I Am Christian's Mind

 

1 PETER 4:7

The end of all things is near. Therefore, be clear-minded and sober, so that you can pray.

    I am Christian's mind. I think with the mind of Christ -- 1 Corinthians 2:16 "For “who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ." Having surrendered my life and my body to the service of my God, my mind is also part of that package dedication. Though it will not show up on any x-ray nor be visible in any anatomy class, my mind is essential in being of service to my King and Lord. 

    The mind is the center of the soul. It controls the spirit and regulates the breath thereof. Just as in physiology the diaphragm controls the breathing and regulates the heart, so, too, does the mind control the center of its being. When I gave my heart and my life to Christ, I gave Him my thoughts, too, for they originate in the mind. 

    When I was a wretched sinner, my mind was given over to lascivious thoughts which were taking me down the road to hell. But when I gave my mind to Christ and He entered into my heart by my faith in His Name through the power of God's Holy Spirit, my mind had to align with His mind. Being stuck in this body of sin and having the mind of Christ there is a constant struggle to maintain a righteous way of thinking. But God didn't leave me there. He shows me in His Word how to get control over wayward thinking. 

    Philippians 4:8 tells me how to think with the mind of Christ. "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."

    My mind decides my actions. While we may think some things get done without much thought, that is decidedly untrue; for the mind is in constant motion, even while sleeping, and thoughts that we may be unaware of eventually come to pass unless we take control of our thoughts. Being Christian's mind self-control includes how I think. Though I take the reins of my thoughts, I am still Christ's and He is still guiding me and leading me throughout my day. 1 Peter 2:11 "Beloved, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from the desires of the flesh, which war against your soul. " 

    I am Christian's mind. I meditate (think on) on The Word of God. I allow it to sink into my very self, my inner being, my existence. I seek His Word that He may fill me with Himself that there may be no room for anything else. No room for ugliness only loveliness. No room for lies, only truth. No room for deceitfulness, only honesty. No room for injustice, only justice and fairness. No room for impure thoughts, only a pure heart (Matthew 5:8). No room for propaganda, only prophetic and blessed. No room for deprivation and injuriousness, only virtue. No room for self-righteousness, only praise to our God. These things I think on. 

    I am Christian's mind. I meditate on The Word of God. 

Psalm 119:15 I meditate on His precepts and consider His ways

Psalm 143:5 I meditate on all His ways and consider what His hands have made

Psalm 4:4 I meditate within my heart while I prepare for rest

Psalm 119:11 Because I meditate on His Word it is hidden deep within my heart leading me away from a life of sin to a life of holiness

    I am Christian's mind. I think before I speak. I think before I act. I consider the consequences of my possible actions before I put my thoughts into action. I rest in the knowledge that I have the mind of Christ as well as the Love of God living in me and bringing me to fulfill the purposes for which He has chosen me to serve Him. 

    My conduct, the way I behave, originates in my mind. Therefore, I must constantly be on guard, be alert, to the ways in which the enemy of my soul attacks me. He is sneaky and underhanded. I must fill my thoughts with The Word of God that I may be able to defend myself against Satan's dart throwing (Ephesians 6:10-20). I am armed with The Word of God and The Holy Spirit of God. My mind remains focused on pursuing holiness and the desire to bring you all with me on this journey. 

WHEN I THINK ABOUT THE LORD - Christ For The Nations

THINK ON THESE THINGS  - K-8 Music (children's choir) 

ALL TO JESUS I SURRENDER - Vineyard

    

Goodness & Mercy

 

PSALM 23:6

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of The Lord forever. 

    What is the goodness of God? His lovingkindness, HIs choice to bless His faithful people. The goodness of God is every blessing, every "good and perfect gift" which He provides for us when we seek Him out to spend time with Him. 

    What is the mercy of God? His unconditional pure love. This love sent Jesus to the cross to die for you and I. This love of God is for anyone who wants to be loved by God in God's Way. This mercy of God extends "to a thousand generations". It is sought after by they who are hungry for The Truth of God's Word. It is longed for by they who seek to be comforted by God's Word. 

    God's goodness and mercy follow me closely, like our shadow. Wherever the sun shines, we have a shadow, right? So wherever The Son-shine takes us, God's favor goes with us. And it will not leave us when we die: we will dwell -- live completely and wholly holy in Him -- in God's house forever, without end. 

    All of God's promises are Faithful and True. And I'm clinging to this one daily. 

SURELY GOODNESS & MERCY 

AS THE DEER - Forerunner (Instagram) 

1 Peter 2:9, 10

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own peculiar people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy. 

