The Phases of a life lived

The prodigal son. The story. The Phases. Greed. Entitlement. Rebellion. Arrogance. Curiousity. Lost innocence. Humiliation. Destitution. Desperation. Humility. Acceptance. Introspection. Repentence. Grace. 

It happens to us all. We sit at our father's knee. We receive instruction. We form opinions. We are given  gifts be them intangible or material. We set out on our own with an attitude that the world is ours and our lives as well in such a way that we live to fulfill desires that are unfullfilling. Now, at first our intentions may seem nobel on the surface and even beneficial. But we experience the consequences of living in the flesh and disconnected from the father. More specifically the Spirit with a capital S. We experience the world and the world IS the flesh. The world is that which exists outside of the Spirit. As a result we become broken. Humbled. Frightened by our own failure and the potential for even worse circumstances to come. We hit OUR bottom. 

The term "hitting bottom" is used in the recovery community to describe the point at which alcoholics or drug abusers hit the point where they reach out for help. Usually, this occurs when the consequences of their alcohol and drug abuse becomes painful or embarrassing.

It is the lesson of a prideful person. A person who goes through life believing they are in total control of all they experience and that they direct their lives accordingly. The prodigal son took what was his and went into the WORLD. Into the flesh. Absorbed with pride. 

James 4:6 

But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

So, God waits. We separate ourselves from the Spirit and not the other way around. God waits for us to become broken in spirit. He waits for sincere contrition. A realization that without the Spirit being our means of life here on earth we are blind in the wilderness.

Isaiah 57:15

For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite.

You must feel it deep within yourself. Understand it. Accept things as they are and live from that moment forward in the spirit. Guided by the word and the conviction the comforter provides.

The world is one created by God and we are indeed Spiritual beings here on earth having that human experience. When God created us in his image as the scriptures tell us it was not the flesh. Not this body. No, God is not some anthropomorphic bearded man as dipicted within the cistine chapel. God is Spirit with a capital S and we originate from that spirit. The world is a place that we use to hone our spirit for things much much greater than what we endure so briefly here. Ashes to ashes and dust to dust those things superficial will fade away. We must let go of the past and embrace a future with the Lord and more specifically with the Holy Spirit because it is our direct connect to God.

As the song Dust in the Wind says, 

I close my eyes only for a moment, and the moment's gone

All my dreams pass before my eyes, a curiosity

Dust in the wind, all they are is dust in the wind

Same old song, just a drop of water in an endless sea

All we do crumbles to the ground, though we refuse to see

Dust in the wind, all we are is dust in the wind

Now, don't hang on, nothing lasts forever but the earth and sky

It slips away, and all your money won't another minute buy

All of this is temporary. Temporal. The flesh is temporal. Temporary. The Spirit is eternal.

Coincidently, the band that sings the song I just read also sang of the prodigal son in a song called "Carry on my wayward son"

Once I rose above the noise and confusion

Just to get a glimpse beyond this illusion

I was soaring ever higher, but I flew too high

Though my eyes could see I still was a blind man

Though my mind could think I still was a mad man

I hear the voices when I'm dreaming,

I can hear them say

Carry on my wayward son,

There'll be peace when you are done

Lay your weary head to rest

Don't you cry no more

Masquerading as a man with a reason

My charade is the event of the season

And if I claim to be a wise man,

Well, it surely means that I don't know

On a stormy sea of moving emotion

Tossed about, I'm like a ship on the ocean

I set a course for winds of fortune,

But I hear the voices say

Carry on my wayward son

There'll be peace when you are done

Lay your weary head to rest

Don't you cry no more 

Carry on,

You will always remember

Carry on,

Nothing equals the splendor

Now your life's no longer empty

Surely heaven waits for you

It is a song about realizing the folly in our own ideas and finding the true glory in repentence and a life lived in the Spirit.

We must follow the path the Spirit guides us to take and that is found in constant prayer and communion with God. God gives grace to the humble. The person with a servants heart. We must accept things as life presents them to us with a cheerful spirit, always giving thanks. In the AA Big Book on page 449 there is a famous passage that has been used by many both suffering with addiction and also seeking the wisdom of the spirit and I believe the Spirit was indeed at work here.

