Keeping it real cultivates the GOOD SOIL

I truly am so ecstatic that someone, whom is in the top 5 dearest people to me, has come to know the Lord in such a mighty way this year.

Looking back over the last 11 years of my own salvation, this is a person who saw me BC - Before Christ. She knew who I was before I ever knew the Lord...the good, the bad, the really bad, and the worst!

She saw me when I first got saved and how I tried to plug into church, but would also plug back into the clubs on Saturday nights.

She watched me go back and forth between church and drinking to finally remaining sober, and then on staff at a church.

She graciously received my boundless evangelistic attempts to get all I knew saved.

She saw me go from on staff at a megachurch to on the sofa nursing my son, and seen me at my worst post-salvation. Sleep deprived, post-partum, and unchurched for a season.

She heard me complain about nearly everything at one time or another along the way.

She saw my efforts to go back to when I was at my best.

She was informed when I felt like I was getting back on track.

She was one of the first who heard me poor out my dreams for the Lord and what I was going to do with my Bible college education.

And now it's her turn.

This morning I was really thanking God so much for her salvation. It's been better news than hearing of someone giving birth, getting married, it's one of the greatest things I have experienced.

To know that someone I love so intensely and dearly is on their own adventure to discover and experience how Jesus loves her so intensely and dearly - it's absolutely amazing!

I was in Luke 8 this morning reading about the seed and soils. I felt like the Lord showed me that because I have been so open and honest with her about my life, my relationship with Jesus, and sincere with my love for her no matter what, her heart is even greater than the 'good soil'.

Imagine a compost pile being nurtured for 10 years, always receiving rich nutrients, all the leaf debris, and fruit peels...turned over and over more, for many years....then imagine with it wet and rich, and just a few seeds being dropped in it.

That's what happened to her heart for this last 10 years of her being a spectator of my life pursuing the Lord. I never held back about my zeal for Jesus. I never held back my failures in life.

This is relational evangelism at its best. Being real about it all, never being ashamed, never diluting it, never keeping it mild or worrying about 'offending' someone. But speaking the truth in love, with passsion, concern, and zeal.

This person who is sooooo dear to me has hit the ground running in her own salvation, and now the good times, good conversations, and good relationship with her is going to get even better. For now, she is also my sister in the Lord. The best above all!

Be faithful....to Him!

My eyes see the world, too lazy to change,

My heart is despairing in this day and age.

Peer pressure, affairs, alcohol and drugs,

Have taken the place of true friendships and love.

So many worshiping their things and their faces,

Spouses and kids’ hearts left empty, vacant spaces.

So many things with so little time,

Relationships are what we choose to sacrifice.

Times need to change and not get our best,

It’s our hearts, minds, and attention we need to invest.

 

God forgive us for serving only ourselves.

God forgive us for leaving our Bibles on the shelves.

Open our hearts to Your love and our ears to Your voice,

Let grace fall from above, help us make the right choice.

 

Thank you Lord in advance, for helping us to change,

Help us let go of our first loves, despite the pain.

 

Lord, give us this day - our daily bread,

And help us trust what Your Word says.

 

Take our lives and make them new,

Help us be ready and faithful to only You!

By Jennifer Morin, August 30, 2012


Interesting that I wrote this poem before I read Luke 12:22-40:

²² Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. ²³ For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. ²⁴ Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! ²⁵ Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life^[b]? ²⁶ Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?

²⁷ “Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ²⁸ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith! ²⁹ And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. ³⁰ For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. ³¹ But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.

³² “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. ³³ Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. ³⁴ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

³⁵ “Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, ³⁶ like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. ³⁷ It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. ³⁸ It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the middle of the night or toward daybreak. ³⁹ But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁰ You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”

John 20:1-31 - Believing or Disbelieving?

I turned to the Book of John 20 in my Bible today...the title of that section reads "Jesus Rises from the Dead". And that's why Easter is a great celebration for the believing.

Today is why I am who I am.

Jesus Christ is alive - resurrected from the dead...

He overcame death - just like that!

As I read through this chapter, four 'characters' stood out to me today as I read of Jesus' first day of resurrection.

In verse 4 it speaks of Peter and the other disciple running together. The other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter. I love that he was running faster. He was running with great anticipation. Probably with joy, hoping what he was told of Jesus was true, expecting the tomb to be empty.

