prayer warriors (following Jesus Christ, everyone welcome)

[tribalacres]

I read the previous posts and it's so awesome to have an amazing dialogue about such an amazing God, who could not be contained in this forum or any forum if you posted every second of every day how amazing He is. So thank you to everyone who posts, shares your heart, and just loves like Christ.

With Covid and everything around I believe it was just a way to get us all distracted. You know the thing that God desires most is our attention. Churches were closed, many thought it would give us more time to pray, seek the Lord, etc. However many got busy doing other things.

I know many churches are still closed, and I like to intepret the scripture of "there will be a great falling away" as it's so hard to stay connected via the internet or YouTube tv, because we were created for connection. So the enemy is really trying to keep us distracted and disconnected.

I am reminded of the amazing story of Mary and Martha. Martha was so distraught that her sister was not helping and that Mary was just concerned with looking and listening to Jesus. Jesus pretty much scolded her and reminded Martha she was concerned about many things but Mary found that ONE thing, to sit at his feet.

I just want to encourage you all to just find that time to just sit with the Lord. Gaze upon his beauty, see Him rightly and just love Him. I want to encourage anyone who reads this that feels alone, you are not alone. If you ever need a friend, someone to talk to, or someone to pray with you, just hit me up. If anyone has suffered loss during these times, I am praying for you. Those struggling with any disorder, addiction, etc. I am praying for you as well.

The Heart of the father is to Love and I pray that each one of us experience the fullness of His amazing Love.

Remember you're never alone. He is with you.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

That is a reasonable interpretation now that I think about it. In fact, there are probably multiple different interpretations of the story. I do hope that's how the story ends I just got offended at first because I thought they were saying the older brother DESERVED more than the younger because he worked harder and didn't screw up as much, but he does in fact deserve the same grace the younger does, if he's willing to except it and join in the celebration, loving his younger brother.

I think you're still missing the point. None of us DESERVE grace. That's what grace is: an undeserved GIFT. The older brother did nothing to deserve what he had. The father gave to each son an inheritance, simply because they were his sons. The younger took his and wasted it. The elder stayed and worked, but what he had was his, NOT because he worked for it, but because his father gave it to him. As Christians, we often make this mistake. We serve the Lord for years, and when sinners, drug addicts, prostitutes and similar people come into the church, we look down on them as if they don't belong in the pews with us. Look at those tattoos, we say. Look at those body piercings. But we forget that the grace that saves them is the same grace that saves us. We are in danger if we think our good works can save us. I think that's why God called Saul to become Paul. He is an object lesson for those who, like the older brother in this story, think they "deserve" God's grace.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Hey everyone !
I'm so glad that we have a thread committed to Jesus !
I would be so grateful if everyone could pray for my aunt, she has cancer .
Thank you so much !

Sorry to hear about your aunt. My prayer is that God will heal her body, mind and spirit. May she be filled with peace and courage and trust in Jesus for all her needs. Amen.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I read the previous posts and it's so awesome to have an amazing dialogue about such an amazing God, who could not be contained in this forum or any forum if you posted every second of every day how amazing He is. So thank you to everyone who posts, shares your heart, and just loves like Christ.

With Covid and everything around I believe it was just a way to get us all distracted. You know the thing that God desires most is our attention. Churches were closed, many thought it would give us more time to pray, seek the Lord, etc. However many got busy doing other things.

I know many churches are still closed, and I like to intepret the scripture of "there will be a great falling away" as it's so hard to stay connected via the internet or YouTube tv, because we were created for connection. So the enemy is really trying to keep us distracted and disconnected.

I am reminded of the amazing story of Mary and Martha. Martha was so distraught that her sister was not helping and that Mary was just concerned with looking and listening to Jesus. Jesus pretty much scolded her and reminded Martha she was concerned about many things but Mary found that ONE thing, to sit at his feet.

I just want to encourage you all to just find that time to just sit with the Lord. Gaze upon his beauty, see Him rightly and just love Him. I want to encourage anyone who reads this that feels alone, you are not alone. If you ever need a friend, someone to talk to, or someone to pray with you, just hit me up. If anyone has suffered loss during these times, I am praying for you. Those struggling with any disorder, addiction, etc. I am praying for you as well.