And acceptance is the answer to all my problems today. When I am disturbed, it is because I find some person, place, thing or situation -- some fact of my life -- unacceptable to me, and I can find no serenity until I accept that person, place, thing or situation as being exactly the way it is supposed to be at this moment. 

Nothing, absolutely nothing happens in God's world by mistake. Until I could accept my alcoholism, I could not stay sober; unless I accept life completely on life's terms, I cannot be happy. I need to concentrate not so much on what needs to be changed in the world as on what needs to be changed in me and in my attitudes. 

The attitude change can be found in the space that separates the flesh and pride from the Spirit and Humility. We are all our own prodigal son or daughter. We all seek the forgiveness of the father and we all must endure the harsh criticism of those who still live in the flesh just as the prodigal son of the bible endured the judgement of his sibling telling the father to with hold grace. But it is the nature of God to love his creation and when we repent with sincere contrition and seek his will we will experience that grace.

11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Jeremiah 29:11-13

What to do.......

I look at me
To improve my lot
I give it time
And much due thought

I think on things
On who I am

On all those things

That I give a damn

My family proper

The friends I keep

The job I work

My dreams while asleep

The way others see

Just what they want

The way some talk

The way some taunt

That's just noise

Just bombs in the field

and it's how you respond

that character is revealed

No matter the past

no matter last week

It's today that you do

the good that you seek

How we live

the next twenty four

guides our soul 

to the next open door

Where it leads

and what it will give

is determined by

just how we live

Do we give?

Or do we take?

Are we real?

Or are we fake? 

Does the pain we know

Make us fear it?

Or do we live

By God's own Spirit?

Knowing that all 

we have to do 

Is see what is right

and see it through.

Live your life

as far as you touch

don't do too little

don't do too much

Just take care of 

the things that you must

Pray for the answer

Be good and just

It isn't that hard 

Each move requires thought

Remember the good teachers

and all that they taught

Then act in faith

that all that you do

is the reflection of love

that lives within you.

Being aware of the real church and the truth

When Paul spoke to the churches in Thessalonica, Rome, Corinth, Ephesus, Galatia, Philippi, and Colosse, he was not speaking to a building but instead a people. Those people who were young and fledgling members of the believers of Jesus Christ. The oldest of Christian documents, they were written to a group of people who lived within each city. These letters were written before the gospels and they are guidelines of Christian faith and doctrine.
When these letter were put into the Bible as we know it, they were simply organized by group vs. individual and also by the length of the letter. So first we find Romans because it was the longest letter written to a church group. Next you find I Corinthians because it was the next to longest letter written to a church group. And so forth. After all the church letters, then you find the personal letters, the first one is I Timothy simply because it is the longest letter Paul wrote to an individual. The order in the bible is not chronological but instead ordered for other reasons as length and addressee.
In the 27th and 28th chapter of Acts, Paul was imprisoned in Rome. It was during this time that Paul sat and wrote many of his letters to the churches of the various cities found in the bible.
Paul wrote to "all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ" (I Cor. 1:2). His instructions were not directed primarily to theologians, pastors, or priests. He wrote to the whole church – to regular Christians, like you and me – about the daily challenges that we confront in our walk with Christ. Paul is very clear—the gospel message of salvation is simple, straightforward and available to all who come in faith. They weren't to a building or to an organization that prosyletized doctrine and dogma. They were to people and persons. Christians. 
There are 21 letters in the New Testament of the Bible.  About half of them are signed by Paul, who was one of the first leaders of the Christian church.  Paul never met Jesus in person, but had a profound vision of him while he was on a journey.  Ironically, the purpose of the journey had been to arrest Christians.  The vision persuaded Paul that Jesus was the Messiah (the leader whom the Jews had anticipated for many years).  He retreated to present-day Turkey where he made an in-depth study of the Old Testament.
While he was researching, an unexpected development took place in the Christian church.  Gentiles (people who were not Jewish) were beginning to worship Jesus as God.  In view of his dramatic change of belief, Paul was seen as the ideal person to manage the colossal transformation that would be involved in incorporating these new Christians.  Paul prepared the church to become international, and made a series of journeys around the Mediterranean explaining the claims of Jesus and founding churches when people responded in faith.
Most of the letters that are now in the Bible were written by Paul to these new churches and their leaders after he had moved on.  He explained the significance of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, and its place in the eternal plans of God.  And he described the difference that this should make to the everyday behaviour of believers.

