image, therefore we all have value as He created each of us for His own purposes (Genesis 1:27, Philippians 2:13).

“The pen is mightier than the sword.”—British playwright Edward Bulwer-Lytton

Is one of the most famous quotes of all time, outside of Biblical quotes.

Yet, this same playwright and novelist is also remembered for penning one of the most wretched opening lines to any novel:

“It was a dark and stormy night.”—Opening line of his novel Paul Clifford

This same man who is lionized for one amazing line is also lampooned as an atrocious novelist. In fact, there’s even a contest to write the worst novel opening in Mr Bulwer-Lytton’s honor, the Bulwer-Lytton competition:

https://www.bulwer-lytton.com/

Ironically, the site uses the same word: “atrocious”.

Guess what I’m saying is what the Apostle James admonished:

“But no one among mankind can tame the tongue… from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing.”—James 3:8,10

So, in summary, no one is perfect. Don’t beat yourself up for saying stupid or hurtful things. Ask forgiveness, if necessary. But we must all be careful to guard our words. They can inspire revolutions or success, save or destroy lives.

And don’t despair, either. You may not be remembered just for foolish talk…

But also be loved for being that one person who makes one life better by encouraging them not to despair and give up.

Or to use your words to pray for them and God to move mountains for the spread of the gospel.

Just be faithful.

“For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man…”—James 3:2

Thank the Lord for His grace which covers all our sins.

God bless you.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

***

Jesus said: “But the things that come out of the mouth, come from the heart…”—Matthew 15:18

That’s why the Apostle Paul states:

“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”—Romans 10:13

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is the Christ, the Lord Who came in the flesh to die for your sins, and rose bodily from the dead, your words reflect faith is in your heart.

Please call on Jesus to save you. There’s no neutral ground: You’re either in the kingdom of darkness, dead in your trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1) or in the kingdom of Light, spiritually alive.

If you call out to Jesus, He will enter through the door of your heart to give you new, and eternal, life.

If you’re not ready to take this step in faith, please ask the Lord to help you. Or please remember to call on Him when you’re ready for a life change.

If you’re ready now, please repeat the following prayer, out loud if possible:

Dear Heavenly Father, I believe that Jesus is the Lord God Who died for my sin and rose bodily from the grave. I’m sorry for my sins and ask You to save my soul and forgive me. Please grant me Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Please teach me how much You love me. In the name of Your holy son, Jesus, amen.

If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily and join a Bible believing church or Bible study so that you can understand your salvation and get to know Who God is.

If that’s not possible right now, I recommend these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: Leading The Way and The Grace Message at the below links:

https://www.ltw.org/

or

https://andrewfarley.org/

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

Please Don’t Forget Who You Are, Buddy brief

Buddy

When I first left Buddy to stay for a few days with my parents, I was concerned he’d become their pet and not return home with me to our condo.

Turns out that he stares at the front door for hours, waiting for my return. Buddy does not forget that he’s my best pal.

My parents love Buddy and he’s fond of them, but he loves me the “mostest”.

The Apostle James reminds Christians not to forget who they are:

“For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.”—James 1:23-24

Once you were “dead in your trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1),” “slaves to sin (Romans 6:20)” and “the powers of darkness (Colossians 1:13),” until you believed in the Gospel and became born again.

You were a sinner who sometimes did good deeds.

But now you are a saint who sometimes sins!

“You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.”—Apostle Paul, Romans 6:18

You are no longer a dirty worm. Nor a reformed sinner.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”—Apostle Paul, 2 Corinthians 5:17

You are a saint! You want to act saintly.

Or you grieve the Holy Spirit within you and become miserable.

It’s vitally important that you remember who you are! What is now your natural bent!

You were dead; now you’re spiritually alive!

The author CS Lewis got it correct in his Narnia book series:

You are now a prince or princess. You now wear the royal garments of Christ Jesus.

Look into the mirror which reflects back “Christ in you, the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27).”

Now walk like the royalty you are!

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

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.

What’s Your Legacy? Pontius Pilate, Luke 23:13-25

Buddy contented

As you know by now, Buddy was abused for three years until I adopted him from the foster mom who rescued him. Buddy was afraid of me and tried his best to get away from me till he discovered that I love him and wanted to care for him. I’m thankful God is granting him a long life. He’s 15.5 years old and still going strong. And always thankful to Jesus and his foster mom for placing this little fellow into my life. Every August 21st, I celebrate Buddy’s adoption day as his “unofficial” birthday, not knowing the exact date.

