Archive for November, 2008
Even though I can remember talking to the Holy Spirit as a child, when I became older and thought about talking to God, what came to mind was: “Who am I to think that I can talk to God?” But the truth is, who was I not to? Who are YOU not to?
When we think, “Who am I to talk to God?” we deny ourselves a relationship with God and the Holy Spirit. Even though the thought may cross our minds, “who am I to think that I can talk to the Holy Spirit?” it is important to remember that it is just a thought. It’s just something that arises within your mind when you entertain the thought of connecting with God or the Holy Spirit.
There are lots of thoughts that arise just like that: “Talking to the Holy Spirit is impossible. Talking to the Holy Spirit is something that only special or very pious people can do. Talking to the Holy Spirit is something that takes years and years of hard work and devotion to accomplish.” All of these thoughts are untrue and keep you from connecting with the Holy Spirit in your life.
When you begin to think about talking to God and hearing His Voice, become aware of what thoughts come to mind. If you become afraid at the thought of talking to God, that just means that a thought has arisen within your mind that caused you to become fearful. A fear thought could be as simple as, “I’ll never be able to hear the Holy Spirit.” It could be a thought that says, “I’m not worthy of talking to God. God would never talk to me.” It could be, “Look at all the things that I have said and done. Why would God bother with me?”
Allow yourself to become aware of the thoughts that arise within you when you contemplate joining with God in dialogue. Do your best to notice those thoughts, emotions, or beliefs as lovingly and kindly as you can. They are just thoughts that arise. They are not the truth. They are not a reflection of you. They’re just thoughts that arise, these little flea bites that distract you for a moment. When you notice them for what they really are and respond to them with truth, love, and kindness, you are free to continue to focus on your connection with God instead.
Let’s say you have the thought: “Who am I to think that I can talk to God?” You can then remember: “Oh yeah, who am I NOT to? It’s my job to be connected with God and the Holy Spirit. That is my job. That is all God and the Holy Spirit would ask of me. Who am I not to?”
Or you have the thought: “Why would God want to talk to me?” You can respond, “Because God created me and God only sees my perfection. God wants nothing more than to talk with me through the Holy Spirit.”
“I’m not worthy. I’ve done these things, said these things, or thought these things. I’m not worthy to talk to God,” and you remind yourself, “God just loves. God wants to be in communication with me.”
Whatever thoughts arise, allow yourself to respond to them with Love and Truth. You know the truth in your heart. You know that God only loves you and wants to be in communication with you. So when you have the thought: “Oh, I’ve done these things or said these things. God does not want to communicate with me” you can remember, “Actually, God only loves me,” and continue to move past that thought or move on from that bug bite. Allow yourself to continue to move in the direction of connecting with God in the Holy Spirit. It’s as if you are maneuvering your way around these little distractions or obstacles, the little thoughts that arise, but you respond lovingly to them and remain on the pathway to God.
There is nothing that can stop you from connecting with God. There is nothing that can keep you from your Creator. Even if you’re not sure how to respond with the truth to a thought that arises, just remind yourself, “Nothing can keep me from God,” and continue to move along on that path.
Since it is only a thought that can keep you from hearing God’s Voice, let yourself notice what thoughts have arisen in the past few minutes. Make note of the thoughts that sound familiar or the thoughts that have come to your mind and allow yourself in the next few days to continue to become more and more aware of what thoughts come up when you think about talking with God and the Holy Spirit. Really look at each thought and allow a truthful response to each one to come to you so that you know no matter what thought arises, there is nothing that can keep you from having a relationship with God and God’s Voice in your life. Focus on this in the next few days and find out how much more connected you feel to God and the Holy Spirit in doing so.
Someone is selling this bike and asking $20. The tires have serious dry rot but still hold air. The chain is rusty but flexable, and there is some rusting on wheels, handlebars etc.. Don’t know age, I think 70’s. It’s dark brown with orange and yellow stripe detail, free spirit is written across top bar, and 26 is written on seat tube. Sears emblem with 05-78 at bottom of seat tube, and 02 47268T13654527 engraved into headtube. Is it worth investing in new seat and post, plus possibly new tires in near future, or should I pass on this? The post is very thin – 2.5cm. What will seat and post cost ? If owner finds seat is it worth taking given tires and rust? He claims the bike is worth $100 – $200 as is. I’m 67 and just plan to ride locally around town, no more than a few miles at a time. (I’d really like to hear from mirageguitarworks – others also welcome to respond). Thanks!