During the winter of57–58 A.D., Paul was in the Greek city of Corinth. From Corinth, he wrote the longest single letter in the New Testament, which he addressed to “God’s beloved in Rome” (1:7). Like most New Testament letters, this letter is known by the name of the recipients, the Romans. Paul’s letters tended to be written in response to specific crises. For instance, 1 Corinthians was written to reprove the Christian community in Corinth for its internal divisions and for its immoral sexual practices. But Romans is remarkably devoid of this kind of specificity, addressing broad questions of theology rather than specific questions of contemporary practice. Whereas other Pauline letters—2 Corinthians, for instance—are full of impassioned rhetoric and personal pleas, Romans is written in a solemn and restrained tone. Perhaps this solemnity can be explained by timing: Romans was the last written of the seven New Testament letters that modern scholars attribute to Paul, and has been seen as a summary of Paul’s thought, composed as his career moved toward its conclusion. But it is also true that, as opposed to the Corinthian church, the Roman church was not founded by Paul himself. At the time when he wrote Romans, Paul had never visited Rome, although Chapter 16 of Romans does indicate that he had acquaintances there. Writing to a community largely composed of strangers, then, Paul may have felt compelled to use the restrained and magisterial declarations of Roman style, rather than the impassioned pleas and parental sternness that permeate his letters to the churches at Corinth.

The period during which Paul wrote his letters was traumatic for the new church. Christianity had not yet evolved into a distinct religion with a hierarchy of authority and a defined dogma. Christianity, in its earliest years, was an offshoot of Judaism. Believers in Jesus, including all of the Twelve Apostles, were generally born Jewish and identified themselves as Jews who believed that the Old Testament prophecies had reached their fulfillment in Jesus. Indeed, the term “Christians” did not appear until Paul’s ministry at Antioch, decades after Jesus’s crucifixion. The church was not a single, unified body governed by a central authority, but, rather, a conglomeration of individual communities, often separated by large distances, which depended for spiritual authority on local preachers or traveling missionaries, like Paul. Christians in the decades after Jesus lived in constant fear of persecution and constant expectation of the second coming, Jesus’s triumphant return to Earth during which he would save the faithful.

So today we must look at the church as Paul did. Not in the way of councils and districts or dogma and ritual. We must attempt as individual Christians to strip it down to a personal relationship with God and Christ. The church prospered and grew upon the actions and faith of the individual who sought out others of like mind in order to earn more of Christ and carry on his will. Yes, the bible is indeed divine and created to give the reader the opportunity to know and love God so he may be saved in spirit sans the spirit. Where as he Vatican had deployed Priests, Bishops, and Cardinals to express the interpretation of the Pope to the masses, Gutenberg and his bible gave the individual Christian the chance to know Christ theirself. Martin Luther sensed the manipulation the Vatican was using to gain riches and maintain its own kingdom and through his own actions created a protestant church that thought on it's own and eschewed the demands of humans in order to gain their own relationship with Christ. 

It was the organizational dogma and non-Christian acts of the "Church" that brought about the reformation initiated by John Calvin and Martin Luther. The selling of indulgences by the Pope in order to gain forgiveness of sins was one manipulation of the ignorant to enrich the Vatican. 

It is not by any means the instruction or interpretation by man that should guide the individual on his walk with Christ. It is indeed the unadulterated word of God and the gathering of pure and nonagenda driven individuals that draws out the truth. The church is not a building or organization but instead a gathering of like minded individuals seeking to honestly know God. 