Today Christians celebrate Good Friday worldwide, commemorating the day Jesus was crucified, taking the punishment for humanity’s sins, thereby “taking away the sin of the world (John 1:29).”

That was nearly two thousand years ago, yet Pontius Pilate, the Roman Prefect representing the emperor Tiberius, is still recalled as the man who sentenced Jesus to death.

All four gospels relate the story of the condemnation of Jesus, but Luke illustrates my following point succinctly.

As detailed in Luke 23:22, Pilate knew that Jesus was innocent, asking the crowd, “Why, what evil has He done? I have found no reason for death in Him. I will therefore chastise Him and let Him go.”

Pilate “knew that the chief priests had handed Him over because of envy (Mark 15:10),” not because Jesus deserved to die.

Pilate was responsible for keeping peace in the realm under his authority. He feared the crowd who demanded “Crucify Him! (Mark 15:14),” rather than doing what was right and just. He didn’t want a riot to start or have Caesar accuse him of allowing the Jewish people to follow another king (John 19:12). He knew crucifying Jesus was unjust, but did so anyway out of fear.

At that time, Pontius Pilate surely had no clue that sentencing Jesus to death would be recalled by hundreds of millions, perhaps billions, of people over two millennia. He sentenced an innocent man to death, satisfying the crowd and the government, over justice.

What about you and me? What legacy are we leaving? What are we doing that might leave a lasting impact, but we’re clueless about it at the time?

Right—and wrong actions—that we’re committing today might have a far-reaching impact in the future that we’re unaware of in the moment.

I think that it’s worth considering as we commemorate the death of Jesus this Good Friday:

What’s your legacy?

God bless you.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

***

The biggest impact that every person has on their own future is whether they accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, or not. It affects not only the quality of their life on earth, but also, their eternal life. Despite what modern culture and atheists declare, we live on after our bodies return to the dust.

I’ve never regretted becoming born again. It was the best decision I’ve ever made; I only regret not doing so over a decade sooner.

Please, for your own welfare, I beg you to give your life to Jesus. He came to “destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8)” and to give you “abundant life (John 10:10).”

Now, the abundant life is not health and wealth, but helping you to stop self destructive behavior, over time, called sanctification. Health and wealth may improve, as you begin changing your behavior and beliefs, but it might not. I don’t want to give you false hopes that misguided TV preachers are promising.

But if you’re ready for a life change, please pray the following, out loud, if possible:

Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sins and ask You to forgive me. I invite Jesus to be my Lord and Savior, the moral authority in my life. I ask You to fill me with Your Holy Spirit, to give me a new heart and life. I give my life to You. Please show me how much You love me and lead my life as my Good Shepherd. Thank you for hearing my prayer. In the mighty name of Your Son, Jesus Christ, amen.

If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible every day, as it’s 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 join a Bible believing church or Bible study to grow in your faith and knowledge. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I recommend 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). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be misled or fall into the bondage of legalism until you are familiar with what the Bible teaches.

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

Air Pollution, Psalm 108:4-5

Buddy looking at the evening sky reflected on a local pond.

My photographs of the evening sky here in Scottsdale, Arizona, pale in comparison to the true loveliness displayed in nature. Although I adore my beloved Buddy, he is not able to appreciate the beauty of the world and discuss it with me. When we go to the local parks, he sees a world of tree trunks and light poles and smells a cacophony of scents.

Aren’t you happy we weren’t created with the sensitive sense of smell that dogs have? And other unsavory practices of greeting?

My friend Dee, during a recent study in the Book of Ecclesiastes, made the following declaration, which I think was so insightful and wonderful that I wanted to share it with you, my dear readers. (Dee is one of the Bible Study leaders in my church.)

A discussion began about how beautiful the recent sunsets had been. And a comment was made about how air pollution was the cause.

Then Dee said, “We can flip that around. Look what God can do with pollution!”

(One thing I love about my new friend is her joyful attitude toward life, regardless of any current attitudes.)

“For Your lovingkindness is great above the Heavens, and Your truth reaches to the skies. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, and Your glory above all the earth.”—Psalm 108:4-5

Many of us give our lives to Christ Jesus because we’ve messed up our lives and realize we need a loving and holy God to get us back onto the right track.

In fact, God promises us that our heavenly Shepherd will keep His sheep walking on the path of good behavior:

“He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”—King David of Israel, Psalm 23:3

More could be said about this, but I want to stay “on point” and not digress.