Thank you all very much for your answers – I’ll take your advice. So now what should I look for at yard sales – what’s good and what should I stay away from?
Ambitious churchgoers tend to assume too much about their own spirituality as they plan for their far off, unknown destinations. At the same time, they assume too little about the far-reaching effect of Spirit-led obedience right where they already are.
I myself cannot go abroad in good faith, because I would be wandering (maybe fleeing) away from an unreconciled home base. If all I know is this religious culture, then I’m in no condition to go elsewhere and tell other, far-off cultures about the kingdom of heaven. I say this not according to any fleshly unit of measurement, but from experience and God speaking to my conscience.
I’ve never planted a church in the United States, where I would assume that it should be easy! How can I go to another, hostile land under the label “church-planter” if the Spirit of God has never taught me how to plant a church in my own country? Again, this is not a discouraging new law, but rather an encouraging mindset that might lead us toward reconciled living and true, Spirit-led service.
Here in the United States, lots of people have already heard about Jesus and yet a single Christ-follower is extremely difficult to find. Are God’s people here at all, or are there only cold buildings with pointy towers and stained glass? This country offers freedom of speech for all people, supported by the Constitution and even defended by the U.S. government, yet there is between little and zero sincere proclamation of God’s groundbreaking gospel, to either individuals or publicly to the multitudes.
Missionaries desire far-off locations while they still feel that speaking to their next-door neighbor about Jesus Christ is a terrifying prospect. Granted, many churchgoers are sincere, but many only force themselves to speak to their neighbors about Christ out of religious duty or because they might feel bad if they didn’t. Even on the home front, when outreach-minded churchgoers “share their faith,” this often springs from sanctified guilt-tripping or because “their pastor told them to do it.”
Constitutional law frees our mouths to speak out loud if we should so choose, but the Spirit of God has not made us free to speak spiritual truth with our daily lives.
Excuse my childish thinking, but why not try preaching the gospel here for starters? Call it a warm up for the “big game” across seas if you’re still are stuck on thinking that God is impressed with man-made, political boundaries.
What, I wonder, is so intriguing about other countries? And why do we suppose that our stale American faith will work so much better in another country, where the culture and government and language are openly opposed to the gospel?
Mind you, I don’t want to ask myself these questions. All this talk about being faithful right where I am is unwelcome news for me and my impressive plans for God. I do not want to hear that God’s kingdom also applies to the United States and I don’t want to come to grips with the fact that Christ is fully God in my own hometown. I don’t want to hear that I should sincerely seek God’s kingdom in the U.S. as a matter of first priority simply because I am American. And I really don’t want to hear that God’s kingdom is bigger than me or anything I can figure out on my own.
by Patrick Roberts. Find his book and additional resources at www.BooksByPatrick.com
With the popularity of internet advertising, businesses can now go beyond geographical boundaries and market their products and services to the whole wide world. Complementing each other, millions of businesses now offer free business advertising to each other for better reach. Free Internet classified advertising is slowly catching up as the preferred mode to sell directly to buyers.
Advertising on the Internet is an effective option Everybody is on the Internet. And everybody is looking for something unique. Unlike other media, online Internet advertising needs to cater to specific needs of surfers. Classified advertising, as the name suggests, is a simple way to find exactly what you need. Offers and needs are neatly classified in easy, searchable groups. In this age of information overload, the classified ad information is precise, simple and easy to find.
Classified ads are primarily designed to sell and buy in a more personal, one-to-one setting. In addition, classified ads are now a preferred and cheap alternative for businesses to showcase their products and services due to the immense reach that they offer. The Internet has now made it even easier and widespread. Most of the online advertising sites offer very cheap classified ads or go a step further by offering free business advertising through free Internet classified advertising options. The heavy traffic due to the free classified advertising ensures revenues to these sites through advertising space for clients. Millions of buyers and sellers visit these free classified ad sites and spend considerable time searching for just the right product or service. These free classified advertising sites thus turn into highly effective platforms for brand building assets for bigger advertisers.
Everybody wins with free online classified advertising The equation is simple. A business needs to reach out to more and more people on the Internet. Each website has a particular level of visitors, otherwise called traffic. In order to reach out to more traffic, businesses barter Internet online advertising space and thus increase traffic. This way, everybody wins. The businesses are more visible at no additional cost and the customer gets a wider choice of products and services. In addition, partner websites ensure better traffic for better business.
