Shout with joy to God, all the earth!

Shout with joy to God, all the earth! Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious! Psalm 66:1-2

Let our mouths be overflowing with praise for our God! May our hearts never stop giving thanks to Jesus, the savior of our souls!

We are called to be joyful in ALL circumstances, not because we're never saddened by things around us or hardships that we experience, but because we know the LORD Jesus Christ. We know the one who gives our every breath and keeps our hearts beating. We know the one who gives life and takes away life; We know the almighty God! There is NOTHING in this world that compares to the unsurpassable joy of knowing Christ!

A close friend of my family just passed away this weekend and went home to be with Jesus. My mom was able to spend a lot of time with her in the days before she died and was able to witness what a beautiful saint of God this woman was. Even though she could hardly talk, the few words that she managed to get out were all praises to the LORD. She was the one in bad condition, yet she spent the last days of her life still focusing on others and encouraging her fellow believers in their walk with the LORD.

Some of the Last things said to my mom…

The LORD is so gracious and merciful...He is God almighty; Nothing is impossible. Nothing. Never Doubt. Never Doubt. Don’t ever give up on the LORD...God is watching out for you...The LORD will make a way.

This lady was so full of the Joy of the Lord. Even though she was in pain on her death bead, She could not stop proclaiming the goodness of Jesus to all who came and visited her!

I pray that I would never let the joy of my salvation grow old, but continue for all the days of my life, no matter what may come my way, praising, worshiping, and glorifying the Lord in everything I do.

A Call to Anguish - David Wilkerson

Being united as One in Christ

Earlier this week, when I was reading through some of the epistles, I started to notice how Paul would often exhort the church to continue in ONE Spirit or to stand firm in ONE Spirit. Here are a couple of the passages…

Ephesians 4:3-6 - Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit-- just as you were called to one hope when you were called-- one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

Philippians 2:1-2 If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.

There is only ONE body and ONE Spirit. There is not a catholic body and a Lutheran body and an apostolic body and a non-denominational body, there is only the body of Christ. And that body is not characterized by a certain denomination but rather by the presence of the Holy Spirit in each individual’s life. It doesn’t matter whether you’re catholic or protestant or what church you go to, the body of Christ is made up of the followers of Jesus. It is made up of those who have truly given their life over to God and live by the Spirit. It is this body that is called to be one in spirit and in purpose.

For all of those who are truly following Christ have the SAME spirit of Christ living in them. We are called to be doing the same thing; we have the same purpose; we have the same joy and the same salvation. Sometimes I feel like it’s easy to get caught up in defending our denomination or pointing out the problems in other churches and, in doing so, we forget our true purpose. We are not to be followers of our denomination or theological positions, but rather followers of Christ!

1 Corinthians 1:10-13 – “I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought. My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas"; still another, "I follow Christ." Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul?”

We are all on this journey together! We ALL have so much to learn about who God is and his truth, and thus we should always be in a constant search to understand Him more. Never should we rest on our laurels, thinking we get it. We should be constantly asking God to reveal himself to us in new ways and to show us where our thinking is wrong. Jesus calls all of his followers to live in obedience to his teaching, be led by his spirit, be putting to death all of the fleshly desires through the strength of His Spirit, and to be seeking him with ALL of our hearts. So let’s all do this, TOGETHER, AS ONE BODY!

I know I have gotten caught up before with theological differences that I’ve had with people and because of this, I don’t look upon them as I should. I almost forget that they have the very SAME spirit of Christ living inside of them that is living inside of me. I forget that we have the same calling, the same purpose. Instead of dwelling on our differences, we should be seeking to know God more so that those differences fade.

Many times this year I have been discouraged and in tears, asking God to slap me over my head with his truth. I want so bad to know and understand what is true and know the ways of God. But I keep asking God…Why, even when we are all seeking to know you more, are we not in complete agreement? If we all have the same spirit guiding us and teaching us…why do we have so many disagreements regarding theology? I haven’t really had that question completely answered yet, but one thing I know is that it is God’s will that each of us follow him wholeheartedly. I know that I just need to keep my eyes fixed on Jesus and serving him with everything I have, and trust that he will continue to teach me in His Truth. And if each of us are doing that, and growing in our knowledge of the truth, we will inevitably be growing closer together as well, in unity as the bride of Christ.

John 8:31-32 "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."