    What is in this house in which we will dwell forever? The holy presence of God. We don't need anything else but Him, God in all His glory and light. 

STORM ALL AROUND YOU - Forerunner (Jon Thurlow)

I'm Counting My Blessings

 

PSALM 39:4

“LORD, make me to know my end, And what is the measure of my days, That I may know how frail I am. You, indeed, have made my days as handbreadths, and my lifetime as nothing before You. Truly each man at his best exists as but a breath. Selah."

BLEsSINg Number 1:

    I am thankful for my life, this life which God has given me. He gives me breath and keeps my heart beating. He fills me with His Peace that I may go through the storms of life -- the tragedies, the haters, the betrayers - - with dignity and integrity. He teaches me to fill my days with that which honors and glorifies Him, that when I look back on my life I may see how God delivered me and saved me even when I didn't even know Him yet. How He wooed me and drew me ever closer to Him. He's still drawing me closer and closer.

BLESSing NumBer 2:

    I am thankful for the life eternal which He has promised me. When this body of mine finally reaches its full potential, I will push through to the other side and receive a new body. Just like when a seed pushes through the ground and becomes a seedling reaching for sunlight and rain, I will see The Son and feel the breeze of heaven on my face. 

BleSsinG NuMber 3:

    I am thankful for a godly husband, a man who walks in integrity and wisdom. A man who came into this marriage with a ready made family and raised each of mine as his own, as raised his son as my own. Though our families were broken, God renewed us in His love and compassion and made us one family. 

BlesSiNg numBer 4:

    I am thankful for the ministry for which God is preparing us. I don't know where He is leading us, but I'm going with The Lord anyway. He knows what He's doing and I trust Him. He's not finished with us yet. Retirement is not the "golden years". The "golden years" are yet to come: when we're in heaven and walk on golden streets. 

BlessinG NumbEr 5:

    I am thankful I have blessings. I have so many wonderful gifts from God that I can only begin to count them, but I definitely cannot finish counting. For there are blessing from God which I am not even aware of at this time. It is only when He shows me who I am in Him that I will know why I went through the fire and the rain and the winds. 

COUNTING EVERY BLESSING - Rend Collective

    I love that there are four seasons in a year. Each season brings something new to the table that I might taste and see the goodness of The Lord. Weatherwise, Autumn is my favorite. I love the comfortable weather, the changing colors of the leaves, the smell of woodsmoke wafting through the air and the smell of apple pie coming from the oven. 

    Every season has its moments. Spring brings me all the beautiful flowers and songbirds. Summer fills my freezer and pantry with tasty garden harvests. Winter I am not a fan of so much, even though I like a little snow at Christmas ( but then it can go away). I love the gatherings with family and friends on special days, but the days someone just drops in are few and far between now. I must be in the season of winter in my life: the resting period, a kind of hibernation from the world that I was so active in to a quiet, almost lonely place (but not alone, for He is with me always). 

    I am blessed that God chose me to be His own. I am blessed that God allowed His only begotten Son to pay the penalty for my sins. I am blessed to have His precious Holy Spirit living in me, filling me with His Word and guiding me in His Will. These are my greatest blessings. And I adore Him for loving me so. 

    

I Will Sing of My Redeemer

 

Psalm 96:1

O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth.

Psalm 40:3

He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the LORD.

Isaiah 42:10

Sing to the LORD a new song—His praise from the ends of the earth—you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you islands, and all who dwell in them.

Revelation 5:9

And they sang a new song: "Worthy are You to take the scroll and open its seals, because You were slain, and by Your blood You purchased for God those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation."

    What New Song is this which everyone is singing? The Song of Redemption. The Song of The Redeemed. The Song of Redeeming Grace, of God's Love Exemplified. 

I AM REDEEMED - Big Daddy Weave 
AMAZING GRACE - Chris Tomlin

    While the angels in heaven can worship with song and with music, only the redeemed of The Lord can worship from a sinner saved by grace standpoint. 

I'M JUST A SINNER SAVED BY GRACE - Gaither Vocal Group

    How did we get to be the redeemed of The Lord? By believing the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ. He is our Redeemer, our Savior. Let me show you the Way. 