Go down to verse 8: "So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed". He saw nothing....He saw that Jesus was risen and gone, and so he believed. His great anticipation was met with confirmation!

In verse 11 we meet Mary Magdalene. She stood outside of the tomb weeping. She had great faith before, but now she was mourning...read of her disbelief in verse 13, "...they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him". Her words did not display faith that He had risen.

This reminds me of people who are so focused on the death of the Christ and do not acknowledge that He is risen. There comes a point that we have to turn our attention from the death to the resurrection. Although, it's by His death we are saved and forgiven of our sin...but that's not the end of the story, so we can't stop there!

Even in verse 14 Mary did not realize Jesus was standing in front of her...not until He called her by name in verse 16: Jesus said to her, "Mary!"...then after 'seeing Him' she tried to cling to Him.

Next, in verse 19, we meet 'the disciples' behind locked doors, fearing the Jews. Think about it. This was the group who had followed Jesus throughout His ministry, but now their leader was 'gone'. Who would protect them now?

This is a group of people that I hope I don't find myself in the midst of. I do not want to fear those who do not believe in Christ. I do not want to fear perscecution. I do not want to fear ridicule for my faith in Christ!

I want to stand up boldly for Who I believe in!

And our fourth character is Thomas. He's the "Unless I see His hands...I will not believe" guy. Oh, I am sad for those who refuse to believe in Christ without 'seeing Him'. Jesus knew what Thomas had said and appeared to Thomas, saying "Reach here with your finger, and see My hands...". In verse 27 Jesus said, 'do not be unbelieving, but believing'....Then Thomas believed & confirmed his faith with: "My Lord & my God" (verse 28).

Who are you? Which character are you?

1. The other disciple
2. Mary Magdelene
3. the 'disciples'
4. Thomas

What is so wonderful when you read this chapter is that Jesus appeared to the disbelieving characters: Mary, the group of them with fear, and Thomas. Despite their disbelief, He was still gracious and revealed Himself to them.

Maybe you're disbelieving today...maybe you hope Jesus is real, but you're not sure or willing to take a chance. God will reveal Himself to you - just ask Him to.

But think about what verse 29 says:

"...Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed".

That's who I want to be. That's who I am! I believe what the Bible says, I do not have to see a thing. I want the unconditional love and forgiveness the Bible says Jesus offers and so I accept what the Bible says throughout....And God greets my faith with salvation.

"...these thing have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and

that believing you may have life in His name".

John 20:31

That's who I am....the believing!!!  Won't you join me?

Note: all verses taken from the NASB.

Starting Thesis Research & I need your help!!!!

I am currently enrolled in our local Bible college to get my Master's degree in Christian Counseling and Leadership. And I have began to prepare for my thesis. I have a family that comes first and so I cannot procrastinate on researching these ideas. So I am being proactive and starting now to lay the groundwork.

First step was to:

Create an email account solely for

confidential correspondence for research.

And I've done that...read further for address & what I'm looking for...So now, I need to get the word out about what I'm doing.

The assignment for my thesis is to:

determine a ministry need in Bakersfield, CA.

So here is my request: If you live here in Bakersfield, CA or YOU DID....

I want to hear from you!

What do I see a need for?
In a nutshell, I have an idea for a need for counseling services that have great emphasis on prayer (the power of prayer), support groups, and accountability groups. 

I have an idea of what it will look like, but I need to confirm that it is a need here locally...and it is relevant to my community. Plus, are the specific groups I believe we need...truly a need?

So I invite you email me at ministryresearch@yahoo.com to become part of my contact list for questions and answers.

And YES! This will be 100% confidential. I fear the Lord so greatly - you have my word. Plus, my credibility starts now. So for my future ministry and in honor of the Lord, I will keep your name, your story, your questions and prayer requests strictly confidential.

In the event you were comfortable with me sharing your story, give me the name you would like to be called in my thesis, in the event I can use it. Sally, Joe, Mary, Mac, etc...you get the picture. ("All names will be changed to protect the innocent.")

