I sent a tea cup to Libby over at Artistic Expressions. Out of all that I sent to her, the most important thing was the tracts. They hold the Good News of Jesus Christ! The message on those tracts has more value than anything else in that box...in fact, it has more value than anything else on this earth. It's the Gospel of Jesus Christ --
Last month I participated in a tea cup exchange hosted by Stephanie at The Enchanting Rose. It was so fun to be a part of. I received an amazing package from Joy, the blogger at Joy in the Journey. Everything was packaged us so nicely and carefully. She sent me so many goodies! Two different types of tea, latte mix, biscotti, chocolates, candles, tea light candle holders, lip balm, a tea cup, and a handwritten note. These rose candles were so pretty! Last, but not least...the tea cup! It's so precious! I appreciate its uniqueness. I love how it looks with the rest of my tea cups. A lace bow was even on the handle for a special touch. I sent a tea cup to Libby over at Artistic Expressions. Out of all that I sent to her, the most important thing was the tracts. They hold the Good News of Jesus Christ! The message on those tracts has more value than anything else in that box...in fact, it has more value than anything else on this earth. It's the Gospel of Jesus Christ -- We deserve to have God's holy wrath thrown at us. We sin all the time, we're constantly wicked. You might say, "Come on, I'm not that bad," but, yes, you are that bad, just like me. Think about it: Have you ever lied or stolen anything? Have you ever had sexual thoughts? Have you ever taken God's name in vain (omg)? Have you ever hated anyone? Have you ever disrespected your parents or wanted something that wasn't yours? If you've done any of these things (and I'm sure you have), then you've broken God's Law. If you break only one of His commandments, then you're guilty of them all (James 2:10). This is serious! If we sinned against a friend, they might get mad at us. If we sinned against our boss, we might get fired. If we sinned against a police officer, we might get thrown in jail. If we sin against God, we'll get thrown into Hell. You see, the higher the authority, the worse the punishment. God is the ultimate authority. Because of His goodness, He will punish sin. There is a way to get out of the punishment of hell, but only through Christ Jesus. Although we're exceedingly sinful, He has made a way to escape this terrible place. If we repent of (turn from) our sins and put all of our faith in Jesus, we can be set free from this terrible place! No matter how much good we do in this life, we can't earn salvation. We can't save ourselves. Only if we truly repent and trust in Christ can we be saved. He will take off our filthy rags of sin and replace them with His spotless robe of righteousness. He wore our filthy rags while on the cross and received the punishment that we deserved. Jesus didn't deserve it; He never sinned - He is perfect. Even though we mock Him and basically spit in His face, He took our punishment upon Himself. He allowed us to go free while He suffered in pain and in agony up on the cross. This is all by the grace and mercy of a loving God! Now God the Father can look at us and see the righteousness of Christ. Even though we're such wicked people, He reached down to us to sacrifice His only Son so that we might live with Him for all eternity and bring glory to His great Name! Anyway, I really enjoyed participating in the tea cup exchange! I had a great time picking things out for the package and putting it all together. It was just as enjoyable to receive a package! (Thanks, Joy!)
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"Serve the Lord with gladness." Psalm 100:2 Being a servant might not be what some people hope to accomplish in life but this is part of becoming more like Christ. Jesus left us with such a good example of serving. In John 13, Jesus showed His humility by stooping down to wash the dirty feet of His disciples. Even though He is the King, He did what the lowest of servants would have had to do. Why did Jesus, the Son of God, act as a lowly servant? Well, I believe that it was partly due to His character as well as to set an example of humility for His followers. Let's follow His example and humbly serve as we should. We must serve Christ, and from serving Him we'll naturally serve others.