The worst thing to happen to the scriptual manipulator is a literate and open minded believer who is blessed by God with independent thought. The slave owners of early colonial America used the illiteracy of the african to justify the plight they found themselves in by inaccurate dipictions and descriptions of the story of Noah and his son Ham. 

The story goes, "Genesis 9:1 And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.

Canaan cursed by Noah
Genesis 9:20 And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard:
²¹ And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.
²² And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.
²³ And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father’s nakedness.
²⁴ ¶ And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him.
²⁵ And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.
²⁶ And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.
²⁷ God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant."

Canaan being described as Africa and Ham being the Patriarch of all Africans, the slaveholders found justification in their holding of their fellow humans as slaves. This kind of manipulation can be found through out time and within many other faiths for reasons involving a number of atrocities. This is all the more reason for man and woman to not garner their knowledge of God and his purpose for our lives from others exclusively but instead to see ourselves as the true church. The individual Christian. You and I. Not to believe what we are told to believe but to grow as Christians through our own developing faith and at our own spirits pace as it sees fit. 

Some individuals manipulate Scripture for their own personal benefit. An authoritarian husband might demand that his wife submit to him as the head of the house and quoteEphesians 5:22(“Wives, submit to your husbands”). But that same man might purposefully overlook verse 26, which says, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” Instead of taking the bits of Scripture he approves of and using them to lord it over his family, he would do well to read1 Corinthians 13and practice the type of love that is patient, kind, protects, trust and perseveres, etc.
A characteristic of spiritually abusive systems is that a misplaced sense of loyalty is fostered and even demanded. This is not about loyalty to Christ, but about loyalty to an organization, church or leader. Because authority is assumed or legislated, following that authority must also be legislated. This is accomplished is by setting up a system where disloyalty or disagreement with the leadership is construed as disobeying God. Questioning leaders is not allowed. After all, the leader is the authority, and authority is always right. Such spiritual manipulation denies the truth ofEphesians 1:22, which says that Christ is the Head of the church. Our loyalty is due Him.

All Christians need to be alert to spiritual manipulation and follow this example fromActs 17:11: “Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” Did the apostle Paul take offense when theBereansresearched to ensure that his preaching was based on Scripture? Of course not, because Paul knew his preaching would stand up under exhaustive scrutiny. Likewise with all teaching and preaching – we must hold it up to the light of God’s Word before we accept it. Any religious group that prevents its members from doing independent research, or from challenging what the leadership says, must have something to fear.

Jesus told His disciples they would be like sheep among wolves and instructed them to be “shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16). The Master’s yoke is easy, and His burden is light. He gives us rest and is gentle and humble in heart (Matthew 11:28-29). That is the Christlike example all who shepherd Jesus’ flock must exemplify.
So develope yourself as a Christian individually so you are not tied to the manipulation of others but instead guided by your own walk and understanding with God. There are many who seek to twist our minds for their own benefit. We must be as the Christians of the young church were, Believers with a desire to live as Christ and exemplify his life here on earth. There are verses provided through Paul and the gospels to help us gain discernment. 

Paul states in Galatians 5:7-12 what he thinks of manipulators. 

Galatians 5:7-12

New International Version (NIV)

7 You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth? 8 That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. 9 “A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough.” 10 I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion, whoever that may be, will have to pay the penalty. 11 Brothers and sisters, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. 12 As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!

Jesus says to “beware of the false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing” (Matthew 7:15). The false teacher never comes to us with a cardboard sign around his neck saying, “I’m a false teacher.” The false teacher comes to us in the guise of Christianity. He has the form of godliness while denying its power (2 Tim. 3:5). If the false teacher looks and sounds like a Christian, then how are we to know if he is a false teacher? Jesus tells us how we know, “You will know them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:16). In other words, what they do will often reveal far more about who they are than what they say.

The thing for all of us to know is that our walk is our own and we must be aware of the people who gain our trust. We must learn what God desires from us as followers and believers of Christ and we must be able to discern when we are being used for greed and power. Above all, God is love and as Paul wrote for all to see is there are no laws against love, peace, self control, forgiveness, and faithfulness.