We often look back on our lives and realize how much better it is to be in God’s kingdom than living without His guidance. And usually struggle with adopting a new lifestyle as the Holy Spirit wrestles to clean up our old thinking habits and replace them with more godly attitudes.

We often stumble and fall in our new walk, like babies, crawling in the dirt on the floor till we grow stronger, learn how to walk upright and let the Holy Spirit brush the dust off our knees.

Satan cannot reclaim a born again Christian, united with Christ (John 17:18-23), but he can tempt a person to sin. Then his greatest trick is then to torment the Christian with their failure. He loves to kick a person when they’re down.

I’ll never forget a demonic temptation when I was struggling with sin as a young believer. (I didn’t convert till I was 28 years old.) I was walking across the dining room of my home when I “heard” a voice in my mind say, “Why don’t you give up on this Christian thing? You’re no good at it anyway.”

Well, that demonic spirit was too obvious because I recognized where that thought came from and rejected it out loud.

As new creations in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:17), we want to please God and obey Him. But we fall short and then the enemy tempts us with self-condemnation. Nonbelievers mock us as hypocrites, neglecting to take stock of their own faults. And pride causes us to kick ourselves as failures because we aren’t perfect.

But God has made His children a promise (He always keeps His promises): “When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong, because the Lord is the One Who holds his hand.”—Psalm 37:24

God promises that He’s holding your hand and is going to lift you back up after you stumble in your Christian walk. He’s not going to let you fall flat on your face and then stump all over your psyche. The world, the devil and the flesh (our spiritual enemies) will do plenty of that for you. God is a loving Father Who wants you to hold His hand and walk together with Him in godliness.

It really helped me when I read a biography on the great Victorian era Christian leader, George Muller. He built orphanages, giving homes to 10,024 orphans during his lifetime and built 117 schools to give over 120,000 kids an education (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_M%C3%BCller). But he stumbled quit a bit in his first years as a Christian. He didn’t start his Christian walk as the godly man he later became.

What I’m trying to say in my rambling way is this: No one can obey God’s perfect standards 100%. That’s why Jesus had to live a perfect life for us and take the punishment for our sins. Only God in the Flesh (Matthew 1:23) lived a perfect life of obedience to God. As much as we’d like not to disappoint God by falling short, we sin.

And do you really think you’ve caught God by surprise? And He’s saying, “Boy, I sure made a big mistake saving that one!”

I’m definitely NOT advocating a “spit on His grace” or “licentious grace” philosophy. You reap what you sow (Galatians 6:7-8). And the Holy Spirit will make you miserable till you repent.

But don’t let fellow, self-righteous Christians or worldly unbelievers or the enemy tell you that you cannot be effective in God’s kingdom because of failures in your life.

“For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.”—Romans 3:23

(Besides, some sins are just more open and obvious than others. Only God sees what’s hidden in people’s hearts that they’re struggling with.)

After you’ve stumbled, the only true failure is refusing to listen to God and keeping your focus down toward your own feet. Confess your failure, admit to God your need for His help to live a godly life, and keep walking forward. Satan wants you to quit. Don’t give the enemy of your soul that satisfaction!

And don’t look back.

And when you look upward toward God’s sky painting, remember that He can bring turn pollution into wondrous beauty.

You’re never a failure when you’re walking alongside Jesus.

Don’t ever give up and quit!

God bless you.

Much love from God and Buddy.

***

If you’ve read this far, you may have realized that God does not expect you to be perfect because that’s impossible for you—or anybody. Even as Christians, we can only hope to be better people as we grow in a knowledge of God and His love for us.

But without God’s help, it’s very difficult to break destructive habits or develop more positive lifestyles.

If you realize that you need God’s help, please repeat the below prayer, out loud if possible:

Dear Heavenly Father, I know that I’ve blown it Please forgive my sin. I call on Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Hold my hand and lead me as my Great Shepherd. Thank you for loving me. In the name of Jesus, amen.

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

And join either 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 or http://www.AndrewFarley.org. There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to get confused by legalism or bad teaching until you know the Bible somewhat.

God bless you as you start your new life in Christ Jesus. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.

Believing The Lie That You’re Not Enough, Genesis 3:5

When Buddy wants attention, he’ll sometimes head for the bag of paper shredding in my parents’ den and live it up by kicking shredded paper everywhere. I don’t want him to inhale any paper shavings, so I’ll interrupt his fun. But no matter how he misbehaves, he’s still the perfect dog for me. We have a great partnership.

I had planned a different topic tonight but felt the need to write something encouraging again. Yes, I’m going to squeeze more “juice” out of the Adam and Eve story. (Some claim it’s apple juice, but that claim cannot be confirmed.)