Nobody is good enough  to go to heaven on their own merits- Romans 3:10

Everyone is a sinner - Romans 3:23

But God loves us so much He sent His Son to die in our place - Romans 5:6; John 3:16

We deserve death for our sin but God's plan of salvation is a Gift to those who believe - Romans 6:23

When we speak out loud that we believe that Jesus Christ is Lord and believe in our hearts that this is true, God saves us, redeems us - Romans 10:9-10

Everyone who calls on Jesus' Name for their salvation is saved - Romans 10:13

I'M JUST A NOBODY - Casting Crowns 

I Am Christian's Back

 

LUKE 18:33

"And having flogged Him, they will kill Him; and on the third day He will rise again."

    I am Christian's back. I have been created to house the spine, the backbone. In me is the source of life: blood is created within these bones. The blood is life. Without blood there is no life. And the sweetest blood flowed from the back of The only begotten Son of God, Who shed His blood on Calvary to atone for the sins of the world. This blood ran down His back from the whiplash marks across it. This blood streamed from His head where the thorns pierced it. This blood stained the rugged cross to which He was nailed. This blood dripped onto the ground and into the hearts of every believer who came to the cross and saw Jesus. Including mine. I am Christian and this blood covers me.

    On my back are the wounds and scars of the suffering I have endured. The sound of the whip hitting flesh is torture itself. I will not give in. Jesus' Name escapes my lips and I in Him I have strength to endure. As the apostle stated, "My life is not my own" -- Acts 20:24. I belong to Christ and Christ is not only with me, but in me. We take the whip together. We suffer together. In Christ I am His own. 

    As Christ's blood flowed from His body on the cross at Calvary, so, too, do I give my life in service to the gospel of salvation. I surrender all I am and have because I love Him so. God has given me breath and with my breath I will praise His glorious Name. God has given me life and it is only fitting and reasonable that I give my life back to Him -- Romans 12:1-8. And let Him use this life I have been given for His purpose according to His will and His Word. 

    My back is attached to my neck which holds my head up. Though my shoulders are bent from the burdens I have carried through the years, my head remains up. For Christ Jesus is the head of His body -- Ephesians 5:23, 1 Corinthians 11:3. Whose head sits on your shoulders? Your own, of course. Why would you expect it to be different with the body of Christ? 

    I am Christian's back. In me is the Strength of God's Word. Which I do, indeed, need for I have been called to suffer for The Name of Christ. May I fulfill the purpose for which God has created me with honor and faithfulness. 

WITHHOLDING NOTHING - William McDowell 

CALLING ME - Brian Tucker

     

I Am Christian's Mouth

 

PSALM 34:8

O taste and see that The Lord is Good! Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!

    I am Christian's mouth. With my tongue I taste The Word of God, discovering both Its sweetness and bitterness. It is with my mouth, speaking what I believe in my heart, that I am no longer a sinner lost in sin but a saint saved by grace: Romans 10:10 "For with the heart man believes unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."

Hebrews 6:4 tells me my tongue has tasted of the heavenly Gift (John 4:10) while Ephesians 2:8 tells me that this heavenly Gift is Salvation through Jesus Christ. This is what Grace tastes like!

    My lips are clean now. Before I came to Christ I was a wretched sinner and my lips were very unclean. I recognized my need for spiritual cleanliness and The Lord touched my lips with His fire, burning away the filth that covered them, as He did for Isaiah -- Isaiah 6:5. Therefore, because my lips are now clean I am able to speak clearly The cleansing Word of God. 

    I am Christian's lips. My lips -- Proverbs 20:15 -- have knowledge. But not just any knowledge: the knowledge of The Word of God. Proverbs 3:13-35 describe both the blessings of Wisdom and the ruination of those who choose to be unwise. There is no greater knowledge than the knowledge of the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ. In Him is wisdom and through Him is understanding. 

    My lips praise God -- Psalm 35:28. Psalm 71:23 confirms to me that my lips SHOUT for JOY! and the next verse brings me back to my tongue: "My tongue will indeed proclaim Your Righteousness all day long, for those who seek my harm are disgraced and confounded." Psalm 35:28 

    With my lips I kiss The Son -- Psalm 2:12. This means that I worship Him with everything that is within me. A kiss is more than two lips meeting, it is the signing of a contract between two people, as on the day they are wed. Though a kiss can also signal betrayal, as Judas did when Christ was arrested. But when I kiss The Son I am signaling my arrival in His presence. I am so filled with Joy to be near my Savior that I cannot contain myself and am compelled to sing His praise, declare my adoration for Him and throw myself at His feet in utter worship.

    I am Christian's mouth. And I am glorifying God with it. I sing His praises.

