Category: Pray for your Children, Their Children and Children&#8217;s Children

September 16, 2019

My Old Faithful Cup |Christian Basic Drills

From a brother in Christ who’s fighting the good fight, Thought it was a great read:

“The Cup”
by Mario Ortiz

In 1989, I was given a Seattle Seahawks cup. Nothing special about this cup

It doesn’t stand out. Doesn’t force others to look at it or drink out of it. It’s just a cup.

Now, this cup has been with me for almost 30 years. It has survived drops and falls. It has survived countless moves from one place to another. It has been used by others that have simply put it aside once it has done what they needed it to do.

I personally only use it about 4 months a year. But yet, there it is; every 1st or 2nd Sunday in September when the Seahawks take the field to start a new season, my old faithful cup is right where I left it. Ready to do that which I need it to do. Ready to get me through another season.

Friend, sadly, this also describes many a person’s relationship with God.

We received Him as a gift many years ago. He has been with us through many drops and falls. He has been with us through several moves and several changes in our lives. He has been used by others and then simply put aside after He does what they wanted Him to do.

Perhaps only used a few months out of the year. But much like my precious cup, GOD is there whenever we need Him. He’s waiting for us to call on Him, to reach for Him so that we can drink from Him.

My brother, don’t just use God whenever you need him then put him back on the shelf. Drink from him friend, for the drink He gives is from everlasting to everlasting. Drink and thirst no more!

“For even when we are faithless, he remains faithful” ( 2 TIM 2:13)

Have a Blessed Day and Week!

If you have been struggling in your commitment to Christ, or if you have heard of God but don’t really know who Jesus is, I invite you to really get know Him.

How to know God:

Know God

September 13, 2019September 12, 2019

September 11, 2019September 10, 2019

The Solemn Day —9/11 |We Will Never Forget

This picture was taken circa 1987. We were young. The world seemed ripe for us to take a chunk out of it. The Big Apple was the tase treat for the whole world. The towers in back were such an incredible sight to behold. Going up their elevators to reach the top seemed even at that time, to take forever.

To me, those Two Towers, represented freedom, a fresh start in a country that gave what you gave to it. We were young and working hard. We were traveling all over this great country when we had the chance and the extra cash.

Even then, I told the people that knew me, that this was a country we took for granted. That this country’s scenic drives could give any other tourist destination a run for its money.
Back in that Fall of ‘ 87, Mary and I thought we could visit this wondrous city and it’s Twin Towers every time we visited.
9/11 changed that. What was to be a celebration of this country’s Free Enterprise, turned into a solemn moment when we visited a few years back. My wife and I will never forget nor will it ever be the same to visit that Holy Ground.

To the families of the 3,000, and those First Responders, we are praying for you. I know that in this anti-everything culture, some fools will mock that I said this. I don’t care. They are foolish and mediocre for taking something so sacred as saying a prayer for fellow human beings, and have turned it into a sacrilegious political act of Godlessness.

Godlessness, because that is where their hearts and spirits are, in darkness.
I for one, on this solemn anniversary, will be praying and thinking of those that were needlessly lost during this vicious and humanness act of cowardice.
I pray that those who mock or protest this day, will come to respect the innocent lives lost and put down their agendas, their hate and their cynicism for one day, this day…

We Will Never Forget…

A Contrast in Contrasting Celebrations! Birth & Rebirth!

This past weekend was a contrast for my wife Mary and me. A contrast in contrasting celebrations.
Life is about contrasts. Every day we experience these contrasts. People become rich overnight; others lose all their life savings. Some go into hospitals with life-threatening symptoms. Others, get out of hospitals exhilarated to be alive.
This weekend my wife and I mourned for our friend who lost her dad. We felt for her because of the pain of losing her father reverberated throughout all of the family members.

As I sat watching the interaction of her Christian family, it was apparent to all who witnessed this, that the family had the blessed hope of reuniting with their ‘Pap- Pap’ and ‘Nana’ someday.

We have known our friends for decades. Their kids have grown up with ours. Mary and I taught them in grade and middle school and continued through the Bible Study we’ve had for almost the same amount of years.
To say that we hurt for our dear friend is an understatement.
But for her, her husband and adult children, and grandchildren, there is an incredible hope that they all have.

You see, as Christian believers, we have the faith that one day, all of us who place our faith in the LORD, Jesus the Savior, who came to earth, became a human being, became a Jewish public figure who taught all who would listen, to have the faith that was written about thousands of years before.
Even before their were Israelites, God had foretold His Story for His children of humanity.

