Genesis 1:26 God spoke: "Let us make human beings in our image, make them reflecting our nature.." So if we are made in the image and nature of God and we love to be praised and bragged on, do you think He might like it also? God inhabits our praises and loves our worship. I have found that when I really get into worship and praise in my prayers I don't have to ask Him for anything, yet I always have what I need. My favorite worship scriptures are found in the book of Revelation. In chapter 4 we hear an account of God sitting on His throne and it is such a vivid description that I am immediately standing there, and I can hear the four living creatures who do not rest day or night saying "Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!" Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him Who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying:” You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created."(4:8-11) I find that I say those words over and over when I am before Him and I always feel washed over by His Holy Spirit. Did you notice that the creatures are saying that we were created and exist by His will? I love that, makes me feel special! Chapter 5 is a beautiful chapter, starting with verse 8 the creatures are singing a new song saying: You are worthy, but my most favorite are verses 11-14 Then I looked and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was (here come my chill bumps) ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice: "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honor and glory and blessing!" And every living creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying:” Blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, for ever and ever!" Then the four living creatures said, "Amen!" And the twenty-four elders fell down and worshipped Him who lives forever and ever. Anytime I want to feel the presence of God near me all I have to do is read those scriptures and WOW, He is there. I wish I could hear a stadium full of people chanting that to the top of their lungs! This vein of praise continues in that book, "Revelation?" you say, Yes, that most wonderful book that most will say they do not understand! Don't you love to be around people that think you are wonderful and are willing to say so? Remember that we are made in God's image and nature, so if you want Him to be around you, complain less and worship more! David said it so beautifully in Psalm 8:1 O Lord, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth, Who have set Your glory above the heavens! 9:1-2 I will praise You, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will tell of all Your marvelous works, I will be glad and rejoice in You: I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.
This is the Lord's Day, rejoice and be glad in it! Be blessed, pray and worship Him in the beauty of His Holiness! AMEN!

Everyday we use animal analogies, i.e. "tired as a dog", "happy as a dead pig in the sunshine”,” hungry as a bear", and more, so we know what being compared to an animal is all about. There are more than two hundred references and comparisons, in the Bible, concerning "sheep". I have heard preachers say that sheep are dumb. I would say that they couldn't be THAT dumb, at least they knew their own shepherd's voice and that was key in their protection from wild beasts. Back in the day, the shepherds named their sheep the way we name our pets! At night several shepherds would put their flocks into one pen so they could take turns sitting in the gate keeping watch, while the others slept. When morning came each shepherd would call their sheep out, by name, and they would come and follow their own shepherd, because they recognized his voice! Jesus gave His disciples the example of how the shepherd sits in the gate and then told them that HE was the Good Shepherd. Those sheep were protected and we, as His sheep, are also protected. Our problem is that, unlike the sheep, we sometimes listen to other voices and go bleating off in other directions, while our own Good Shepherd is calling us out be name. For centuries shepherds have been herding sheep. Face it, no one likes to carry a load of weight around their shoulders for too long, and so it may seem that the Good Shepherd is picking up a little lamb and hoisting it over His shoulders to help it make it over to the greener pasture, perhaps the little baa-baa is just tired or fatigued and simply needs that extra gentle touch.... not the way it works. A shepherd's role in the life of his sheep is to guard them, prod them, and get them onto the right path and in the right direction. Occasionally there is a need for discipline as well. When an animal that is suppose to be doing what it is suppose to be doing is told over and over again, shown, lovingly shown, forcibly shown, and it still refuses to do what it is suppose to do, the shepherd has two choices: he can either kill the little guy or break its leg to render it unable to continue disobeying him. Now, almost IMMEDIATELY after the leg is broken the sheep gets the message that the shepherd (or in Jesus' case capital S with Shepherd) is serious about the direction or the commandment given. It doesn't take too long for the waywardness to subside and the dependency upon the Shepherd to take place. Then, and only then, does the Good Shepherd pick up the broken lamb and place it over His shoulders to carry it for a matter of a long time and an enduring lesson, which over a course of weeks, and usually close intimate conversation and discussion from His mouth to the lamb's ears, will the lamb be strong enough to walk on its own again. Breaking the animal's leg is better than the alternative. Guess how many actual shepherds take the time to do that? They feast on mutton rather than make the effort when they have too many other obedient sheep walking correctly. I don't want to be that little fluffy sheep on Jesus' shoulders. I'm content to being one of the first sheep in line - keeping pace, doing exactly what I'm supposed to be doing. Now how do you feel about being compared to sheep? Psalm 100:3 Know that the LORD, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Jesus is standing in the gate and protecting me from the wild animals of life that try to take my life. Matthew 10:28 Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Fear him who is able to destroy both body and soul in hell. Be blessed, baa baa!