Psalm 109:30  give great thanks to The Lord

Psalm 89:1  make known His faithfulness

Psalm 66:17  His praise is on my tongue

Psalm 59:16 sing of His strength

Psalm 71:8 filled with His praise all day long

    Plus so many, many more waiting for you to search out in His Word for yourself, as I have and still do. I am Christian's mouth and I'm hungering and thirsting after The Lord to be filled with His goodness. 

THIS IS AMAZING GRACE - Phil Wickham 

TASTE & SEE - John Mark Pantana 

     

I Know My Redeemer Lives

 

JOB 19:25

I know my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. 

Psalm 19:14

Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in Thy sight, O LORD, my Strength, and my Redeemer. 

Isaiah 47:4

Our Redeemer--The LORD of Hosts is His name--is The Holy One of Israel. 

REDEEMER: to act as kinsman, to do the part of next of kin, purchaser

    I Know My Redeemer Lives - Nicole C. Mullen 

I Know My Redeemer Lives in Sign Language 

I Am Redeemed - Big Daddy Weave

    Why do we need a Redeemer? We are born with a sinful nature. It's part of our DNA. You won't find it in any medical textbook, nor will this sinfulness show up in any test. It's a spiritual nature. And having been born with a sinful nature, we live in sin. Until. Until we see our need for a Savior, a Redeemer.    

    We need a Redeemer to buy us back from the one who owns our sinful souls. So God sent His only begotten Son to purchase us with His own blood, "once and for all" (Hebrew 7:24-26). I saw my need and I reached out to Him. I cried in despair for Jesus to help me. He came to my rescue, opened my eyes and came into my heart, where now He lives forever in me and I live in Him. I have a Redeemer! 

    No more do I live in sin. Now I live in Jesus Christ and He lives in me! Salvation is mine! I needed saving and only Jesus could save me. I needed to be loved like God loves me. Oh, friend, do you see your need for a Savior, a Redeemer? He's calling your name right now. He's pleading with you to open the door of your heart. To cry out His Name ---JESUS---- and receive Him into your heart and your life. 

    No more is that sinful nature a part of me for now I am a part of Christ. When He prayed in the garden before His arrest, He prayed for us -- you and I -- to believe in Him that He would live in us as we live in Him. By faith in The Name of The Son of God. By faith in The Only Name Under Heaven by which we can be saved. By faith, by believing without seeing. 

    And when we receive God's only begotten Son into our hearts, God's Holy Spirit begins a new work in us. He begins to make us holy and acceptable to God. The Spirit writes The Word of God on our hearts when we hear it, read it and meditate on it. He is the Stylus and our heart is the tablet. 

    I can say, as Job said, "I know my Redeemer Lives". But why did He feel the need to make such a statement to his friends? In their misguided efforts to mourn with him they had just accused him of being a hypocrite and condemned him: they were judge and jury at a mock trial of their grieving friend (Job 19). I believe that The Spirit rose up in Job and spoke at this time. For it is The Holy Spirit who gives us strength to make our defense when necessary, as well as keeping us silent. 

    I have hope in this life and my hope has a Name. My soul hopes in its Lord. And some day, I will see Him face to face. Will you be with me? As much as I want you there, I can't make that decision for you. Believing in God's plan of salvation is an individual decision.  

HOPE HAS A NAME - River Valley Worship

I Am Christian's Body

I am the body of Christ. I am the church, the bride of the Bridegroom. My body is being washed and purified through the power of God in His Holy Spirit: my Comforter, my Companion: The Friend of The Bridegroom, who prepares the body, the church, to receive her King. 

    I am the body of Christ. I have known pain and I have known sorrow. I have known delight and I have known sadness. My eyes weep over the lost and dying souls who refuse to believe that Jesus Christ is Lord. I see the lonely, the forgotten and the ignored. I am a Friend to them all: I raise them up and they rejoice with me. 

    I hear the cries of the lost souls and I bring them the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ, for He is the only way out, the only One Who can save anyone and everyone who believes. I speak under the anointing of God's Holy Spirit: The One Who is preparing this body of death to be raised in newness of life. 

    With my hands I touch the lame, the ill and the faint of heart. I encourage, uplift, mentor and counsel with my words: my mouth speaks truth and love. My feet walk on the high mountains delivering the gospel to faraway places. Through my actions and my offerings I send Bibles, whether printed or spoken, in other languages that all may hear and know and be set free from their sins. I am the embodiment of Love and I spread the Love of God where He sends me. 

    With The Holy Spirit this body consistently moves forward. Though I may fall I rise again and again until the day that I will fall no more; on that day I will see Him face to face. For this body of death longs to be clothed with life eternal. It groans inwardly to be with its God and Lord. I am Christian's body and I am being changed from glory to glory: day by day, moment by moment. 