What will this research be like?
I plan to start the research by doing questions of "what do you think about....?" "Do you think Bakersfield needs help here:_______?" "What is Bakersfield's local ministries lacking?" (Not in a judgemental way, but more of a matter of 'limited resources' kind of way.)

I don't want to recreate the wheel and I don't want to compete. But I really believe in the vision I have...and I want to confirm all that I've concluded, before I spend too much time reading articles and writing this 100 page paper.  (Yes, it's 100 pages...so you see the need for help right?)

Why am I doing this?
I truly believe that God has called me to edify and mend the body of Christ through a variety of ways. And creating this future ministry is one way to help the local body be stronger in their walks and pursuits for the Lord. Perhaps it will be a '501C3, non-profit parachurch organization'...a ministry that comes along the side of a church....not to compete AT ALL with a church...but to be a ministry that is strictly confidential & founded on the Word of God.

It will be non-denominational....and no doctrines of man, but completely accountable to Jesus Christ in upholding to the truth of the Bible. Biblically rooted, biblically sound counseling services.

So will you help me?
If you have something that's burdened you, you've seen a need for, need help with, please, I invite you to email me at ministryresearch@yahoo.com to become part of my thesis project.

And by the way, nothing surprises me either. I am a firm believer in the grace of Jesus Christ. My heart is to see people set free by the Lord. I stand on Matthew 19:26: ...with God all things are possible!!! And I want others to get to that place of faith as well.

So please, help me help our community!

Email me today. We will do correspondence through this email address and keep it very professional, educational, and biblically honoring.

Thanks!

Flexing my prayer!

Many of you go to church on Sunday...and many of you do not. If you enjoy a little 'spiritual' boost weekly, but don't believe in 'organized religion', I will try to offer that boost to you on Sundays.

Today, I felt led to share a prayer. I hope that it renews your hope and encourages you this beautiful Sunday!

Lord, in Jesus' name I pray for all the tired men and women who have had their patience tested, their endurance stretched, and their physical needs left unmet this week. I pray full nights' rest tonight for the weary and sleep deprived, and I ask to give an extra measure of affection and comfort to the lonely and brokenhearted.

God, reveal Yourself in an amazing powerful way today. Cause the truth of Your Word to penetrate our hearts, minds, and thoughts. Help us to hear Your voice amidst the noise that so easily distracts and derails us. Help us to have the strength to obey Your Word with joy and excitement. Broaden our horizons, open doors of ministry and friendship, and bring healing to the areas of death and famine in our lives.

Lord, some of us need miracles in our finances, our jobs, our marriages, our extended families, in our bodies...I ask in Jesus' mighty name that you would provide those miracles today Lord! Give us the faith to believe You for them & receive them. Lord, just as the apostles asked in Luke 17:5, 'Increase our faith Lord'...increase ours' today Lord. 

Provide a day of rest to the weak and rejuvenate our 'earthly dwellings' Lord, we need full cooperation of our bodies to complete all the tasks ahead of us tomorrow, as well as this next week. For those who do not know You as Lord and Savior, I pray Jesus that You would send a messenger to share Your love, Your grace, and mercy to them. I pray for open hearts and minds to the simplicity of the Gospel and lives to be changed by this prayer tonight. I so deeply believe Lord that it is Your will that all shall be saved and united with You, so God move and make a way for the unsaved's salvation and bring the lost home today.

Lord, to all those who need an extra dose of grace, pour it out on them, help those who need to forgive themselves accept Your forgiveness and forge ahead into the life that You have for them, in Jesus name. And for those who live a life to please You and love you...Lord bless them 'above and beyond all they can hope and imagine' for their efforts, in Jesus name and pray all these things...Amen.

As I was going through photos, I found this pic and thought to myself, here I am sowing seed in my garden...how amazing that I wonder at the end of this prayer, how many seeds are sown into your heart? I am a firm believer and follower of Jesus. As you can ask my older son, 'who is Jesus?' - Even he will tell you that Jesus is Lord and Savior.

My hope is that I did bring hope and peace to your heart today. I am a person of prayer and I know that when I pray things that line up with God's Word, those things happen. So I hope that you will remember this post today and if & when you need a little inspiration, you will return to reread it and plug your name into it. God has wonderful plans for you! He really, really does!

God bless you today...........Jen