Like a newspaper, there are numerous websites that are specifically designed for free business advertising. Based on the simple theme of sharing information for overall profitability, these free classified ad sites offer free advertising tips for anyone who wants to harness the power of Internet online advertising. In addition, these classified advertising sites offer effective tools for free business advertising. A free classified ad gets more mileage, as everyone else is also looking for free business advertising in the true spirit of the Internet. The phenomenal success of free classified advertising in the print media is a reassuring backdrop for these free classified ad sites to operate in. Personal, exact and easily available information make free online classified advertising such a hit.
Adding wings to free classified online advertising Finding the right website is the first step to optimize response for your free classified ad. The more websites you are on, the better are the chances of hits. Many classified ad sites cater to specific target groups and visitors like photographers, motorcyclists, etc. Others are more generic and cater to almost all needs and offers. If you are selling something unique, then a site that caters to your specific target group should work. Nevertheless, many people actually buy goods and services only when they see them listed on a classified ad site and it is usually a good idea to place a few free classified ads on general free classified ad sites.
Online Internet advertising is all about reach and can turn any idea into a profitable online business idea or a profitable home business if it reaches out right. Free business advertising adds wing to an idea at no extra cost and success stories abound on the Internet. A good online advertising plan and help from free online advertising sites can take your business far on the Internet realm.
Free Internet classified advertising also helps those with limited advertising budgets carry out effective Internet online marketing at no extra cost. The best online advertising methods are the ones that use free business advertising to leverage their traditional advertising plans. Online Internet advertising is a powerful tool for profitable home businesses or businesses that are primarily dependent on networks of other people . Placing a classified ad on the right website is an important part of a good online marketing strategy. A good online marketing consultant can also help maximize returns from online Internet advertising. Online direct advertising considerably cuts overhead costs and the need for sales people by directly reaching prospective buyers with precise, edited and exact information about your products and services.
So go on, add the wings of the Internet and make free online classified advertising work wonders for your business and for you.
A free inspirational e-card is a wonderful way to spread the spirit of encouragement and love to your fellow believers as well as for those who do not believe. Free inspirational e-cards are written and thought of in a beautiful fashion that shares the love of Christ through a story or a poem. A free inspirational e-card works as a sharing tool and an encouragement all rolled into one. Free inspirational e-cards are truly the best option for any card that you can send but they are also cards that you can add your own flair to when you send one.
In order to add to a free inspirational e-card, you have to think about the person that you are sending it to. If this person knows the Lord, then you may want to write about how you have seen the Lord work in their life. Free inspirational e-cards are a place to voice your thoughts. In order to write a good free inspirational e-card, you must be connected to the persons heart that you are sending it to. Free inspirational e-cards are truly one of the ways to open your heart to someone and let them know how they have touched and affected your life.
The best way to pick a free inspirational e-card is to know who you are buying it for. Free inspirational e-cards come in many different shapes and sizes. This means that the person may receive it differently than another card that you will send. Try to find a free inspirational e-card that will say something specific to them. Free inspirational e-cards will speak volumes to a persons heart and soul if they are sent from the bottom of your heart. People will receive them well and love what you have to say to them in your free inspirational e-card.
A free inspirational e-card will help you share the Lord will someone also. As Christians we are supposed to be showing Christ in our actions. Free inspirational e-cards will help you do that. “And when they were come, and had gathered the church together, they rehearsed all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles.” (Acts 14:27) This will be a way to share your faith with an unbelieving world. It is also a way for you to share your love with those who are in your community.
For more information about free inspirational e-card, visit: http: //www.christianet.com/christianecards http://www.christianet.com/christianecards/inspirational http://www.christianet.com
Johnny Lavoy doesn’t only do hairhellip;in this video he shows how to make a “free spirit” using makeup for autumn.
At a point in time not known to us on the earthly plane a spirit was wondering happily around heaven. Everything is so perfect here thought the spirit and harmony is all around. I wonder why so many spirits decide to leave this place and become a human being on that place called earth.
The spirit continued to wander and ponder the question it had asked. After a while the spirit thought, I know, I will go and ask God. Since he is all knowing and all seeing, I’m sure he will have the answer to this question.
So the spirit set of to find God and satisfy the curiosity that was burning deep within.
After a short while the spirit found God and asked if he could answer a question. “Off course said God, you know you can ask me anything you want. Come with me, I feel this question might take longer to answer than you might think”.