IN HIM WE LIVE AND MOVE - Kent Henry

MY LIFE IS IN YOU LORD - Hosanna Music

JUST AS I AM, I COME BROKEN - Travis Cottrell 

I Am Christian's Belly

 

JOHN 7:30

He that believes on Me, as The Scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

    Some versions of this verse render the word "belly" as heart, innermost being, deep within. But the belly is where we digest what we have been reading and hearing of The Word of God. I am Christian and in my belly are the deepest places of my faith where The Word gets rooted and grounded. 

    For according to Psalm 1:1-3 I am like a tree planted by the waters, whose roots are nourished by the river, causing them to expand and take hold of the foundation of The Word, The Rock. As a tree of righteousness, I spread out my branches for shade, comfort and seed. My soul prospers because I have filled the deep places in my belly with The Word of God. This happens when I study and pray over The Word as I go through It. 

    These rivers flow through me. Water that flows does not stagnate. Nor does it dry up and wither away. It is by The Power of God, The Spirit of God, that I am able to live in contentment and peace, regardless of who comes against me. For it is not I who is being fought against, but Christ within me. Jesus was hated when He preached the gospel in His time. And He warns His followers that whoever is faithful in following God's gospel plan of salvation that we, too, will suffer for our faith. But I have a river of life flowing through me that gives me strength to withstand against all the enemies of my soul. 

    I am Christian and in my belly the milk of The Word was first purchased by faith in The Name of Jesus Christ. As I grew in The Lord, the meat of The Word has been supplied to me. The closer we get to Jesus Christ the stronger our relationship grows. In Him I live and move and have my being. The song that keeps resounding in my thoughts is Jesus Have It All. And I wonder, "Did I give Him my all? Have I kept anything back?" Questions each of us must ask ourselves every day. I want Him to have every part of me. Including my deep within place. Every nook, every cranny. 

    And when He has prepared me, out of me flows the rivers of Life. Rivers of Hope. Rivers of Joy. Rivers of Peace. Rivers of the Gospel of Salvation through Jesus Christ. There is no other Name under heaven by which we can be saved (Acts 4:12). Oh, what Joy to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus Christ is Lord of my life and Savior of my soul! 

    Come, taste these living waters which The Lord has prepared for you today. Come, quench your thirst and fill your own belly/heart/innermost being with His Word, His voice, His Spirit. Come, sweet is the honey and wine. But take care, sometimes the meat will be tough. It's okay. The Sword of The Lord cuts right through it. Jesus told His disciples that His meat was to do the will of His Father (John 4:34). This should be our meat too.

    In my belly is the remembrance of the last supper which Christ had with His disciples.  They broke apart the bread and ate it in remembrance of how His body was broken and torn for our sins. They drank of the cup, the drink from the vine, in remembrance of His blood which flowed from Calvary. That blood washes away our sins when we repent of them (confess aloud to God our sins and stop doing those things of which we have confessed and been forgiven for). 

    Come, eat and drink with me. The Spirit and the bride say,  Come. Let he who is thirsty, come. Revelation 22:17 "And The Spirit and the bride say, 'Come. And let him that hears say, Come. And let him that is thirsty come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. 

    I am Christian and I'm calling you to come to the cross and see my Jesus. I'm calling you to walk with me and He. I'm calling you to the supper table. Come, take our hands, take up your cross and follow Jesus. It's the best hiking trip you'll ever take. 

    

    

The Lord Preserves The Simplehearted

 

   THE LORD PRESERVES THE SIMPLEHEARTED

    Psalm 116:6

The Lord preserves the simplehearted; I was helpless, and He saved me. 

    Simplehearted does not imply simpleminded. The simple in mind are openminded, hearing everything but the instruction of the wisdom of The Lord. The simple in heart have the faith of a child, believing without seeing. 

    Believing that The Lord has done great things for us, though we, as yet, may not see the results of our childlike faith. A person must be aware of their helplessness to save themselves before they can reach out to The Lord for salvation. 

    Before I was born somebody prayed for me. When I walked in the ways of the world, somebody prayed for me. When I should have died in my sins, somebody prayed for me. Though my heart was harder than my head, somebody was praying for me. And while some still do, the ones who prayed for me without my knowledge are now in my "great cloud of witnesses" (Hebrews 12:1). They passed the torch of a faithful, prayer-filled relationship in Christ to me and I'm passing it to the next person to reach out for it. 

