A Sad face is good for your heart?

Ecc 7:3 Sorrow is better than laughter because a sad face is good for the heart.

Ecc 7:4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.

I feel a meaning of this verse could be that sometimes, we have to re-evaluate our lives, take a look at things or people that could be harming us from a spiritual stand point and weed out the ones that are a lot of fun or seemingly of comfort to us but not bringing spiritual fruit about.   

There are many forms of entertainment  in our world, that bring pleasure to the flesh but do not serve our higher purpose in life and often times, lead us down a path of destruction. We do need to be a light in a dark place but we have to be sure that we are not dimming our light,  rather than lighting the heart of others. For an example,  if you love an activity and the people involved in that activity and feel like you bring Christ to them, this is a great thing unless you are opening a foothold for satan in the process of  taking part in that activity. This could be happening in many ways but I will use the example of the bar scene. It seems like a great place to witness to those in darkness however, it is not  safe place for a Christian to frequent and especially if you are drinking. There are  many temptations that you will be faced with,  (sexual being one of the strongest) and as secure as you may feel you are in Christ, you will more than likely fail.  We are made of flesh and the fleshly desires have a way of appearing to be more fulfilling than those of the Spirit when we are not in our right minds, let alone  when we are in our right minds.  They call alcohol, "spirits"  for a reason. It quiets your inner voice of the Holy Spirit and can replace it with an entirely different self-driven ego  flesh Spirit that will do what it wants when it wants and how it wants to do it and that is not love for others, that is love of self. I am not saying that having a couple of beers or a glass of wine is a sin, I am saying that we need to be mindful of when we start feeling the spirit of drunkenness creeping over us. If you are choosing this path of ministry today, I challenge you to examine your heart and be sure that it is truly the way that God has called you to minister or if it may be a self-driven avenue of pleasure, that is poisoning your life as well as the lives of those around you.

The only way to shine our lights for Christ, is if how we  are speaking and behaving is a part of His light. Anything that goes against the Word of God is definitely  not a part of His light. While we do not need the Bible for salvation, it is the rule of thumb that guides us and will let us know if we have gotten off track. It will attune you to the voice of the Holy Spirit inside of you. 

There is a mourning process that takes place when we have to let go of any person or activity that we once held so dear to our hearts. The outcome however is that you will re-focused on the things that the Lord has planned for you and that will bring the purest form of joy and love  to yourself and to others. That is a true ministry. 

Ecc 7:3 Sorrow is better than laughter because a sad face is good for the heart.
Ecc 7:4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.

Another meaning of the verse I feel  is that when we  love someone, we mourn the loss of them .  There is an intense pain that comes of this but it shows that we truly loved and if we truly love, it shows that we do have more than a heart of stone and fear. 

Is it any wonder why Jesus was a carpenter?

What Carpenters DoAbout this section

Carpenters work with many different types of tools.

Carpenters construct and repair building frameworks and structures—such as stairways, doorframes, partitions, and rafters—made from wood and other materials. They also may install kitchen cabinets, siding, and drywall.

Duties

Carpenters typically do the following:

• Follow blueprints and building plans to meet the needs of clients
• Install structures and fixtures, such as windows and molding
• Measure, cut, or shape wood, plastic, and other materials
• Construct building frameworks, including walls, floors, and doorframes
• Help erect, level, and install building framework with the aid of rigging hardware and cranes
• Inspect and replace damaged framework or other structures and fixtures
• Instruct and direct laborers and other construction helpers

Carpenters are one of the most versatile construction occupations, with workers usually doing many different tasks. For example, some carpenters insulate office buildings; others install drywall or kitchen cabinets in homes. Those who help construct tall buildings or bridges often install the wooden concrete forms for cement footings or pillars. Some carpenters erect shoring and scaffolding for buildings.

Carpenters use many different hand and power tools to cut and shape wood, plastic, fiberglass, or drywall. They commonly use hand tools, including squares, levels, and chisels, as well as many power tools, such as sanders, circular saws, nail guns, and welding machines. Carpenters fasten materials together with nails, screws, staples, and adhesives, and do a final check of their work to ensure accuracy. They use a tape measure on nearly every project because proper measuring increases productivity, reduces waste, and ensures that the pieces being cut are the proper size.

The following are examples of types of carpenters:

Residential carpenters typically specialize in new-home, townhome, and condominium building and remodeling. As part of a single job, they might build and set forms for footings, walls, and slabs, and frame and finish exterior walls, roofs, and decks. They also frame interior walls, build stairs, and install drywall, crown molding, doors, and cabinets. In addition, residential carpenters may tile floors and lay wood floors and carpet. Fully trained construction carpenters can easily switch from new-home building to remodeling.