Serving Christ The Lord requires us "to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all His ways, and to love Him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul" (Deuteronomy 10:12). We serve Him by obeying His Word and following His will. We must do this in every aspect of life, whether it be using the gifts He's given to us or fulfilling the role He's given to us. We must serve Him with gladness. He's worthy of us giving our entire lives in service to Him. Let's surrender our whole lives and lay everything down at His feet so that all we do is in service to Him. Why do any less? The greatest service done to us was by Christ. He lived the perfect life, took the punishment that we deserved by dying on the cross, then rose from the dead, defeating death. The salvation found in Jesus alone allows us to live with the Father for eternity glorifying His wonderful name. If we serve Him, this promise is ours: "If any man serve Me, let Him follow Me; and where I am, there shall also My servant be: if any man serve Me, him will My Father honor" (John 12:26). Serving Others By serving Christ, we'll naturally serve others. As Christians, we all should be humble and serve others whenever we can. We must "by love serve one another" (Galatians 5:13). We should help out wherever and whenever we can. These instances can be used to witness and set good examples for others. Due to different roles for men and women, service might look a little different. Of course, both men and women should serve God by faithfully following Him, but there are some differences. Men could help in the church as deacons (see 1 Timothy 3:8-13 for qualifications), help people with building projects, work to provide for their family, etc. Women could help with certain church activities, serve their family, etc. If the need ever arises, all of us should even be willing to wash someone else's feet. Let us glorify God by serving one another. My Experience in Serving I strive to serve God in every aspect of my life. As a daughter still living at home, I have many opportunities to serve others. I can serve my parents and siblings now as I prepare to serve a family of my own some day. If this isn't within God's will for my life then I can still have the joy of serving them at home for the time being. Presently, I find joy in serving my family by doing daily chores and such. Of course, there are times when I just don't feel like getting up and doing these things, but this is still the role that I should play in my family. When I get to pack a lunch for my dad before he goes to work or mend a skirt for one of my sisters or bake a special treat, it reminds me of my role as a woman and what I can do to serve Christ. Whether it's preparing meals, washing dishes, folding laundry, or sweeping the floor, we should do it all for the glory of God as we serve our families. As a woman, my role is to become a "keeper at home" (Titus 2:5) and my goal is to become a Proverbs 31 and Titus 2 woman. I can't do any of this without Christ. My ultimate goal is to glorify God as I serve Him. Fulfilling our duties in this area brings glory to the Most High!! Let's all have a servant's heart and give our lives in service to the King of kings!! 1 Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in His sanctuary: praise Him in the firmament of His power. 2 Praise Him for His mighty acts: praise Him according to His excellent greatness. 3 Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet: praise Him with the psaltery and harp. 4 Praise Him with the timbrel and dance: praise Him with stringed instruments and organs. 5 Praise Him upon the loud cymbals: praise Him upon the high sounding cymbals. 6 Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord. {Psalm 150} This chapter in Psalms tells us quite a bit about praise. It tells us Who to praise, where to praise, why to praise, how to praise, and who should praise. Who? --- Right off the bat, it tells us Who to praise. This being deserves an infinite amount of worship, for He created the Universe and everything in it. He has made a way of salvation. He's loving, just, pure, and righteous. He is God, the Lord Jehovah. Praise the Lord on high! Where? --- Next it tells us where to praise. "Praise God in His sanctuary" probably means to praise Him in the temple in Jerusalem. It also says to worship Him "in the firmament of His power." This most likely refers to heaven and earth. So the Lord should receive praise from everywhere and anywhere. Why? --- The passage now shows us why to praise God. He deserves much glory "for His mighty acts" and for "His excellent greatness." He simply is to be exalted for who He is and what He has done. Praise the great and mighty King! How? --- It also tells us how to praise the Lord. Worship Him with the sound of music, glorifying His wonderful name. It lists instruments to use when worshiping Him, such as the trumpet, harp, stringed instruments, etc. Honor the Lord with beautiful music. Who Should? --- Lastly, it tells us who should praise Him. The answer to that is simple: everyone. Every living thing should worship the Creator. "Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord" (Psalm 150:6). The Lord God Almighty has given us these specifics about praise, so let's use it and go worship Him all day long! Praise the Lord! "By Him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name." Hebrew 13:15
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Emily NicoleI'm a twenty one year old Christian saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone, for the glory of God alone. Praise the great name of our glorious Savior!! Categories
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May 2016
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Go serve your King!" ~Todd Friel |