Live Your Life as Christ Lived His

     We should be like our teacher Jesus Christ. Jesus said to his disciples in John 13:13 "You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am." Jesus said in Luke 6:40 "A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when is fully trained will be like his teacher." Jesus is saying that he being our teacher can fully train us by his words and example to be like him. 1 John 1:6 "whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked." 1 Peter 2:21 'For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps."
     If we are to live our life like Jesus, we must believe in him. John 6:28-29, 40 "Then they said to him, "What must we do, to be doing the works of God? Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent." For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day." If we are to live our life like Jesus, we must love one another. John 13:34-35 "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." If we are to live our life like Jesus, we must forgive each other. Matthew 6:14-15 "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."
     Jesus has many good qualities. 1 Peter 2:22-23 "He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly." Jesus lived his life in an humble manner. Philippians 2:5-8 "Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God, a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." Jesus said I am gentle and lowly in heart in Matthew 11:29-30 "Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." 
     Jesus Christ has many more qualities that I have not written about. By looking at the few that I have listed, you can see that Jesus is someone that we should be following. Out of his love for us, he die upon the cross to take away our sins so that we may have a future in his kingdom. He gave us a commandment to love one another. He told us to forgive each other. He has always been truthful. He is someone who we can trust. He lived his life in a humble and caring way.
     I want to live my life, the way he lived his. I want to be able to love as he loved. I want to do good and make a difference in someway. I know if I lived my life as Jesus lived his, my life will be the better for it and I will be seeing him someday in his Kingdom.
     
      

We are a New Creation

     We are a new creation according to 2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away, behold the new has come." Ephesians 2:10 "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." Ephesians 2:19-20 "So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone." 
     To be a new creation of God, my old sinner self had to be crucified with Christ so that the Holy Spirit of the Lord can live within me. Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." Romans 6:5-8 "For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him."
     New Creation means being recreated and transformed into the image of Christ. Ephesians 4:22-24 "to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness." Colossians 3:9-11 "Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all." Isaiah 43:18-19 "Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert."
     Ephesians 5:1,15-17,19-20 "Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."
     
     
     

I Give Praise to God

     In my heart there is a song of praise for Jesus. It is a song of hope and of love for all of us to be happy and free. Free of our fears, free of our tears of sadness and free of thinking that it will not get any better. O' Lord I pray for our souls to receive your help. I praise you Jesus for lighting our way and giving us the hope we need to carry on. Glory to God for giving us his son to save us from our sins. He has given us another way to live and another way to be. He is our hope for our future.
     I give praise to God and so does every creature in heaven and upon the earth. Revelation 5:13 "And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and that is in them, saying, "To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!" I praise my God and bow before him because he is my Creator. Psalm 95:6 "Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!"
     Where would I be without the LORD for he is my hope. Psalm 33:20-22 "Our soul waits for the LORD, he is our help and our shield. For our heart is glad in him, because we trust in his holy name. Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, even as we hope in you." LORD, I do have joy and peace in believing in you. Romans 15:13 "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope."
     I will endure any suffering because I look forward to someday to live my life within God's Kingdom. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 "So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison." Romans 8:18 "For I consider that the suffering of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us." 
     I give praise to God for preparing a new home for us to live. A home free of suffering, pain and sorrow. He is the God of love for giving his people a wonderful place to live. May all of us continue to praise his name forever. 
Revelation 21:1-4 "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away."

You are There Wherever I Go

     Psalm 139:7-12 "Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, If I say, "Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light about me be night," even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is bright as the day, for darkness is as light with you." 
     Psalm 33:13-15 "The Lord looks down from heaven; he sees all the children of man; from where he sits enthroned he looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth, he who fashions the hearts of them all and observes all their deeds." Jeremiah 23:24 "Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? declares the LORD. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the LORD." 2 Chronicles 16:9 "For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him...."
     Proverbs 15:3 "The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good." Jeremiah 16:17 "For my eyes are on all their ways. They are not hidden from me, nor is their iniquity concealed from my eyes." Proverbs 5:21 "For a man's ways are before the eyes of the LORD, and he ponders all his paths." Job 34:21 "For his eyes are on the ways of a man, and he sees all his steps." Hebrew 4:13 "And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account."