Jesus came proclaiming His reminder of redemption through only Him, the Living God who came as the Second Being of the Triune Godhead, which is The Father, The Son, and The Holy Living Spirit.

This reminder was also given to Abraham when God told him that through his line, there would come a blessing to all nations (Genesis 12:3). After Abraham, God came and spoke to Moses. God gave Moses a hint of what He would do for our redemption, through His Son Jesus. The Exodus story is about the Israelites breaking free of the bondage they had been going through in Egypt.

But the story is so much more. God in Exodus (12:1-12) gives Moses precise directions on the Passover Feast. The Sacrificial Lamb had to meet specific requirements. The blood of The Sacrificial Lamb would be used to protect each house from death.

The blood was to be sprinkled on the top, and sides of the doorposts of each Israelite home. In this manner, the blood-stained cross beams would save each firstborn male member of the household. Please keep this in mind when I revisit this in a bit.

Then God came to remind Israel about His plan of redemption for all mankind, not just Israel. The Prophets at different stages in His Story mentioned a coming Redeemer fulfilling all the prophecies that were written down ages before they happened.
Jesus came and fulfilled over 350 of these prophetic scriptures. Thus, the day of one day reuniting with those that have passed before us, will be a reality…

Now going back to the weekend of contrasts…

We also had the joy of celebrating a coming of new life

Mary and I had the pleasure of celebrating a new life coming in about two weeks, unless the beautiful little one, decides to come sooner! The precious young family is awaiting the arrival of their fourth child was such a joyful event.

As I ran around keeping my grandkids’ attention at bay, looking around at all the guests, I could not help but smile.

I smiled because I knew if our dear friends who had lost their dad recently were with us at this celebration, they would celebrate too.

You see, one life had departed, yet we know it is a time of celebration. And another is arriving, that too is a cause for an incredible celebration. It may be foreign to those of you reading this, unless you are a Christian, because you may not understand this.

When someone makes a commitment to Jesus as their Savior, the life and death contrast become one celebration. You see, a new birth whether from a newborn or someone passing into the next life become intertwined.

When we accept Jesus and commit to Him, we become timeless. No, not our bodies, but our spirits. Our spirits then start yearning to go to our real home. This yearning is the blessed hope of one day joining Christ in our heavenly home.

If you’re not sure if you have this blessed hope of one day being in heaven get the assurance:

Know God

September 9, 2019September 9, 2019

oscarlikes2write2 Comments

God sees Us Like Diamonds & Pearls—Precious & Pure!

Precious stones are highly valued. Some of the rarest of gems can cost 3 million dollars per gemstone.

Pearl necklaces can be worth up to 1.5 million dollars. Of course, all these prices are subjective. The beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Yet, most people who appreciate the beauty of these gems, very rarely think of the ‘how.’

What I mean is this—the amount of time and pressure of each diamond results in the incredible allure of the precious stone. The more time and intense stress that gems endure the more valuable and almost perfect it becomes.

Pearls have the same type of pressure but a different adventure.

Most people don’t know that it is a tiny parasite that causes the oyster to try and get rid of it by secreting a fluid called ‘nacre’ into the invading little nuisance.

The more of this fluid is injected into the parasite, the bigger the pearl gets with each layer of nacre. A little less than a decade or so, you get a pearl. Sometimes it takes more than a decade, but that would be an average period to make a thing of exquisiteness. Again, this precious stone is produced by constant friction.

In the same way that precious stones are created, our mental, physical, and most importantly, spiritual health comes from constant friction and pressure.

The more a person works out with weights, the more the muscles have to breakdown and then get stronger. The more medical students are deprived of sleep, the better they will adapt to it until each medical student goes on an auto-drive where pressure becomes a thing that they are dealing with calmly.

As Christians, we too don’t like trials. We want smooth sailing from start to finish. Some people can handle the spiritual warfare that comes when we become disciples of Jesus. Most people will stop serving because of these constant spiritual battles.

Parents see their kids wavering on their commitment to Christ and automatically go and try to ‘save’ their children from harm. This is the worst thing that you can do to your kids. Why? Because with strife, contention, division, anger, envy, and all the rest of the things the enemy uses against them and us, the deeper your children will have to depend on the LORD instead of running to us to bail them out.

The more ‘friction’ we go through spiritually, the more beautiful our spirits are becoming. Just like those precious gems and pearls, the pressure and friction are what causes us to get into more profound dependence, prayer, and fellowship with others.

