Define Obscene Pls

~ Matthew 23 is such a great read... Jesus tells us to obey our church leaders in what they share that comes directly from the word of God (things that we ourselves are able to study and seek God about).. but he says DO NOT DO everything they do and teach, because they go overboard with their rules and laws and demands of submission.. Christ heavily rebukes them and us and all who teach or lead concerning the things of God, whatever we say for men to do or not to do, we had better be doing or not doing as well.. and we better have scripture to back it up.. God's judgement is on those who are called by his name, who teach things God never said.

"4 For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.
5 But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments,"

~ Colossians 3 is a great read as well... breaks down how we should treat ppl and live our lives together... even tho some things are up for interpretation as usual.. what comes to mind to me immediately is "what exactly is obscene?".. I don't have issues with certain words labeled as profanity when used in the right context.. it's an effective form of communication at times, imo... I mean like read Solomon and how much he talks about his lover's breasts.. in modern terms ppl don't say breasts in every day talk, they say boobs or tits or tata's... which some would view as obscene talk... so yeah.. I just like the way this chapter puts behavior into simple statement.. and then leaves it up to you and God to work out your salvation with it all...

~ Colossians 3... "If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 On account of these the wrath of God is coming. 7 In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. 8 But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. 11 Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.

12 Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

18 Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. 19 Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them. 20 Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. 21 Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged. 22 Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters,[g] not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. 23 Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. 25 For the wrongdoer will be paid back for the wrong he has done, and there is no partiality."

~ "20 Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. 21 Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged." Ppl so often quote verse 20 but they fail to acknowledge verse 21, which applies to mothers and fathers.  Children are to obey their parents in all things that do not contradict the word of God... but in turn, parents are not to discipline with overkill, to the point where they cause their child to lose hope that they will ever get it right or be able to please that parent.

I love how basic, blunt, and simple the word of God is.. seasoned with just the right amount of wisdom and mercy and expedience ^_^

Raining Rainbows

Rainbows everywhere in the sky at sunset yesterday evening.. crazy looking clouds, every direction... clouds looked like spirograph patterns.. I grew up in the woods, outside all the time, camping and what not... and have never seen anything like this... at least five different rainbows.. was this caused by the hurricane messing with our weather or something?.. idk... there was a rainbow ring around the sun as well.. and sis made a pic of the moon last night cuz it had bright rings around it... explanations please...

Here are some pictures I made with my phone. You can see two to three rainbows in each one. Pretty crazy!

Also, the last picture was taken by a friend while he was out jogging the same evening... I saw it yesterday, and commented...

"Made me think of the verse that talks about signs in the heavens in the last days... as well as the ones about Noah and Gods promises to be with us in the storm <3"

but when I opened my page and glanced at it again this morning, I immediately posted this comment...

"ya know.. is it just my imagination or can anyone else see a silhouette of Jesus with his sleeves rolled up, a rainbow in each hand and the sun glowing in his chest?..."

"ya know.. is it just my imagination or can anyone else see a silhouette of Jesus with his sleeves rolled up, a rainbow in each hand and the sun glowing in his chest?..."

He is..

There is dirt under my nails, mud staining my feet, and filth smeared across my face.. I am an offense and a stench to all who know me... except one... Jesus.. and he is the only one that matters <3

Changed by Your Love As I Worship You

~ WORSHIP: Desperation Band, READY NOW

~ SELFISHLY AMBITIOUS CHURCH... almost thou persuadest me to turn my back on God... but when I read his Word, I remember that you are not him.. even though you call yourself by his name.

~ WORSHIP: Kevin Prosch, HARP IN MY HEART

~ Prosch will always be one of my very favorite ppl that lead us into worship of our God... I so desperately miss those days when there was freedom in the church. No one had to declare it, no one had to make a show about 'breaking down the walls' because it was the heart of the ppl as the Spirit was leading. But leaders and church corps get that nervous Pharisee twitch when the spotlight moves off of them, and suddenly creativity is micro-managed and smothered to death. The creative spirit is one of freedom, freedom to choose to be accountable or to be stupid.. and to face the discipline of God for our choices. The baby was thrown out of the church with the bath water. And now they wonder why there is no new life in their pews.

~ Ironically, all the seeker friendly and "cutting edge" churches from back in the day have become everything they tore down and raged against... and those they call prophets are mostly attention whores and narcissistic over-fed infants... Difficult days are coming, and soon... God help us if we don't seek the leading of his spirit to find our identity in him again. The Church has no idea who she is anymore, she has chased every wind and wild fire blowing through and spent no time at the feet of Christ in daily repentance and cleansing and instruction in his Word. If it's not fun, the people of God aren't interested.