Commercial carpenters typically remodel and help build commercial office buildings, hospitals, hotels, schools, and shopping malls. Some specialize in working with light-gauge and load-bearing steel framing for interior partitions, exterior framing, and curtain wall construction. Others specialize in working with concrete forming systems and finishing interior and exterior walls, partitions, and ceilings. Most commercial carpenters perform many of the same tasks as residential carpenters.

Industrial carpenters typically work in civil and industrial settings, where they build scaffolding and create and set forms for pouring concrete. Some industrial carpenters build tunnel bracing or partitions in underground passageways and mines to control the circulation of air to worksites. Others build concrete forms for tunnels, bridges, dams, power plants, or sewer construction projects.

Understanding- having insight or good judgment

JOHN 7:24 Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.

A definition of understanding is sympathy. A def of sympathy is compassion. A def of compassion is mercy. 

We cannot come from a place of understanding unless we are able to come from a place of Mercy. We cannot come from a place of Mercy till we love others as we love ourselves. 

When King Solomon asked for an understanding heart to govern the people, God called it Wisdom.


1 KINGS 3:9-3:12
Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment;Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.

In John 7 (below), When Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath ( a day to rest from works), the teachers of the law were furious as usual that He was not following the law and rather had mercy on the man and healed him regardless of the day. Jesus is our Sabbath, He is our rest from our works. We rest from our own works and turn everything over to Jesus when we believe that He died on the Cross for our Sins and His Spirit comes to live in us. He knows that we  are unable to follow the Law and that is why Jesus died on the Cross for us. He came to make another way. We are made whole when we enter His rest and in that way, we rest from our works. It does not mean that we no longer step out and do things that are Christ-like, it just means that it no longer feels like work because we do  it out of love rather than obligation. We need to let go of judgement based off a heart bent on the law and judge according to the heart of mercy that Christ has given to us. 

JOHN 7:14-24 

Now about the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and taught.And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory: but he that seeketh his glory that sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him.Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law? Why go ye about to kill me?The people answered and said, Thou hast a devil: who goeth about to kill thee?Jesus answered and said unto them, I have done one work, and ye all marvel.Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision; (not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers;) and ye on the sabbath day circumcise a man.
If a man on the sabbath day receive circumcision, that the law of Moses should not be broken; are ye angry at me, because I have made a man every whit whole on the sabbath day?Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.

MAT 22:36-40
Master, which is the great commandment in the law?Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind."This is the great and foremost commandment.And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

John 6:29King James Version (KJV)

29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

Matthew 9:13King James Version (KJV)

13 But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

un·der·stand·ing

ˌəndərˈstandiNG/

noun

1. 1.

   the ability to understand something; comprehension.

   "foreign visitors with little understanding of English"

   synonyms:

   comprehension, apprehension, grasp, mastery, appreciation,assimilation, absorption; More

adjective

1. 1.

   sympathetically aware of other people's feelings; tolerant and forgiving.

   "people expect their doctor to be understanding"

   synonyms:

   compassionate, sympathetic, sensitive, considerate, tender, kind,thoughtful, tolerant, patient, forbearing, lenient, merciful, forgiving,humane; More

2. 2.

   archaichaving insight or good judgment.

Hebrews 3 King James Version (KJV)

3 Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus;

2 Who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house.

3 For this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath more honour than the house.

4 For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God.

5 And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after;

6 But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.

7 Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice,

8 Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness:

9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years.

10 Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways.

11 So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.)

12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

13 But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

14 For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end;

15 While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.

16 For some, when they had heard, did provoke: howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses.

17 But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases fell in the wilderness?

18 And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not?

19 So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

King James Version (KJV)

by Public Domain

HEB 4:3-
For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works.And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest.Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief:Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.For if Joshua had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day.There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things arenaked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in thingspertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins:Who can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way; for that he himself also is compassed with infirmity.And by reason hereof he ought, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins.And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, aswas Aaron.So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee.As he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared;Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;Called of God an high priest after the order of MelchisedecOf whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and eviTherefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.And this will we do, if God permit.For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God:

Love and Smiles

My Grandma used to never smile for pictures. She said it was because she looked ugly in them. This message came from years of mistreatment and harsh words from broken people in her family, that she chose to believe about herself. I continually told her how beautiful she was and over time look what happened. It's amazing how much love can squelch the lies and heal a heart Let's take the time today to spread His love to someone who is in need of it. It's most likely the one that we would most of the time, rather avoid.. I love you Grandma and I know how you must shine and glow in Heaven. No more tears, no more pain.