Adam and Eve were declared “very good (vs 1:31),” not only because humans were designed in “God’s image (vs 1:27),” but because they were perfect. Flawless. The very best of God’s creation. They were complete.

And God had created a beautiful world for them to live in, full of delicious foods and animal companions that they could speak to.

But they bought the devil’s lie that they were incomplete, that they didn’t measure up. That they could be more.

“For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”—Genesis 3:5

Adam and Eve didn’t accept themselves as created. There was something more and better that they could be, Satan said. They were inadequate as they were. They didn’t measure up. They needed to be wiser and more knowledgeable like God. They were blind to their true potential.

As you know, they disobeyed God by eating fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and fell from their glorious perfection. They became dead spiritually, when they were once alive and in perfect union with God in their spirits. They also began to age, when their bodies were created beautiful and magnificent.

By buying Satan’s lie, they became seriously flawed.

Modern Western culture, and sadly the church, is swallowing the bitter apple Satan offers: That they are not good enough.

Christians are declared, once accepting the blood sacrifice of Jesus to atone for their sins, “holy and blameless and beyond reproach (Colossians 1:22), and can “stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy (Jude 1:24).”

Even the Old Testament prophet, Isaiah, described our future cleansing from our sins by the one time sacrifice of Jesus in Isaiah 1:18: “Though your sins are as scarlet, they will be white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they will be like wool.”

And King David of ancient Israel, who also prophesied about the coming Messiah, said in Psalm 103:12: “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgression from us.”

Yet many Christians confuse their spiritual condition (blameless and forgiven) with their lifelong process of sanctification. They feel dirty and undeserving before a holy God, rather than rejoicing they are a beloved child. They believe they need to earn the Father’s love by trying to be as perfect as possible, rather than resting in the finished work of Christ—Who already fulfilled the Law—that God already loves them perfectly, that His love doesn’t need to be earned by being “good enough.”

God knows we’re flawed beings, which is why Jesus had to come to save us from our own self destructive behavior.

And unbelievers cannot accept themselves either, as they were created. They wish they were another sex, another race, had a different metabolism or body shape, were smarter or had different skills or talents, etc.

They often accept the devil’s lies through another person or our culture that they are not lovable or acceptable unless they look a certain way, achieve certain goals or status, or health, or have certain talents and interests.

Instead of viewing their current sex, or race, or body type or intelligence or talent or physical appearance as a gift from a loving God who designed them to follow a particular path in life, they reject themselves for who they are.

If you discover as a child that you have one amazing skill—can play football, build things or dance—it’s pretty easy to find your life path.

But if you’re multi-talented, it can be a bit more difficult to figure out which path is the best one, or how to fit all the different pieces together.

Or it’s not so obvious, and a person needs to work a little harder to discover what they’re naturally gifted at.

Most often, I believe, it’s not that the person doesn’t know what they’re good at or naturally interested in, but they don’t believe that talent or skill is important or special enough.

I also believe that some of our interests are God-given. And Science is proving that we’re born introverts or extroverts, that our basic personality can only be modified so much (note the book, “Quiet, by Susan Cain). As David declares in Psalm 139:13-16, He lovingly creates us, even forming “our inward parts,” ie. our personality.

God made you in His image.

You are NOT an accident of the universe.

You were deliberately designed to be loved…

By an amazingly patient and loving God.

God bless you.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

***

I viewed a short clip online by a young woman, tricked out in piercings and tattoos and risqué clothing, who commented that God wasn’t real because He wasn’t zapping her for being blasphemous.

I responded, “He isn’t punishing you because He loves you and wants you to repent and come into relationship with Him. He doesn’t want you to go to Hell.”

Jesus said in John 3:17:

“For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.”

We’re made in God’s image, but fall short of His glory spiritually because we’re born dead in our sins (Romans 3:23, Ephesians 2:1). He wants to give everyone the spiritual life we were designed to have, but don’t, because Adam and Eve decided to believe Satan’s words rather than His word.

If you realize you feel incomplete and acknowledge only Jesus can give new birth to your spirit, please pray the following:

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for loving me so much that You want to be in relationship with me. I realize that I need You in my life. I’m tired of feeling inadequate and not enough, because of other people’s criticism or my own self condemnation. I ask Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Please forgive my sins and wash me white as snow. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Help me to stop believing the lies of my culture and other people by revealing to me how much You love me. May the Holy Spirit guide me into all truth. In the name of Your Son Jesus Christ, amen.