    I was helpless. I still am. But I came to the understanding that nothing I could do could save me. That there is only ONE Savior, ONE plan of salvation: that only God's plan of salvation (John 3:16-18) would be able to deliver me from all my unrighteousness. I needed to repent of my wickedness against God and believe that His only begotten Son Jesus Christ is Lord of All. He can only save the people who believe on His Name for their salvation. Unbelief will not save you. 

    I'M SO GLAD THAT THE LORD SAVED ME 

BLESS THAT WONDERFUL NAME OF JESUS

I Am Christian's Soul - Part Two

 

    I am Christian's soul. My soul is comprised of my heart, my mind, my strength. These three things are so intertwined it is impossible to separate them. What and how I think takes place in my mind. Then my thoughts travel to my heart, where I may ponder them and consider my next action regarding my thoughts. How I put my thoughts into action comes from my attitude towards what I am thinking about. 

    My soul has a price, it has value. Because I have been purchased by the blood of The Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, my soul belongs to Him. This redemptive process began when I believed on The Name of The Lord for my salvation. Now I am in the holiness stage where The Holy Spirit of God is making me holy, for without this holiness from God, I could not be with God. For He demands holiness from His people. 

    My 💙 is filled with the love of God, the agape kind of love, which is unconditional. No requirements are there to this love. When God loves us, He loves all of us. That's why He sent His Son, His Word, to us: that Jesus would Redeem us through His death and give us new life through His resurrection. John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes on Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 

    My 💙 contains my faith. My faith has come from hearing The Word of God in all its fulness and truth and applying it to my everyday way of life. When I waken, I thank Him for a new day and I praise Him for Who He Is. As I move through my day, He is with me by His Spirit, encouraging me in His Word and the music He provides to me.

    My 💙 is the seat of my emotions. I have known joy and I have known sorrow. I love, but I cannot hate. Compassion and mercy flow through me. I have both sympathy and empathy within me. A sympathetic heart commiserates with the unknown trials a person goes through. An empathetic heart, having gone through various trials, knows the value of the words spoken or unspoken in those given situations. 

    I am Christian and this is my heart. 

My 🤔 is sound and sober. Though a million thoughts may race through me at any given moment, the only thoughts that matter are the ones that stay. Memories live here briefly. Most remain in the heart. Some fade away with time. 

    Because I have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16), I am clear-minded and can see with clarity. No longer do I live in a rose-colored world, nor do I bury my head in the sand. I read and I watch. I am alert and aware of the events going on around me. But I am not afraid for God The Lord is with me. I live in anticipation of the soon and coming King, for I see prophecies being fulfilled before my eyes and I hear of great and mighty things happening not just in faraway places but right here up close and personal. 

    My 🤔 is focused on the job at hand, this field work which I have been given to do. Though some days I struggle, with The Lord so close to me, I am able to perform the task given. I never work alone. The Lord has given me many tasks in His Word. There are times when I can get more than one done at a time. Some of my tasks are woven into each other and are unbreakable. 

    His Word says to "seek first the kingdom of God", which means I need to know God first before I can go looking for His kingdom or even begin to increase His kingdom, advancing His cause across the regions. Knowing God:  Acts 17:24 "The God who made the world and everything in it is The Lord of heaven and earth, and does not live in temples made by hands." Know The Lord: Hebrews 8:11 "No longer will each one teach his neighbor or his brother, saying, 'Know The Lord,' because they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest."

    I am Christian and this is my mind.

    My strength, my attitude, is how I perceive that which is spoken to me and by me; it is how I process the things which I have heard and seen with my heart and my mind. I can live in despair and doubt or I can live in hope and faith. I choose to live in hope and faith. I choose to persevere and move forward regardless of the pain of movement or the knowledge that what lies ahead could be dangerous and life-threatening.

     My life does not belong to me, therefore nothing should stop me from pursuing the righteousness of Christ that I may obtain the crowns which He has for me; only to lay these crowns at His feet. For everything I have has been received from Him and it is only fit and due that I give it all back to Him. Attitude: Acts 20:24  "But I do not consider my life as something of value or dear to me, so that I may [with joy] finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify faithfully of the good news of God’s [precious, undeserved] grace [which makes us free of the guilt of sin and grants us eternal life]."

    My strength, my attitude is my will: it is the "I want", the "I have to have it" and "I need" of a person's desire. I am Christian and I have surrendered my will to God's will. For I have learned, and am still learning, that Father knows best. Therefore, what I want is what God wants: that all people everywhere should be saved. Having surrendered my will to His has changed my prayer life. His strength is my joy and my salvation. 