The Blood Moon, Isaiah, and Passover truth for Christ

SAN ANTONIO -- The Book of Genesis says God uses the sun, moon, and stars for signs and seasons. Examples can be found throughout the Bible.

Think of how a star led the wise men to Jesus or how the sun stood still as Joshua led Israel to victory over its enemies.

According to Pastor John Hagee, God is getting ready to speak this way once again.

"There's a sense in the world that things are changing and God is trying to communicate with us in a supernatural way," Hagee told CBN News.

"I believe that in these next two years, we're going to see something dramatic happen in the Middle East involving Israel that will change the course of history in the Middle East and impact the whole world," he predicted.

Four Blood Moons

In his latest book, Four Blood Moons: Something Is About to Change, Hagee lays out what he calls celestial signals. He describes how a series of blood moons in 2014 and 2015 will have great significance for Israel. 

Although single blood moons happen fairly regularly, four appearing so closely together is extremely rare. There have only been a series of blood moons a handful of times over the past 500 years.

So what exactly is a blood moon and what is the biblical significance?

"A blood moon is when the Earth comes between the sun and the moon," Hagee explained. "And the sun is shining through the atmosphere of the Earth and casts up on the moon a red shadow. And so the moon appears to be red."

Such moons appear several times in scripture.

In the book of Joel, God says there will be "wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire…the sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord."

In Acts, the Apostle Peter repeats that verse from Joel. And the book of Revelation says that during the Great Tribulation, "the moon will become like blood."

Blood moons are set to appear in April 2014, on Passover, and then again in September 2014 during the Feast of Tabernacles, or Sukkot.

The timing is the same for 2015 -- a total of four blood moons, all appearing on Jewish feast days.

"The sun and the moon and the Earth are controlled by God almighty," Hagee said. "He is the one that is getting them in a direct alignment on a certain day at a certain time -- but each time, it's a Passover or Sukkot.

Historic Significance

In the past, the rare appearance of four blood moons on these feast days has coincided with major events for Israel and the Jewish people.

In 1492, Spain expelled the Jews. Columbus also discovered America, which became a safe haven for the Jewish people.

"In each of these blood moons, you have something that begins in tragedy and ends in triumph," Hagee explained.

For instance, in 1948, Israel was reborn as a nation.

"After 2,000 years, God supernaturally brought them from 66 nations and a nation was born in a day," Hagee noted. "That again was a supernatural something that happened following the tragedy of the Holocaust."

In 1967, Israel won the Six-Day War and recaptured Jerusalem.

"For the first time in 2,000 years, Jerusalem and the State of Israel were together again," Hagee said.

Nuclear Threat

The blood moons of 2014 and 2015 are poised to appear as Iran works toward nuclear weapons and Israel's neighbors, Egypt and Syria, are in chaos.

"The only reason that Iran will not acquire a nuclear bomb will be that Israel chooses a military solution to that crisis," Hagee told CBN News.

"I believe that if that happens, it will start a series of events that will change the course of world history," he said. "If Israel does not, then it will still change the course of world history."

Hagee has been warning of the Iranian nuclear threat through his work withChristians United for Israel, which he founded in 2006. It is now the largest pro-Israel organization in America, with some 1.3 million members.

He holds nights to honor Israel across the country and at San Antonio's Cornerstone Church, where he serves as senior pastor. The first event, in 1981, drew bomb threats and vandalism from anti-Semites.

Yet Hagee continues his mission.

"If there was ever a time for the Christians of America to stiffen their spine and stand up and speak up, it's now," Hagee admonished. "To see evil and not call it evil is evil. Not to speak is to speak. We cannot be silent and receive God's approval at a time like this."

He said it's still unclear what the coming blood moons will bring, but he is certain of one thing.

"When all is said and done, the flag of Israel will be flying over the walls of the city of Jerusalem when Messiah comes, and it's going to be forever," he said. "And every nation that rises up in judgment against Israel God will punish and punish severely."