The Heart of the father is to Love and I pray that each one of us experience the fullness of His amazing Love.

Remember you're never alone. He is with you.

Hi, thank you for this, and welcome to this thread! I agree, Satan is definitely trying to disrupt, distract and discourage, and using this pandemic to do all these things. But God is not taken by surprise, and nor are His people. Church fellowship is a wondrful blessing, but I am reminded of the parable of the ten virgins, five of whom were wise and had extra oil for their lamps. We cannot depend on the church for our spiritual life or sustenance. We must be able to feed ourselves from the Word of God and our own relationship with Him through prayer and our own faith walk and experiences. Knowing Him personally is the oil in our lamp that keeps our lamp burning in these dark times. The Spirit of God within us is the light that shines in us to the day of His coming. By Scripture and prayer, and by sharing our faith testimony with others, may we keep that light burning brightly.

 

[tribalacres]

Hi, thank you for this, and welcome to this thread! I agree, Satan is definitely trying to disrupt, distract and discourage, and using this pandemic to do all these things. But God is not taken by surprise, and nor are His people. Church fellowship is a wondrful blessing, but I am reminded of the parable of the ten virgins, five of whom were wise and had extra oil for their lamps. We cannot depend on the church for our spiritual life or sustenance. We must be able to feed ourselves from the Word of God and our own relationship with Him through prayer and our own faith walk and experiences. Knowing Him personally is the oil in our lamp that keeps our lamp burning in these dark times. The Spirit of God within us is the light that shines in us to the day of His coming. By Scripture and prayer, and by sharing our faith testimony with others, may we keep that light burning brightly.

Absolutely. Church is an overflow of my personal relationship with the Lord. In a sense the wise told the foolish, get your own oil. Another words get your own personal relationship with Him and know him for yourself. Beautifully said in that parable. However, forsake not the assembly is just as critical and I get compelled to encourage people as some may be new to the faith or just started attending.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

@Crestcrazy, for your aunt:
The bulbs for these were given to us by a gentleman from our church who spent a lifetime cultivating and breeding them. They live now in our chicken run, where the birds cultivate and fertilize them as they shelter in their shade. Some have ruffled edges. Some have contrasting throats. There are perhaps dozens of different varieties and we only got a few of what Bob had. When I see these, I think of the song that says Jesus is the Lily of the Valley. I also remember Jesus said that Solomon in all his glory was not clothed as one of these. But if God so clothes the flowers of the field, will He not much more care for each of us, who are made in His image? He cares for your aunt, and He will care for her. (Oops, thought I posted this this morning!)

 

[Cryss]

@Crestcrazy, for your aunt:
The bulbs for these were given to us by a gentleman from our church who spent a lifetime cultivating and breeding them. They live now in our chicken run, where the birds cultivate and fertilize them as they shelter in their shade. Some have ruffled edges. Some have contrasting throats. There are perhaps dozens of different varieties and we only got a few of what Bob had. When I see these, I think of the song that says Jesus is the Lily of the Valley. I also remember Jesus said that Solomon in all his glory was not clothed as one of these. But if God so clothes the flowers of the field, will He not much more care for each of us, who are made in His image? He cares for your aunt, and He will care for her. (Oops, thought I posted this this morning!)

View attachment 2215140View attachment 2215143View attachment 2215145

These are inside the run with the chickens? Don’t the chickens destroy them by scratching the ground or eat the seedlings?

 

[BigBlueHen53]

These are inside the run with the chickens? Don’t the chickens destroy them by scratching the ground or eat the seedlings?

Nope. The chickens shelter under them for coolness and shade, although they are getting almost too dense for that now. The chickens cultivate the flowers by scratching under and around them for worms, bugs and grubs, and of course they fertilize them. We are going to have to thin them this fall. I'll try to get a pic of them tomorrow so you can see what a jungle they are.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Chickens won't eat them, they're toxic.

 

[Cryss]

I figured that even if they didn’t eat them just the way they scratch at the ground for bugs would rip up the stem base and roots or bulbs.