When you walk out of your own home every day to: go to school, go to work, meet someone for lunch, go shopping...name any number of things that take you out every day and you will realize that as you look around there are all types of things that are presented to you at "Satan's Silver Tray", the cafe of trouble! From the simple temptation to cheat: on a test, running the light or stop sign, realizing that you were handed too much change...to larger ones, cheating on your spouse, stealing money from the petty cash box or (as one woman I saw) take money intended for a server from a table, repeating an item of gossip that steals someones good name maybe costing them their job. These are some pretty tasty items on that tray, but let me remind you that if you take an item from the Silver Tray, it will cost you dearly. The Apostle Paul wrote to the Phillipians, 3:13-14 I'm not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don't get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I've got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I'm off and running, and I'm not turning back. Isaiah 43:18-19 "“Forget about what’s happened; don’t keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new. It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it?" I am referring to an item on the Tray that a lot of people choose, and it is a favorite of Satan's to serve! "Serve them a BIG dose of GUILT! Make them believe that Jesus' blood did nothing to atone for their sins, hey, maybe we can even get them to go out and hang themselves the way Judas did!" This "guilt" thing could cost you your immortal soul! Because you feel remorse and guilt  you feel unworthy (the side effect of guilt...you know like eating beans gives you intestinal GAS) no way to have one without the other, and this unworthy feeling makes you look for worth in "all the wrong places", which piles on more guilt and so-it-goes! 1John 2:12 I am writing to you who are God’s children because your sins have been forgiven through Jesus. That is the item on the menu that is printed in letters so small you have to get a magnifier to read it, but it is THERE! Your sins are forgiven! If Judas had only known that he could have walked up to Jesus as He hung on the cross and he would have been forgiven, he didn't have to die. Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem! If you are willing to die to get rid of your problems, why not die to yourself and give it all to Jesus? When He died, His blood erased all the sin from man-kind, but you have to ASK Him! Now, are you going to go to the cross and tell Jesus that you know that He loved you enough to die for you so that you could bring your guilt and shame and really ugly deeds to Him to be cleansed, or are you going back to the old cafe to get another helping of Satan's killer food? I suggest the former! Psalms 103:3 He forgives all my sins, He heals all my diseases.  As you read this, if you have something you want to be rid of, pray with me: "My Father, I love you and I thank you for forgiving my sins through the saving blood of Jesus Christ Your Son, Who died on the cross for me, I accept Him in my heart as my personal Savior, Amen"  If you prayed this prayer from your heart, then close that menu, it no longer applies! You are FREE, you are clean, you are made WHOLE! Be Blessed, Pray, Pick a new place to eat!

I was trying to open my eyes but I was so sleepy I could not. A person had come into my room, sat down in the chair next to my bed, and said: “I’m in so much trouble, I don't want to be humiliated, I need help, please pray for me."  I was trying to open my eyes and I woke myself saying, "I can't open my eyes, I'm so sleepy." I sat up and realized that I hadn't seen that person in two years had not thought of them at all, so I knew that the Lord had prompted this encounter. I woke, called that person and said, "The Lord told me to call you, what's wrong?" That person had come to the conclusion that God was not aware of them, their word was "Everything in my life is upside down, I have been through a terrible divorce, child custody battle and now my finances are the worst they have ever been. So many people depend on me I don't know what to do, (then the words) I don't want to be humiliated." That "nudge" in the Spirit proved, once again, to be a lifesaver for this person. I told them, "If God wasn't aware of you, I wouldn't be on the phone with you right now!" While we spoke God inspired me to give Jeremiah 29:11 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. Knowing that I had no way, except by the Spirit of God, to know what was going on in their life and hearing this promise from the Word, did all they needed, gave them the hope and knowledge that God knew them and their need and cared enough to send help! At times I have felt that what I did was of no importance, then something like that happens and reaffirms, to me, that He indeed has a plan for my life, one that I must be willing to carry out! I think we fear being wrong, not really knowing if it is God speaking or our own mind, but I would rather err on the side of the warning than to ignore it and realize that I should have said something. Jeremiah felt that way and voiced it in Jeremiah 20:9-11 You pushed me into this, God, and I let you do it. You were too much for me. And now I'm a public