Parents, I encourage you to do your best and try not to help your kids by bailing them out of critical situations that require the LORD’s help. Some of those perilous situations may be self-inflicted, and all of us need to have our Heavenly Father come to our rescue. This is the only way that we will learn, like the small parasites that embed themselves into an oyster, or diamonds weather the incredible pressure the earth places them through.

So parents, if your kids are wavering on their walks with God and you see their commitment lacking, don’t give up on them. Fasting and prayer, pointing them always to the only One that can help them, will be the way that they will come back to His presence.

Nagging them, yelling at them, forcing them is the human way to try to bring your children or spouse back; and is always detrimental to their relationship with God and you.

Love on them, pray for them, correct them calmly, and tell them that God loves them and has not given up on them!

I am not an expert, but I know who the Great Expert is. God will be the one to mine our kids or dive deep into the dangerous oceans to bring them out of the friction and pressures of life. God will release them from their personal and tight enclosures to reveal their preciousness. Each of us and our kids are one of a kind precious gems to God. Your kids will be so refined and valuable to Christ, that their worth will be known to all.

Just don’t give up on your kids, don’t bail them out all the time and allow God to bring out their worth……

If you’re not sure how God sees you & want to ensure that you are precious in His sight, get to know Him more:

Know God

https://www.topteny.com/top-10-expensive-pearls-world/

REFERENCES:

https://pearls.com/pages/how-pearls-are-formed

September 7, 2019September 6, 2019

September 3, 2019September 3, 2019

Music To My Ears! |Training Up Children

Poppa, I like bible study!” My grandson exclaimed.

I turned around as I was getting ready to start our Saturday with an early breakfast. We had our Friday night study the night before, and my almost-three-year-old grandson and my practically one-year-old grand-daughter were with us.

My grandson brought music to my ears when I heard him fluttering the pages of his children’s Bible. He was pretending to read along with the adults.

I have been in all age group ministries. I have served kids of all ages, from babies to adults. There have been many great memories seared into my mind and spirit. Most of these have been wonderful to remember, with very few regrettable ones.

The ones I cherish are not of significant events or church plays or retreats or after-glows. The ones that I hold close to me are the ones when I saw my children who are now adults, pick up their first bibles with the same awe of wonder and delight that my grandson did over the weekend.

You see, it wasn’t just on Friday night and Saturday morning that my spirit leaped for joy. It was the whole long weekend.

This happened Friday night, early on Saturday morning before we left them, and again on Monday at our family get together. Rosh just keep on telling the story of Moses and Pharaoh, with his little voice changing when retelling what God commanded Moses to say to Pharaoh!

As my little buddy was glowing with delight over learning something new the night before, he then started recollecting Bible stories that my daughter and son-in-law tell him; and this Poppa was smiling from ear to ear with humble pride.

Yes. I know those two words are opposites, but that was the feeling at that very moment. Humbleness because I see my daughter’s children learning about God, His grace, and the gift of eternal life that we can receive. That is truly humbling and satisfying. Because what I heard from this toddler-boy was like Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. Or like Louis Armstrong’s rendition of What a Wonderful World. Or like your favorite sports team winning the championship.

“Poppa, I liked Bible Study!” Is still resounding in my mind…and yes, still bringing an immense smile to my face as I write this.

Some of you may be saying, ” Yes, that’s wonderful, but wait until his teenage or college years, Oscar.”

If there are some of you thinking the above, I encourage you to stop and then go and pray about not giving up on your children. Because we must hang on to God’s promises always. We are always to train our children and grandchildren, drenching them in God’s word. That is our job; it is God’s Spirit to bring them to His saving grace.

I have heard the skeptics tell me throughout the years, what if your kids are out there doing stuff they are not supposed to? Why bother, when they, sooner or later, disappoint you?

My question every time is, ” Do you have your kids in some sport or dance or music lessons?”

Most often, the answer is, “Yes, we do.”

Then I ask them, “Why don’t you save yourselves the time, money and aggravation; just have them quit!”

In most cases, the parents think of what I have just asked, get annoyed because they realize their folly of answering. If they say, no, it’s an investment for our kids. They may get good enough to land a scholarship. Or we want them building character. Or, it helps them focus better, etc. Whatever the answer, what would be more important than knowing and committing to Christ at an early age?

If then, they stray when they reach young adulthood, God tells us that they, our kids, will not depart from the training of the Word of God which you diligently gave them.

So, when I hear my grandson telling me that he enjoyed sitting with the adults and listening to Poppa talk about God, it fills my heart with hope for the future generations I will leave behind to share and point others to Christ. Because, being good at sports, or playing virtuously on an instrument, or being a great investor, or being able to figure out the Laws of Physics, will never get your children or grandchildren into God’s kingdom.