Words

This AM I saw a video with Wanda Stykes in it. It was like a commercial style and the setting was a restaurant. Three young boys were sitting at a table looking at something in the room and saying, "that is so gay".  Wanda gets up and reprimands them for saying it and then passively aggressively insults one of the young boys in front of his friends, in order to prove a point.  I am sure that if this were a true life situation the boy would have been hurt by her words. The question is, how did that teach the boy what she seemed to be intending to teach him? She merely lashed out at him (doing the same thing she was accusing him as doing) and gave her opinion of what he said and how he meant what he said without asking him. Of course everyone that wants to stand up for gay rights is totally looking past her offense of hurting another person with her words and cheering her on in these posts as if she is some kind of hero. It was obvious in the video that the boys did not mean what they were saying towards gay people and I guess that was what the video is supposed to be for, awareness of the words we speak which I do believe there is a time and place for. The very object that they say is, "so gay" is a bright cheery SHOWY statue of an Italian figurine holding a pizza up in the video. Some people associate bright and showy (the def of Gay) in their heads as dumb, like a young teenage boy and that has nothing to do with the gay community or feeling that a gay person is dumb. The gay community seemed to have chosen the word Gay to represent themselves but let's face it, it was not the original intent of the word  to classify the  sexual orientation of another person.  The only awareness that this created in me is that so many people judge on outward appearance and are almost waiting for someone to offend them so that they can prove some kind of point . The question is who are they trying to prove it to more, themselves or someone else? You will find what you look for, I assure you. We are called to give mercy and love  to others above all else. Whether we are offended or not, we should always leave room for the possibility that a situations are not always as they appear to be and especially when you do not truly know the heart or intent of another person. 

The original meaning of the word Gay was "carefree", "happy", or "bright and showy".. If it meant that first, shouldn't that be the true meaning of the word rather than a secondary meaning that has been masked by the latest popular use of it? Like the word queer (strange,odd) or Fag (a cigarette). Though they have been used in a derogatory sense to describe someone that desires their own sex for a mate, should their ignorance change the meaning of a word? If I use the true definition of the word, I must say that a lot of my actions as a person would seem to a lot of people a lot of the time as gay. I realize that the way a person uses a word makes all the difference and I am most likely ignorant to some of the history that brought this video on but that's why I pose these questions. It's almost as if these words have been hijacked to mean something other than their original intent like so many have. We must look at everything from a whole picture perspective rather than the little boxes that the world has been trying to place us in. 

We choose whether to go through life as one offended constantly at everything that people do and say or to know and love ourselves enough as a person knowing that God made and loves us and their words, actions and opinions of us do not change the Truth about who we are. We all have the right to our freedom of speech. Though people abuse this freedom and say ignorant things, it is still their right to say how they feel. Like it or leave it, it is all part of what makes America the land of the free.

God's Not Dead

Stand Up For Your FREEDOM!

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2014/05/05/teacher-tells-student-cant-read-bible-in-my-classroom/




The Pilgrims came to this country 1620 because the Church of England was still rooted in Catholicism (religion), that was man made and getting too far away from the actual teachings in the Bible. Yes the church broke away in a sense from Catholicism in 1534 but they were still rooted in it's teachings. Let's not confused the Pilgrims with the Puritans that were also trying to force religion. The Pilgrims wanted to be able to worship God the way that they felt necessary without persecution. They were true Christians that followed God with their hearts and not a set of rules that were man made and in a lot of ways contradictory to what Jesus taught. He taught us to love and serve one another. To show mercy. Only God knows the intentions and heart of this teacher. I had heard from someone on Facebook  then it was during accelerated reading time which should be a FREE reading time but it sounds like the school is the one that gave her false ideas of what accelerated reading is and since they have changed it, if what Dan posted is accurate. Understand though that the people that came on that ship followed Christ and He is the one that gave them their sense of freedom that later led to ours. It's history. Study it and know it please. Yes, there were Native Americans here first but they are not the ones that created the true heart of America that made America free. As far as shooting the Native Americans and taking their land, it seems that was the Spanish and in a lot of cases the Native American people were signing their land over on behalf of their tribes and they did not have the right to do it. What's my point? Everyone please study and know the real history of our land and not the watered down versions they are teaching today. Find OLD history books before the government had their agenda and talked us into being what they call being politically correct which really means don't talk about your rights or voice your opinions because you will be a stronger WE THE PEOPLE that the government cannot rule rather than the original intent that WE THE PEOPLE control the goverment. STAND TOGETHER OR WE WILL FALL!