The Christ prophecies and the book of Isaiah

If you read Isaiah, you cannot miss the gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact, many people have called Isaiah the “fifth gospel” because of how much it mentions the coming Messiah, and how much detail is given regarding the good news of salvation. Besides the Psalms, Isaiah is the most-quoted book in the New Testament, particularly concerning Jesus.

Isaiah was a man who witnessed our Lord (the pre-incarnate Son) sitting on His throne in all His glory. He immediately recognized his own sinfulness in the light of God’s glory, and knew he deserved to die (Isaiah 6:5). In Isaiah 53, the prophet writes again of the coming Messiah (and is quoted again in John 12:38) and he gives great detail about Christ’s sacrificial work of atonement.

Isaiah is considered to be a major prophet in Christianity. The Book of Isaiah has been immensely influential in the formation of Christianity, from the cult of the Virgin Mary to anti-Jewish polemic, medieval passion iconography, and modern Christian feminism and liberation theology. The regard in which Isaiah was held was so high that the book was frequently called "the Fifth Gospel", the prophet who spoke more clearly of Christ and the Church than any others. His influence extends beyond the Church and Christianity to English literature and to Western culture in general, from the libretto of Handel's Messiah to a host of such everyday phrases as "swords into ploughshares" and "voice in the wilderness".

Isaiah 53, taken from the Book of Isaiah, is the last of the four Songs of the Suffering Servant, and tells the story of a "Man of Sorrows" or "God's Suffering Servant".

Many Christians believe the "Man of Sorrows" or the "Suffering Servant" to be a reference to the prophecy of the Ministry of Jesus, which became a common theme in medieval and later Christian art. The passage of 'Isaiah 53' is known for its interpretation and use by Christian Theologians and Missionaries, many of whom identify the servant to be Christ Jesus. Many Christians view the entire chapter, and particularly this passage to refer to the Passion of Christ as well as theabsolution of sins believed to be made possible by his sacrificial death.

“He was taken from prison and from judgment:…

…and who shall declare his generation?…

… for he was cut off out of the land of the living:…

… for the transgression of my people was he stricken.…” (53:8 KJV)

One of the first claims in the New Testament that Isaiah 53 is a prophecy of Jesus comes from the Book of Acts, in which its author (who is also the author of Luke), describes a scene in which God commands Philip the Deacon to approach anEthiopian eunuch who is sitting in a chariot, reading aloud to himself from the Book of Isaiah. The eunuch comments that he does not understand what he is reading (Isaiah 53) and Philip explains to him the teachings of Jesus. "And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? Of himself, or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus." This has been the standard Christian interpretation of the passage since Apostolic times.

Isaiah 53:4 is also quoted in Matthew 8:17, where it is used in context of Jesus' healing ministry:

“that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “He Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses.” Matthew 8:17

“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.…”

This is the verse, written over 680 prior to the birth of Christ. THE ONE WITH SO MANY PARRALLELS. Listen to understand the power of God and the truth.

1Who would believe what we have heard?^*

To whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?^a

2He grew up like a sapling before him,^b

like a shoot from the parched earth;

He had no majestic bearing to catch our eye,

no beauty to draw us to him.

3He was spurned and avoided by men,

a man of suffering, knowing pain,

Like one from whom you turn your face,

spurned, and we held him in no esteem.^c

4Yet it was our pain that he bore,

our sufferings he endured.

We thought of him as stricken,

struck down by God^* and afflicted,^d

5But he was pierced for our sins,

crushed for our iniquity.

He bore the punishment that makes us whole,

by his wounds we were healed.^e

6We had all gone astray like sheep,

all following our own way;

But the LORD laid upon him^*

the guilt of us all.^f

7Though harshly treated, he submitted

and did not open his mouth;

Like a lamb led to slaughter

or a sheep silent before shearers,

he did not open his mouth.^g

8Seized and condemned, he was taken away.

Who would have thought any more of his destiny?

For he was cut off from the land of the living,

struck for the sins of his people.