Lord, Watch Over Me

     Lord, watch over me because you know me. Psalm 139:1-4 "O' Lord, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether." There is no time limit when he is watching over me. Psalm 121:8 "The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore." 
     Lord, as you watch over me please guide my path. Psalm 143:8 "Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul." Lord, deliver me from evil. Psalm 140:1,2 "Deliver me, O LORD, from evil men; preserve me from violent men, who plan evil things in their heart and stir up wars continually." Lord watch over me so that my words and heart do not spread evil. Psalm 141:3,4 "Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips! Do not let my heart incline to any evil, to busy myself with wicked deeds...."
     The Lord will teach me and counsel me while watching over me. Psalm 32:8 "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eyes upon you." The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous. 1 Peter 3:12 "For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil." The Lord will not sleep or slumber while watching me. Psalm 121:3,4 "He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber, Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep."
     The Lord watches over us because he loves us. He knows our minds and our hearts. He is there to guide us and to teach us. He watches over us to protect us from others and even from ourselves. He hears the prayers of the righteous and turns his face from the ones who are doing evil. Nothing is hidden from him. He knows everything that we do and say. It is comforting to know that he looks at us like a loving Father. He wants us to respect him as our Heavenly Father, to honor, obey and worship him with humility. He wants us to love him as he has loved us. He is our God and Heavenly Father, who watches over us as his children. 

Which is Ruling within Our Hearts?

     Which is ruling within our hearts? The way of kindness or the way of cruelty? The way of violence or the way of peace? What is happening within our hearts? Is evil and death using our hearts as a gateway into our world, bring with them a pain and sorrow that the world has never known? Who are the ones that are resisting and fighting against the corruption of the heart? Money is given as the answer as the danger increases around us. Will it be that way until many of us is gone? 
     By a never ending darkness, we are lured into a sleep because our eyes are becoming to accustomed to the dark. What will we do when evil has complete control and tells us to do something that we cannot and will not do? Will we have the courage to resist and do what is right? Will we be overwhelmed by our fear and do as evil commands? What will we do when it all goes from bad to worse? Will we then do something before it is to late or is it already to late? Then we will all suffer from our decisions. May there still be time for us to change.
    Soldiers marching through our streets and people's fear is growing out of control. What will happen, only time will tell. Is our civilization crumbling down in front of us? Has chaos finally taken control? Has compassion left our hearts and souls? Life matters but I fear that a lot of people would said that money matters more. There grows the darkness and the hopelessness in our world.
     O Lord save us from ourselves. Come to our rescue and bring hope back into our hearts. Let not our faith fade away but strengthen us so we can endure these hard times. Comfort us so to chase away our fear. Lord have mercy upon us and shows us the way out of our troubles. Forgive us of not doing what is right. Let not our mind become so confused that it will turn us away from your guidance. You are our only hope for our future. Your son Jesus Christ is our salvation from the destruction we are bring down upon ourselves. Let these hard to deal with times come to an end and may your kingdom come, and your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.       

I am Thankful to God Every Day

     As I live my life, I somehow have this attitude that tomorrow will be a better day and that the answers that I am seeking will be just around a corner. This is so strange because I suffer from depression and depression is mostly a feeling of hopelessness and yet I have a positive attitude that keeps me going. I keep moving forward because I have a light within me that never goes out even when I experience my darkest days. I know out of God's mercy that he put that light within me and I am thankful to him every day.
     Most of my life I have prayed to God and believed in his word. He has been very important in my life. I have try my best to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ and I have failed on many occasions but I have never given up. God has not given up on me and I will not give up on him. God has help me so many times and I am so thankful for his help.
     So today, I will say that tomorrow will be a better day and I will find my answers that I am looking for because what is the alternative, that tomorrow will be a bad day and I will never find my answers, never let that be so. Everyone of us must have some kind of hope because hope gives us a reason to live. I have spent many days battling hopelessness in my depression and I know that having hope can save your life. I am thankful to God every day for giving us the hope that we need to live on.
     "Lord, let my eyes see the things that I cannot see and to know things that I cannot understand. Let not this world overwhelm me. There is a darkness that is within this world but let me not be consume by it. Let my eyes see the hope and the light that still shines. Lord, take pity on me and guide my steps so that I do not get lost. Our days are numbered so let my days be of service to you. A lot of us are suffering so please help us to overcome our troubles. Lord Jesus, please help us to dry our tears and find the hope that we are looking for. We need you in our lives and your spirit of love within our hearts. Every day, I am thankful for what you have done and what you will do for us in our future, Amen."