The spirit followed god and they sat down in some big comfortable chairs in a large quiet room. “So, said God, what is the question that you seem so keen to ask me?” “Well, said the spirit, I was just wondering why, when things are so perfect and in complete harmony here in heaven that so many spirits decide to leave and become human on the planet called earth?”
“Mmmm”, said God, “I knew your question might take a while. Let’s start by letting you observe the earth from here. That might answer your question, but I know it will raise even more questions”. The spirit looked at God not quite sure what he meant but agreed to do as God asked and observe how life on earth was attracting spirits to it.
After observing several years of life on earth, the spirit had seen enough to satisfy the curiosity it had felt but now had so many questions it wasn’t sure if it could remember them all. As if he knew the spirit was ready God appeared and sat himself down in the big comfortable chair again.
“Well” said God, “has your question been answered?” “I think so” said the spirit, “but now I have so many other questions I don’t know where to start.”
“How about from the beginning” said God.
“Ok I have seen the thing called birth and know what that is. But with so many births how does a spirit know which birth it wants to move into?”
“That’s a good question” God answered, “and since you have been to earth several times you should be able to answer that yourself”. The spirit thought for a moment and realised that God was right.
“I remember now” the spirit uttered. “The last time I left here and went to earth you said it didn’t really matter which birth I chose as long as I never allowed the human experience to lose me within itself”. You said that I would know which human experience to choose because I would learn the lessons I needed to grow”.
“That’s right, and if you can remember your last human experience you will remember if you learned those lessons or if you need to go back and relearn or learn new ones in order for you to grow and reach your full spiritual potential” said God looking closely at the spirit to see if it was beginning to make sense.
“I’m not really sure” the spirit replied, I haven’t really thought about it until now. What I can’t understand is why life on earth seems so complicated and why most humans are so unhappy all the time. When I was observing earth from here, there seemed to be so many things that go with the human experience. Things like happiness, sadness, fear, anger, love, hate, jealousy..”
“Woa Stop said God, Let’s back up here a little bit. Most of what you are saying is all about human emotions and they are all part of the human experience. Do you have any specific question you would like to ask?
“Well yes” said the spirit. Is it true that when we are born into the human experience that we are as pure in spirit as I am now.
“Absolutely” God replied.
“So why do so many spirits get lost inside the human experience and lead a life on earth that doesn’t seem fulfilling and is full of sadness and pain?”
“Well” said God, “the human experience involves something I created called the brain. Sadly few humans actually use this creation the way I designed it, to be a great tool for creating things for themselves. In fact some humans on earth, right now, are beginning to realise that they are using 10% or less of this great creation and are starting to find ways to use more. But at this time on earth these people are few and far between. It’s all part of the learning experience that each human and spirit has to go through”.
“It is changing but it has been a long, slow process. To answer your question, humans use the brain for almost everything they do but they don’t hear the voice inside, the spirit, because they are to busy trying to figure out everything from a creation which they are only using a very small part of. Soon they become so tied up in the life that they are creating, good or bad, that the spirit get lost or drowned out. It’s only when the human body stops functioning that the spirit is released and can come back to contemplate the lessons it has learned”.
The spirit looked thoughtful for a moment and then said “I still don’t really understand how the spirit gets lost inside the human experience. How can the brain if it’s not being used to its’ full potential be stronger than the spirit and drown the spirit out? Why can’t you make it so that a human can use the brain you created to its full potential and let the spirit be part of that?”
God smiled and said “that’s because not only did I create the brain, I also gave the human experience free will”.
“Free will” the spirit exclaimed, now looking even more confused.
“Yes” said god, “Free will. You see, if everything was perfect on earth the human would not be able to learn and grow just as in the same way the spirit could not learn and grow. So I gave the human experience free will to choose and make decisions about how to best live that lifetime”.
“Some are very good at using free will and some are not. So when the spirit is born into the human experience it is as pure as you are now but it is the use of the brain and free will that determines whether that human experience is good, bad or indifferent. It’s only when the human experience and spirit are working together in harmony that life on earth can become a wonderful occurrence, filled with joy, abundance, happiness and inner peace”.
“I see” said the spirit, “So humans have the choice to make their lives on earth as good or bad as they want to. It’s just at this time not many are aware of this”
“Got it in one” said God and he leaned back on the chair grinning as he saw the spirit was beginning to understand. “Everyone on earth can make choices and decisions using their free will. It’s the quality of there thoughts and actions whilst using free will that determines the outcomes throughout their lifetime”.