9He was given a grave among the wicked,

a burial place with evildoers,

Though he had done no wrong,

nor was deceit found in his mouth.^h

10But it was the LORD’s will to crush him with pain.

By making his life as a reparation offering,^*

he shall see his offspring, shall lengthen his days,

and the LORD’s will shall be accomplished through him.

11Because of his anguish he shall see the light;

because of his knowledge he shall be content;

My servant, the just one, shall justify the many,

their iniquity he shall bear.

12Therefore I will give him his portion among the many,

and he shall divide the spoils with the mighty,

Because he surrendered himself to death,

was counted among the transgressors,

Bore the sins of many,

and interceded for the transgressors.

IN THIS TIME OF THE EASTER SEASON PLEASE KNOW THAT FAITH IN TRUTH IS THE MUSTARD SEED WE ALL HOLD TO IN KNOWING THAT CHRIST IS REAL AND INDEED SENT TO SAVE US AND TEACH US THE THE WAY.

The As a man thinketh approach to a life lived by the Spirit and control over how we perceive our world

  

William James and James Allen were two men who believed in the power of thought over our circumstances. William was the father of American psychology and the first advocate in the profession to understand neurosis was a by product of thought and the state of the mind. 

James Allen penned the short book "As a man thinketh", and determined that our thoughts cultivate our environment and our outward condition. 

The scripture says much about the way we think and present ourselves. It says much about the power of thought over our circumstances. It tells us about the importance perspective plays in our daily lives and our interactions with others. How a bitter mind produces bitter thoughts and bitter behavior. 

A doubtful and pessimistic mind will find itself in many negative scenarios because the state of the mind has a powerful influence on what goes on around us. 

Our state of mind is a great determiner in how we respond in our walk in faith. It at times can determine if we are consumed by the flesh or guided by the spirit.

The Parable of the Sower

13 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. 3 Then he told them many things in parables, saying:“A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow.6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9 Whoever has ears, let them hear.”

10 The disciples came to him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?”

11 He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.12 Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables:

“Though seeing, they do not see;
    though hearing, they do not hear or understand.

14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:

“‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding;
    you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.
15 For this people’s heart has become calloused;
    they hardly hear with their ears,
    and they have closed their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
    hear with their ears,
    understand with their hearts
and turn, and I would heal them.’[a]

16 But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17 For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.

18 “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means:19 When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. 20 The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy.21 But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 22 The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. 23 But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

The Parable of the Weeds

24 Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25 But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. 26 When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.

27 “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’

28 “‘An enemy did this,’ he replied.

“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’

29 “‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’”

The Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast

31 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”

33 He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds[b] of flour until it worked all through the dough.”

34 Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. 35 So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet:

“I will open my mouth in parables,
    I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.”[c]

The Parable of the Weeds Explained

36 Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”

37 He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.

40 “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.

The Parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl

44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.

45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

The Parable of the Net

47 “Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48 When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. 49 This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50 and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

51 “Have you understood all these things?” Jesus asked.

“Yes,” they replied.

52 He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”

A Prophet Without Honor

53 When Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there. 54 Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed.“Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. 55 “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? 56 Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” 57 And they took offense at him.

But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.”

58 And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.

It is the condition of the mind that controls how we respond when our faith is tested. Do we believe? Do we let the spirit guide us in how we perceive the world around us? Or are we consumed by negativity, pessimism, doubt, feelings of being desperate and out of control of our surroundings? 

We are only human of course but we are also spirit when we sense the call of God and accept the call for who we truly are. We become spiritual beings having a human experience. We become the molders of our own condition through a life in the spirit.

Philippians 4:8 

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

Romans 12:2 

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Colossians 3:12-14 

Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.

So we live our days in thought. We see our world by perceiving it and responding to it. Our character is determined by our thoughts and the actions subsequent to our thoughts. The world is ours to process and the great power to direct our lives lies in our own control over our thoughts. The spirit and the scripture serve as a great and essential guide to how we live according to the peace intended for us by God and it is up to us to embrace it. I pray we all do.