joke. They all poke fun at me. Every time I open my mouth I'm shouting, "Murder!" or "Rape!” And all I get for my God-warnings are insults and contempt. But if I say, "Forget it! No more God-Messages from me!” The words are fire in my belly, a burning in my bones. I’m worn out trying to hold it in. I can't do it any longer! Then I hear whispering behind my back: "There goes old 'Danger-Everywhere.' Shut him up! Report him!” Old friends watch, hoping I'll fall flat on my face: "One misstep and we'll have him. We'll get rid of him for good! "But God, a most fierce warrior, is at my side. Those who are after me will be sent sprawling—Slapstick buffoons falling all over themselves, a spectacle of humiliation no one will ever forget. We have to give what we feel in our heart is right, whether anyone agrees with us, or just makes fun of us, we have the responsibility to say what God gives us. You can take the easy way out and just keep your mouth shut, but would you stand on the sidewalk and watch a person walk out in front of a car they didn't see without yelling out for them to STOP? No you wouldn't, you would yell at the top of your lungs. When you feel the nudge in the Spirit to pray, or in this case speak, to someone, DO it, don't wait, it could be the most important prayer or call you will ever make. Pray for wisdom, knowledge and understanding in all you do and then listen for the voice of the Lord in your own life! Pay attention to those around you stop, look, and listen!

The definition for the word Enigma is: a person of puzzling or contradictory character, I know a lot of people that fit that description, do you? One of those people had requested my friendship on one of the social networks, and then when I accepted, they immediately deleted me as a friend. It happened two more times, same person, same action. You might wonder why I accepted a second and third time only to get deleted, my daughter certainly wanted to know. I would love to tell you that I am so much like Jesus that I instantly forgave their social error, or trying to make me feel rejected, or whatever it was, and accepted in good faith. I could tell you that but it would be a blatant lie. I did it because having been raised as a preacher's kid I was trained that the parishioner was always right; you never argued with the person that was a member of the church. Another thing you never did was to repeat gossip, of any kind, that was almost a federal offense, and never tell anything that went on within the confines of our home, absolutely a federal offense. Who do you talk to under all those conditions? I learned, at a very early age to talk to Jesus, that's right; He became my friend and confidant. He heard all my complaints against people I thought were mean to me, heard all my dreams of what I wanted in my life as a grown-up! I always felt that He loved me more, because I was born on the day we celebrate His birth, that had to be special...didn't it? As I got older I continued my conversations with Him; I had to ask his forgiveness for hitting that girl, a real bully, in the nose, "after all Jesus, I have kept my mouth shut for so long and she just kept on!" I was sorry my dad got called and I was in trouble, but I was not sorry I hit her. Jesus reminded me that He was beaten and bruised for my salvation, only then did I feel a little guilty. My teen years were mostly concentrated on who I would marry. I don't know why, but I was always afraid that I would fall in love with someone that wouldn't love me back! It was like the mystery, when I was a little girl wanting to learn to cook, of how my mother got all the food ready at the same time when she cooked dinner! I did find out how to get all the food done at the same time, not so much luck with love, but again, Jesus listened and understood, as it seemed I always fell for the wrong person! It was during one of those personal heartbreak times He came to me in a new way, He introduced me to my new best friend, the Holy Spirit! My heavenly communication reached a whole new level as the gifts of the Holy Spirit began to work through me! 1 Cor. 12:1-3 What I want to talk about now is the various ways God's Spirit gets worked into our lives. This is complex and often miss-understood, but I want you to be informed and knowledgeable. Remember how you were when you didn't know God, led from one phony god to another, never knowing what you were doing, just doing it because everybody else did it? It's different in this life. God wants us to use our intelligence, to seek to understand as well as we can. For instance, by using your heads, you know perfectly well that the Spirit of God would never prompt anyone to say "Jesus be damned!" Nor would anyone be inclined to say, "Jesus is Master!" without the insight of the Holy Spirit.  Through every stage of my life, from the age of eight until now, Jesus has remained my faithful and true friend. Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He is our friend! John 15:11 I've named you friends because I've let you in on everything I've heard from the Father. Jesus is not an enigma, according to Hebrews 13:8 He is always the same, yesterday, today and forever. He is the friend that is close and easy to talk with, He will never repeat your deepest secrets except to His Father, so let me ask you a question, do you know Him?