My Journey of Faith

Welcome to one of the My Journey of Faith blogs. My name is Sandra and this page is where you can get to know me, post questions on Christian issues and share your experiences in Christ. There are others like me that want to share their own personal journeys of faith. Click on the names at the left to meet the others or click on this link for the main page:

http://myjourneyoffaith.com

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Monday, April 26, 2010

Praise the Lord for Blessings


Do you realize all the things that the Lord provides His people?  We get so busy with day to day things that we take for granted what the Lord does for us.  We forget our blessings.  Take a moment and let's consider some of your blessings.  Read the following verse:

Psalm 103:1-5  Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.  Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me 3 He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.4 He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. 5 He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s! (NLT)

We are commanded to praise the Lord with our whole heart.  We are to praise Him because of who He is and what He has done.  Praise Him!  Praise Him just because of who He is.  When you praise, when you rejoice in the Lord, all else seems to diminish in importance.  Count your blessings.  Never forget the good things/the blessings God has provided.

Remember what He has done for you:
  1. He forgave you of all your sins. He saved you at Calvary from sin when you trusted and believed in Jesus.
  2. He heals all your diseases.  (You are made whole from sin.)
  3. He redeems you from death and hell by the blood of the Lamb of God and will live in eternity in the presence of God.
  4. He crowns you with love and tender mercy and you feel His love surrounding you and know of the mercy only He can grant.
  5. He fills your life with good things/blessings.  Even though you have materially nothing, you are blessed.  Take a look at the world around you-your family, the beauty of God's creation in the sunsets, flowers or the mountains.  He gives blessings to you.
  6. He renews our youth giving us strength to complete the tasks He has prepared for us in order to serve in His kingdom even when we are old.  Example: Billy Graham who still is serving the Lord at his advance age.
Praise the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, praise His Holy Name!

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Steps of Faith

The account of Gideon in the book of Judges tells about an enemy that was threatening to destroy Israel.  The enemy had so many men ready to annihilate the Israelites that the Bible describes them as thick as locusts with camels that could not be counted any more than the sand on the seashore could be counted.  The men were terrified of the enemy.
Then God did something unusual.  He told Gideon to send all but 300 of his 32,000 men home. These 300 men would fight the enemy.  What was God's purpose for this? Judges 7:2 states "In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her".  As humans, we have a tendency do things in our own strength rather than His and then boast about how "we" were able to win the victory. What happened next could only be from God's provision for His people.  Against overwhelming odds-when the people of God put their faith and trust in Him-something miraculous happened.

1. God gave a promise: He told Gideon that He would give him victory over his enemies.
Judges 7:9  During that night the LORD said to Gideon, "Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands.
2. God gave encouragement: God sent Gideon into the enemy camp to listen to what they were saying.  In obedience, Gideon and a servant named Purah went to spy on the enemy and overheard a dream and interpretation of the dream.  The dream predicted victory for the Israelites and it put terror into the hearts of Israel's enemy.  When Gideon heard the dream interpretation, he was encouraged and worshiped God.
Judges 7:9-15  10 If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah 11 and listen to what they are saying. Afterward, you will be encouraged to attack the camp." So he and Purah his servant went down to the outposts of the camp. 12 The Midianites, the Amalekites and all the other eastern peoples had settled in the valley, thick as locusts. Their camels could no more be counted than the sand on the seashore. 13 Gideon arrived just as a man was telling a friend his dream. "I had a dream," he was saying. "A round loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent with such force that the tent overturned and collapsed." 14 His friend responded, "This can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands." 15 When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he worshiped God.
3. God orchestrated His plan.  He removed the things Gideon and his men depended on for strength in battle.  He placed fear and confusion in the hearts of their enemy. He instructed Gideon in the method of warfare he would use in battle and with trumpets, a jar with a torch inside and shouts of praise they defeated the enemy at precisely the right time.
Judges 7:16-23 Dividing the three hundred men into three companies, he placed trumpets and empty jars in the hands of all of them, with torches inside. 17 "Watch me," he told them. "Follow my lead. When I get to the edge of the camp, do exactly as I do. 18 When I and all who are with me blow our trumpets, then from all around the camp blow yours and shout, 'For the LORD and for Gideon.' " 19 Gideon and the hundred men with him reached the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just after they had changed the guard. They blew their trumpets and broke the jars that were in their hands. 20 The three companies blew the trumpets and smashed the jars. Grasping the torches in their left hands and holding in their right hands the trumpets they were to blow, they shouted, "A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!" 21While each man held his position around the camp, all the Midianites ran, crying out as they fled. 22 When the three hundred trumpets sounded, the LORD caused the men throughout the camp to turn on each other with their swords. The army fled to Beth Shittah toward Zererah as far as the border of Abel Meholah near Tabbath. 23 Israelites from Naphtali, Asher and all Manasseh were called out, and they pursued the Midianites.
What a lesson for us!  Be willing to hear the promises God gives. We must then take the first step of faith and obey God. If Gideon had not been willing to be obedient to the Lord's leading, the nation of Israel would have missed out on victory and the awesome blessing of seeing His deliverance for a people who believed in Him!

Thursday, April 1, 2010

The Shroud of Turin

The Shroud of Turin has long been controversial.  Was it the burial cloth of Jesus?  Could it answer questions about Jesus and prove that He lived and died the way the Bible says? This 14 foot linen cloth of herringbone weave has undergone numerous test from critics over the centuries.  It was first photographed in 1898 by Secondo Pia.  The result was a surprise image when his negative revealed clear facial features never observed with the naked eye.  In 1970, a team of scientist found the markings on the cloth were consistent with a crucified body and the stains were real human blood.  The cloth reveals blood from a wound on the side, lacerations on the back and front showing the man was scourged, blood stains on the head and blood from the wrists and feet consistent with nail punctures.

In 1988, scientists removed a piece of cloth and tested it with radiocarbon testing.  Three independent labs concluded the date to be between 1260-1390, however, some say the samples were taken from the edge of the cloth placed around the edge to protect the delicate linen somewhere during the middle ages. It has been proven that the image was not painted on the cloth. In March 2010, researchers unveiled a revolutionary radiocarbon dating method that could allow scientist to establish accurate ages of artifacts without damage to the cloth.  Hopefully, there will soon be a more precise estimate of the Shroud's true age.

The Catholic Church has protected the Shroud over the centuries and for the first time in ten years  the shroud will be on public view from April 10 to May 23.

Recently, the History channel aired a program called "The Real Face of Jesus".  This program was the result of a year's work by a team of graphic experts.  Their purpose was to take the image from the cloth and using 3D software create a life like image of the man on the cloth.  It was amazing to see the results.  Was the image on the cloth that of Jesus?  Did they produce an image of what Jesus actually looked like? If you believe that the shroud is indeed the burial cloth of Jesus, then you would say yes.  If on the other hand, you do not believe the shroud belongs to Jesus, then you would say no.  To see for yourself, go to the following websites:  http://www.history.com/shows/the-real-face-of-jesus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLEM2qb-Vlg
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/real-face-jesus-10238292
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/face-jesus-revealed-10248139&tab=9482931&section=4765066&playlist=&page=1

Does it matter wither this cloth is the actual burial cloth of Jesus?  I agree with one lady interviewed by ABC news when she said, "It doesn't matter how He looked.  It's what He did that counts."