The word of God is like a piece of soap. The purpose of the soap is to wash away all dirts from your body. But it does not serve its function if it is not used or applied. Similarly, the word of God is useless if you do not apply it into your life. In this article, we will talk about the Holy Spirit and I hope in so doing, it will educate your mind, move your heart, and motivate your will to inspire you to represent Jesus in the marketplace in a new way with a renewed mind.
Acts 9 & Luke 4
In Acts 9, it provides a background to the conversion of the Apostle Paul. Paul, before he was converted, he has a passion of killing Christians. His mission was to source out the Christians and gets rid of them. On the road to Damascus with a mission to kill Christians, Jesus got hold of him. He had a personal encounter with Jesus and this turned his life around. In Acts 9:31, it stated that as a result of Paul’s conversion, he started to preach about Jesus being the Christ. The churches throughout all Judea, Galilee and Samaria were greatly edified by Paul’s teaching. The churches became united and multiplied. They became stronger as the believers lived in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. Notice that there were two things at work here in the churches to give them strengths and increase. It was:
1. Fear of the Lord
2. Comfort or Encouragement of the Holy Spirit
What do you mean by the fear of the Lord? This fear is not talking about being frightened. It is about reverence, a reverential fear and respect of God. The believers were living in that mindset of reverential fear, honor and respect for God. It was this reverential fear, honor and respect for God that guided their daily lives, their choices, their relationships, their speech, and their thoughts. It means that their daily lives were lived in constant awareness of honor and respect for God. They lived in an awareness and consciousness of the presence of the Holy Spirit in their lives.
Because of these two things, the church multiplied and grew in the Holy Spirit. On the day of Pentecost, Peter said quoted the words of the Prophet Joel that in the last days, God would pour out His spirit upon all flesh. Through that very event, it introduced us to a new season in which the Holy Spirit will be the Administrator of the presence of God. Jesus called the Holy Spirit, the Lord of the Harvest – the saving of souls, the redemptive works of God, and the transformation of individual hearts. Without compromising your values and your conviction, the Holy Spirit is the one who seizes and arrests the hearts of individual. He is the One who cause the transformation of the hearts of the individuals.
Is this any different in the ministry works of Jesus? No. In Luke 4:18, Jesus announced that the Spirit of the Lord was upon Him and He has anointed Jesus to preach the gospel to the poor, to set the captives free, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord and the season of God’s grace. Before Jesus began His ministry, God announced him as His beloved Son and He was led by the Holy Spirit to the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. Jesus was brought under specific tests that are critical to every leadership. The success and effectiveness of Jesus’ ministry in the next three years was because of the power and the anointing of the Holy Spirit.
What is true for the success of Jesus’ ministry is true of the success of any ministry today. The Holy Spirit comes to anoint the leadership and the ministry. God began to move us in the power and comfort of the Holy Spirit in order to give it the strength and the increase. You cannot do any ministry and be successful without the anointing of the Holy Spirit. It is important that we give Him as many tools as possible to use us. Hence, education and training are important. Those these tools, the Holy Spirit show us the opportunity to move up in our career so we are in places of influence to cause change.
How does the Holy Spirit use these tools in us to cause change? Look at this in the part 2 in the Sermon Alive at http://www.sermonalive.com
Ok, this isn’t a commercial, I’m branching out! This is the Halloween episode of the short-lived supernatural comedy “Free Spirit” which ran for half a season on ABC. It’s probably most notable for featuring a young Alyson Hannigan (Willow from “Buffy The Vampire Slayer”).
The premise of the show is that a witch (Corinne Bohrer) is sent to be the housekeeper of a mortal family. The kids know she’s a Witch, the dad is clueless. Hilarity ensues! This episode, “Hallowinnie”, aired on October 29th, 1989. A notable guest star is Jenny Lewis, playing the lead “Deb” Chris. Lewis is probably best known for her role as Haley in “The Wizard” and now as the lead singer of the band Rilo Kiley.
Before anybody asks, no…I don’t have any other episodes of this (I actually did have one other, but unfortunately, I haven’t seen the tape it was on in a good 10 years)
I have a close friend that I care about dearly. It is her birthday and I do not have any clue what to buy her. She loves the Grateful Dead, she is a free spirit, does NOT dress like a hippie, and has to be one of the kindest people I know. I want to get her something that she will have for a long time and cherish. Anyone have any good ideas? Also, she is a 27 year old female and I am a 28 year old male.