If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible as it’s your soul food. Just as your body needs daily nourishment to be healthy, so your soul needs God’s holy word to be healthy. I suggest starting with the Book of Matthew as it’s easy to understand. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you as you read.

Also, please join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these godly ministries, in order of my personal preference: http://www.AndrewFarley.org and http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way). They also have apps, if that’s your preference. There are other godly ministries, but they can sometimes be legalistic and you need a firm foundation in the truth to recognize when law and grace are being mixed together.

May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.

God’s Opinion of Us Is Superior, Genesis 11:6

Pyramids of Giza, Egypt & Sphinx

In 2008 I had to leave my beloved Silky terrier, Buster, in my dad’s care for two weeks while my mother and I toured Egypt. It was an amazing experience and we’d like to return to visit the ancient archeological sites again. We also got to see the Tutankhamen exhibit at the Cairo Museum, pieces that did not go on tour due to size, such as the large golden boxes the boy Pharaoh was buried in. I highly recommend all Christians and Jewish people tour Egypt. You really gain a perspective of how courageous Moses was. The great pyramids and other temples are mere shadows of what they once were—but what mighty shadows they cast! The original buildings during their heyday must’ve been awe inspiring.

But there’s many TV programs on cable nowadays with so-called experts who claim that ancient humans weren’t capable of creating such marvelous monuments of engineering, so alien visitors from outer space must’ve helped them out.

But God has a much higher view of human intelligence and capability, as detailed in Genesis 11:5-6:

“The Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built.

“The Lord said, ‘Behold, they are one people, and they all have the same language. And this is what they began to do, and now nothing which they purpose to do will be impossible for them.’”

I wonder where these alien believing pundits think modern human intelligence came from? We just suddenly produced Thomas Edisons, Isaac Newtons, and Steve Jobs in only the modern era? There were no geniuses in earlier times?

Look at Roman engineering feats. The pantheon, with its circular roof surrounding an oculus, showcasing the sky or the aqueducts and bridges that still stand over two thousand years later.

We are made in God’s image and, therefore, are capable of amazing creativity and intelligence. I truly believe that we can solve any problem with our amazing ingenuity and don’t need to resort to oppressive laws and restrictions on human endeavors to accomplish great things. Only dictators, or self-congratulatory elitists, distrust the population and don’t permit them the freedom to create.

In fact, why has human knowledge and ingenuity accelerated the past hundred-and-fifty years? Because humans throughout the world can quickly interact with one another since the laying of the first transatlantic cable.

So, please, stop believing the kooks who claim that aliens are responsible for the construction of humankind’s great achievements. For as God says in the Bible, when people work together:

“Nothing which they purpose to do will be impossible for them.”

God bless you.

And happy Labor Day for my American readers.

Much love from Dawn and Buddy

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God confused the language of humankind to stop them from completing the tower they were building at Babel on the plain of Shinar. Their motive was to reach the heavens in their own power and strength, rather than seeking the Lord.

Every religion but Christianity teaches that you can please a god or gods through self effort and earn your way into heaven. But Jesus said that “No one is good except God alone (Luke 18:19)” and that the standard to enter heaven is perfection (Matthew 5:48).

So if you think you can be good enough to enter heaven, hoping that you’ll end your life committing more good deeds than bad, you’re deceived.

No one is perfect, including me. We all fall short (Romans 3:23).

So how can a person enter heaven?

God sent Jesus to the earth, His Son and part of the Trinity, to live a perfect life in our place. Because He is God and is perfect, Jesus was punished and died for our sins.

If Jesus didn’t live a perfect life, He would’ve had to die for His own sins. But He had none, so was able to suffer in our place.

Do you realize how amazing God is? He loves us so much that He willingly took the punishment we deserve, because we can never meet his standard of perfection to enter heaven.

Do you want to give up trying to be perfect, or living in constant self-condemnation, when you don’t have to? If so, please pray the below:

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for providing a way for imperfect me to enter Heaven and live eternally in Your kingdom of love. Please forgive all my sins. I call on Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. Fill me with the Holy Spirit. I give my life to you. Help me learn how much you love me and the amazing way you’ve designed me. In the mighty name of Jesus, amen.

If you’ve prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re a born again child of the living God. Please start reading the Bible daily as it’s your soul food. Your soul needs daily nourishment, 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 Bible study. Christians are not supposed to be loners but are to be in fellowship with one another. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these three ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.com, http://www.InTouch.org and http://www.AndrewFarley.org. There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be misled till you know the Bible fairly well.

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