~ WORSHIP: Kevin Prosch, HARP IN MY HEART

~ Don't stop going to church.. if God was willing to save a city because of one good man that was in it.. you may be the door of salvation that Christ will work through to bring life back to his ppl... are you up for the challenge.. not to be a pawn in a man made system but to stand your ground in the pew and in the altar to invite Christ to rule and reign in that place. Be in church somewhere as often as you are able, with a zeal and a passion to claim your one spot for Christ... if we all begin to do that one by one.. just see what happens ♥

~ No one said it was an easy thing.. this cursed earth is not heaven, it's not time for Paradise just yet... that day is coming, but first we gotta finish this spiritual war thing... sin and selfishness are gonna burn in a devil's hell forever.. and if ppl don't choose to let go of them, that sin and selfishness will drag them to hell. That's the choice each of us faces. The Gospel is the good news that Christ has made a way to free us from that sin and selfishness. We are not gods, but we are God's children. We need to stop being so full of ourselves and demanding our own way.

~ WORSHIP: Steffany Frizzell, OUR GOD

~ "I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound^[a] teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to allwho have loved his appearing."  (2 Timothy 4)

~ WORSHIP: Duncan Bouwer, SOMETHING HAPPENS

~ It's easy to call it quits and die... but are you willing to die daily to everything your body and social circles and the world waves in front of you and fills your senses with, that you crave, that you are weak to resist... dying daily is the real challenge.. the real mark of a man.. true character.. putting God and the well being of others ahead of our selfish desires. 

Die daily.

No Matter How Crafty... (Gen 3:1-5)

Genesis 3:1-5

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made.

He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You^[a] shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” ² And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, ³ but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” ⁴ But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. ⁵ For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 

Did you catch that?... He said that the serpent was crafty (sneaky, tricky, skilled at manipulation, manipulating people, manipulating the words of God, manipulating the situation, the opportunity, the right moment as well as the wrong moment)... The serpent wasn't really asking the woman what God said, he already knew. He was scoffing what God had said in disbelief and disgust, as though God was trying to set boundaries and limits that were unfair and un-fun.

He casually leaves out the whole truth of what God said, quotes partial truths.. which are lies. So often when people feel that the Bible is untrue or full of contradiction, it is because they have not read it or studied it in it's entirety. Here is Satan from the beginning, causing such seeming contradiction and questioning of God.

He is a master in his technique, because by using such an approach.. it causes Eve to begin explaining about the trees in the midst of the Garden. It puts her mind on the forbidden fruit.. which is not sin in itself.. but it puts her mind on the forbidden fruit in a spirit/atmosphere of questioning God. It takes the seed of the enemy's words and plants it in her thoughts, searching for an open door to cause doubt and rebellion to spring to life in her heart.

Yes, Satan is crafty.. the serpent.. that woman, that person, that temptation, that door of evil.. that chooses to satisfy it's own lusts as it yields to Satan so that he can bring life to rebellion against God and death to those loved by God. He then uses the talents, skills, and God given abilities of the people he is able to influence and woo, in an effort to manipulate and convince others to doubt and rebel against God. All that for one purpose.. to steal, to kill, and to devour. He has no concern or sincerity for your rights or your fun or for justice in any way.. he uses you and everyone and everything to feed the fires of his hatred against God. He lies to you and works every angle to keep you deceived and in the dark. Blinds you with the darkness of all that you lust for.

Often times we think, poor serpent.. but there was more at work than we realize. There was something about the serpent that was able to make Eve put her guard down. There was something about the serpent that Satan could use in powerful ways. If the serpent was skilled at craftiness and cunning, which in itself isn't sin.. there was some kind of animal instinct in it that was easily manipulated by Satan into something evil. There are things I am unsure of concerning the serpent.. but nothing that I need to know now. I will ask God about it in heaven one day. For now, the point being that Satan can get in the head of any creature pretty much, possessing them, and using them for evil.. unless they call upon God to help them to resist.. and they choose to resist.

Satan tempts, we choose. There is no one to blame but ourselves. There will be a time near the end of all things, when Satan will be bound and people will still sin against God.. There will be no more claims or excuses that the devil made you do it. It's not the fault of our spouse, or our boss, or our family, or even our enemies. From the beginning.. we choose between life and death in every experience. God promises a way of escape every time.. we choose to sin.. or we choose to cut that temptation off no matter what it costs us.

We choose.. we fail.. or we succeed.. in the big and in the small.. we bring death to ourselves and those we love, or we bring LIFE. Stop looking for excuses and make up your mind to confess, repent (turn your back to it), and do it right. We choose.. me.. you.. all of us and each of us.. we choose. That is the key to what Christ spoke of when he said that all power in heaven and in earth was given to him.. and that we could be like him. We can own up to our failures and shortcomings and clean up and do it right.. every advantage is given us to win.. for ourselves and for God and for those we love as well as those who hate us.. power to affect the future of all for the Goodness of God because of the Goodness of God our Father... that's power.

Choose what is right <3