Freedom - Word Of God

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come. Luke 4:18-19 (Jesus)

So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law. Galatians 5:1

For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Galatians 5:13-14

16 So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. 17 The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. 18 But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses.
19 When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, 21 envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. 22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Galatians 5:16-22

Happy 4th - Freedom

Def. of Freedom

Synonyms of Freedom

Three

Gentle words bring life and health; griping brings discouragement. Proverbs 15:4

Learn to say kind things - nobody ever resents them.

Smile at someone today and say, "hello."

24/7

The true calling of a Christian is not to do the extraordinary things but to do ordinary things in an extraordinary way. Dean Stanley

Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way. Colossians 3:17

A Thoughtful Laugh

A Long Life

The truest lengthening of life is to live while we live, wasting no time but using every hour for the highest ends. So be it this day. - Charles Spurgeon

God's Workmanship

Ephesians 6:1-4

Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do. Honor your father and mother.’ This is the first commandment with a promise: If you honor your father and mother, 'things will go well for you, and you will have long life on the earth.' Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord." – Ephesians 6:1-4(NLT)

Graduation - Milestones

My daughter graduated from High School on 6-12-09. Very exciting day. I asked her how it felt to walk into the large convention center with everyone cheering and standing in honor of the grads and her answer was, "Like a star." She had a good day. So did her parents, brother, Aunt, and friends. I remember her Pre-school grad. We have a pic of her in her cap and gown. Cute as can be. Her pic on this post is beautiful as can be. I remember Ruth, my wife and her mom, helping her accept Jesus Christ. The baptism, the summer camps, the spiritual growth times. I remember her friendships formed. New friends, summer hang time, summer trips to the lake and beach with friends. I remember her 5th grade ceremony. To Middle School, High School, dating privilege's, driving privilege's, staying out late privilege's. I remember her studying hard and late into the night. I remember her soccer days. She was good. Her band days. She was good. Chorus, Dance Team, SCA, Honor society, Homecoming Court, One grade to another and then walking the stage. One guy who walked the stage with he class had been in High School for 7 years. Known as a friendly have fun kind of guys he finally graduated and when his name was called the whole class of over 450 students erupted into huge applause and loud cheering. It was sweet.

Milestones - 1. a stone functioning as a milepost. 2. a significant event or stage in the life, progress, development, or the like of a person, nation, etc.: Her getting the job of supervisor was a milestone in her career. Above are some milestones in my daughters life. They are important to her, her parents, her brother, her relatives, and her friends. Milestones help us remember, rejoice, mourn, and look ahead. They are markers of life. They do not necessarily guide us but they do remind us of where we have been and in what direction we are going. A friend recently said, "Today's decisions become tomorrow's reality." On a boat one time with a friend doing some offshore fishing the Captain showed me some pre-GPS ways of navigating. One of the ways was to look back at the wake of the boat occasionally to be certain the boat was keeping a straight line. It was pretty cool how far we could see back and that the line told us we were on course. Milestones are not where we are going, but they are an indicator of decisions that become reality and where we are headed. In life we all have some milestones whether we note them or not. We are currently living milestones whether we realize it or not.

As a pastor or church leader I like to see people accept Christ, follow through with baptism, begin to worship with others regularly, begin forming new and helpful relationships in small groups, begin Scripture reading, prayer time, note taking, forming new life patterns, helping others accept Christ and walk with God and then one day being able to look back and see the milestones of God's work in their lives. Beautiful Milestones of redemption, grace, righteousness, miracles, friendships, and on and on.

Milestones - 1. Today's decisions become tomorrow's reality.

There he built an altar, and he called the place El Bethel, because it was there that God revealed himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother. Genesis 35:7

Computer Prayer

Dear Lord,
Every single evening
As I'm lying here in bed,
This tiny little prayer
Keeps running through my head:
God bless all my family
Wherever they may be,
Keep them warm
And safe from harm
For they're so close to me.
And God, there is one more thing
I wish that you could do;
Hope you don't mind me asking,
Please bless my computer too..
Now I know that it's unusual
To Bless a motherboard,
But listen just a second
While I explain it to you,
Lord.You see, that little metal box
Holds more than odds and ends;
Inside those small compartments
Rest so many of my friends.
I know so much about them
By the kindness that they give,
And this little scrap of metal
Takes me in to where they live.
By faith is how I know them
Much the same as you.
We share in what life brings us
And from that our friendships grew.
Please take an extra minute
From your duties up above,
To bless those in my address book
That's filled with so much love.
Amen