I encourage anyone reading this to not give up or get tired of speaking to your children and grandchildren about the LORD. I promise you, that the eternal dividends will be worth it! All the other wonderful achievements will be icing on the cake…

Trust—Be Humble—Pray—Wait—Repeat!

There are few Christians who venture into the historical books of the Bible. Most people don’t like History because it’s ‘just relating or retelling boring facts’ about people from a long time ago.
But, I see History as an essential part of learning from some of the best saints in the Bible. Also, from some key people in World History. So that I don’t confuse people, I will be using the name Israel for both Judah and Israel. Why? Because there should never have been a break up of this beautiful country. This division was all man-made, and of course, God’s Providence would allow the break-up. He knew how the TenTribes of Israel would be later on in History.

There have been very few men in the Bible who pass through the fires and live. I will speak about one of them and his early life.

Hezekiah became king of Israel a 25years of age. Nowadays, most 25-year-olds are still trying to figure themselves out. Hezekiah didn’t have that luxury; he hit the ground running and started to make things right in the sight of the LORD. He took down worship places of ill repute. The things the Israelites had gotten into by forgetting the One True God of Israel and Judah would leave most people nowadays blushing. Yet, all of Israel’s demise parallels what our country is going through, no, what most of the world is going through.
During this period of spiritual darkness and upheaval, Hezekiah reformed the worship of the LORD back to its rightful place.

The people of Israel would now get back to true worship…there was a revival…sort of...

Only a few people did right in the sight of the LORD. God had been waiting for His people to come back to a heart of worship for Him, but they did not. The warning that God gave to the Israelites in the wilderness came to pass. Now the judgments would come, and come they did.
Yet, one man, the one person who in the eyes of God, represented all of the tribes of Israel as their leader, would do good things to bring back communication with God.

I will talk about three things that I see, which Hezekiah did for the LORD to spare Israel.

First off, Hezekiah trusted the LORD. And because he did, God had mercy on Israel for a bit. To trust in the LORD is to live life, knowing that everything will be the way God has it directed and intended it to be. Giving all our problems to God takes a massive weight off of us, and gives it to Him.
Jesus tells us to cast all our burdens on Him, why? Because he cares for His children(1 Peter 5:7). He wants the best for us, and He wants us to be able to trust in Him, not lean on our understanding, but acknowledge that He will do what’s best for us at every moment (Proverbs 3:5).

Hezekiah knew his country was in trouble. They had been sliding down the wrong path for a long time. Hezekiah knew the only one to help was God. So he placed his trust in the only One that was able to change all the tribes of Israel’s predicaments.

The second thing Hezekiah did was to humble himself and place the freighting problem of an Assyrian invasion on the LORD. The enemy was at Hezekiah’s gates, and they were overwhelmingly more powerful than all the tribes of Israel combined. Now Judah was faced with destruction. The arrogance of King Sennacherib sending his messengers to humiliate Hezekiah before his people. One messenger, in particular, was pretentiously more arrogant than the rest. Rab-shakeh Would taunt his way back to Assyria,

The third vital thing Hezekiah did was to put on sackcloth and ashes, meaning he knew the fate of all Israel, not just Judah was in God’s hands. All the tribes of Israel left their first love, and God was not willing to have His children stray like stubborn and stiff-necked sheep. God had waited hundreds of years patiently for His people to repent and have a revival. They did not.

Then came a God-fearing king, who had torn down all the pagan altars in high places, where all the tribes of Israel were guilty of going to worship gods that had and were still, leading them away from the One True God of Israel.

Now came the time of judgment, and the Assyrian army about 185 thousand strong, waiting for their commanders’ orders to besiege the beautiful city of David.
They would not get the chance, because of one man, Hezekiah; who went before the LORD God of all Israel, and pleaded to save his people. God heard and answered Hezekiah’s prayers through the prophet Isaiah. That same night, an angel of the LORD, took care of the 185 thousand enemies of Hezekiah.

—Whatever you are going through today, remember:

— Trust God with all your heart and mind.
—Don’t lean on your own wisdom or understanding.
— Acknowledge that you need God to help you.
— Pray as your life depends on it because it does.
—Wait for God, even if it takes a long time.
— Then wait for the miracles that God has for your life.
Go out and make a difference for God!

If you don’t know how to place your full trust in God, start here:

AKJV Bible Courtesy of InspiredIdea.com

Know God

REFERENCES:

Histroical Books via Bible.org

Pictures from :

Stock photos courtesy of:
photos-public-domain.com
pdphoto.org

August 30, 2019August 30, 2019