    I am Christian's soul and I am constantly being attacked by Satan and the little darts he throws in my direction. My shield of faith must always be raised to block them. So I will stand firm on The Word of God and I will be His steadfast servant. For I have armed myself with The Word of God, The Love of God and The Hope of My Salvation. I am strong in The Lord and in the power of His might (Ephesians 6:10); I am fearless. Yet the enemies of my soul should live in fear of what Christ is doing through me and in me. 

    I am Christian's soul and I live in Christ Who lives in me. 

JESUS HAVE IT ALL - Jeremy Riddle
MAKE ROOM - Community Music

LIVING FOR JESUS 

I Am Christian's Soul - Part One

    I am Christian and I have a living soul. I became a living soul when I believed on The Name of The Lord Jesus Christ for my salvation. Once I lived in the world according to the world's standards of living. Then I was a different creature with an old name. Now, I am a new creation in Christ and in Christ I have a new name. For I have been born again, born from heaven, born anew through the power of God's Holy Spirit working God's redeeming grace in my heart by the blood of God's only begotten Son Jesus Christ. 

    This new life in Christ has changed the course of my life's journey. No longer do I dwell in darkness and despair. Though I may get discouraged, I always have God's Word nearby to encourage me not to give up, but to push the spirits of fear, dismay and doubt out of my way that I might reach my journey's end. 

    My soul prospers when I grow closer to God and remain in His Word. The ground does not open up for the seedling to pop through; the seed must first germinate, then push it's way up through the ground. So, too, does my faith grow, enabling my spirit to prosper. 

    David wrote in Psalm 1:1-3 of the blessings of staying on God's pathway. That, in verse three, therein is prosperity. He was not writing of material wealth, but of the treasure that lies within the pages of God's written Word; of the wealth of wisdom which comes only from fearing God and being obedient to what He says to us. He wrote of the riches of staying near God, away from fools and their foolishness. This is true prosperity.

    My soul prospers when I remain in constant communion with God. Prayer is the breath of life in my spirit. A lack of prayer is a lack of communication between my God and myself. Therefore, I will draw near to God that He may draw nearer to me. Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 that we are to "Pray without ceasing." There is no "later" when it comes to prayer. You want me to pray for you, we'll pray now, together. Later never comes around. 

    My soul lives forever now that I belong to God, now that my heart is filled with His love and grace and mercy. I have eternal life because I repented of my sins, of the wickedness of my words and actions, and received God's forgiveness and His grace. That's why we sing so many wonderful praise and worship songs to Him. Who wouldn't want to praise God for His merciful lovingkindness? 

    A tree planted by the water remains nourished. Not only does it receive life-giving resources from the water itself but the nutrients in the water sustain the tree which is planted there. Its roots extend deep into the soil and takes hold of the very thing into which it has been planted. I am Christian and my soul prospers in The Lord as a tree prospers near the water. In Him I live and move and have my being (Acts 17:28). Without Him the opposite is also true. Without Christ I existed but I didn't live. Without Christ I was stuck in the miry clay and could not get myself out of it. Such was the life of sin. But IN CHRIST I am Alive. IN CHRIST I move when He moves. IN CHRIST I am Christian. And my soul prospers.

THAT'S WHY WE PRAISE HIM - Tommy Walker

REDEEMED - Big Daddy Weave

NOW I BELONG TO JESUS - Monica McCoy

ABIDE IN ME - Andrew Marcus

    

Be Anxious For Nothing

 

This is a little ditty I wrote more than twenty years ago. I still sing it. It is God speaking to me and now I'm sharing it with you. 

Be anxious for nothing:

I will provide for you.

You are My bride, my church, my wife.

Needs have I met for you,

My table is set for you;

Tested and tried

You've come forth as gold. 

It is taken from studying The Scriptures, some of which are these two passages, and asking God (praying) to reveal Himself to me and what He wants me to know:

Matthew 6:25-35

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air: They do not sow or reap or gather into barns—and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

And why do you worry about clothes? Consider how the lilies of the field grow: They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles strive after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Today has enough trouble of its own.

Psalm 23:5

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

    God tells us repeatedly in His Word to "worry not, fret not, fear not". But to fully trust in Him for everything. In every situation and circumstance in which we find ourselves we are "stand and withstand" Ephesians 6:13, "be steadfast and immoveable" Colossians 1:23. 

    He also tell us to seek Him out first. "Seek first the kingdom of God." Matthew 6:33 "In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your path." Proverbs 3:6 "O God, You are my God, Early will I seek You." Psalm 63:1. Great is the blessing which comes from putting God first in our lives. 

Ephesians 5:21-30 speaks of Christ's great love for His church. 

Being tested and tried is to be expected, for God sits as a Refiner of His people: Malachi 3:3. The Lord is Tester of Hearts: Proverbs 17:3. We are called to suffer and to suffer for righteousness' sake: 1 Peter 3:14. Only by going through the fire of His love can we expect to come forth as a vessel fit for use, whether we are gold or silver or wood or clay. However God wants to use us to advance His kingdom, we need to be willing partners with Him. Our hearts must align with His heart. And that will only happen if His only begotten Son Jesus Christ is living in our hearts. 

Are you ready to be tested and tried? Are you prayed up? Are you filling your hearts and your minds with The Living Word of God? No player goes onto the field without first meeting the requirements of basic game preparedness. No practice, no play. No studying of the game and how it's played, no play. No abiding by team rules and no listening to the coach, no play. If we refuse to obey The Holy Spirt, we will not be able to survive the tests and trials in which God places us for His purposes. 

Be anxious for nothing

I will provide for you

You are My bride, my church, my wife

Needs have I met for you

My table is set for you

Tested and tried

You've come forth as gold. 

REFINER'S FIRE 

I Am Christian - The Weight of A Good Name - Part Two

    

  My name is Christian. My name is my reputation. My name is bound in Christ's Name for it is Christ I am named for. I am a person of honor and integrity. My word is my bond. When I say I will do this or that, I mean it. When I make a promise, I keep it. I am not perfect. I will fail. I will fall. But I will persevere through it all. 

    Though I contend with they who come against me to destroy me, I will not hate them. For I am filled with the Love of God: Jesus Christ. God loves. God loves all people everywhere. It is this great Love of God for a dying world that caused Him to send His only begotten Son Jesus Christ into the dying world. And this great Love of God LIVES IN ME, CHRISTIAN! So, I love with the Love of God. 

    I am a troubleshooter, a peacekeeper. I walk in the Wisdom of The LORD, for I am filled with His precious Holy Spirit, Who leads me through The Word of God and reveals God's intentions for me. In this Wisdom, I am compelled to share Christ with everyone I meet, wherever I am. My name is Christian and I will accomplish the tasks which God has prepared for me. 

    Though at times it may seem to myself or those watching me that I get very little to nothing done, it is God Who determines what has been accomplished in me and through me. Only God knows where His Word will go through my actions. Only God knows who will receive it and who will dismiss it. It is my privilege and my honor to serve Him in this capacity. It is also my job. I am a laborer in His field. My name is Christian, my name is Worker. 

    In my walk with Christ, I am a fellow laborer. I do not work alone. I do not study alone. I do not pray alone. I do not speak alone. I do not cry alone. I do not walk alone. I do live my life on my own terms but on Christ's terms. I do not rest alone. I do not read alone. And when I leave this world, I will not leave alone. My name is Christian. One way or another when I leave here, I'm going with Him. Whether I leave in death or leave at His return, I'm going with my Fellow Laborer. 

    My name is Christian. It is not a name I bear lightly. Heavy is this weight upon my shoulder. There is responsibility in being Christian. I must find out what it means to be Christian and live that life. I read my Bible out loud for my "faith comes by hearing and hearing by The Word of God". I delve into my Bible and study out what God wants me to know on a regular basis. For I must have The Word built up in me for such a time as when I cannot get my hands on a Bible, that The Holy Spirit may draw from within me the Strength of The Word, the Power of The Word, and pour it out upon the ears of they who will hear it, whether they receive It or not, I must have The Word in me. My name is Christian and I am Student, I am Studier. 

    I am the well, the cistern, in which The Water of Life dwells and flows through. I am Christian and I have set my face like flint. I feel it every time I study and remain focused on what The Spirit tells me to say. I hear what my King wants me to hear and I choose to obey. I am Christian and my name is Obedient. I neither grumble nor complain. Though the work in His field is hard, it is not impossible. The whip of self-righteousness and ignorance falls across my back and I forgive.  For I am Christ's servant: it is for Him I will suffer, for His glory is only increased. 

    My life is not my own. Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in The Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself for me." 

ABBA - John Mark Pantana

INTO THE DEEP - Citipointe Worship

WAYMAKER - Leeland

THE MEASURE OF A MAN - 4Him 

BELONG TO YOU - Here Be Lions