Let your light shine before men

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

The other day, I had received a prophetic message from Marie Chapian. She used to send me these all of the time but I had not seen one in probably a year. 

In a part of this prophetic message she had said, "where you step your foot you bring the light of Heaven". 

My friend on this same day was talking to me about the surgery that my Dad was having and she said, that I would be in the hospital with a loving heart,lighting up any room he was in the day of his operation.

My friend had no idea about the e-mail from Marie. 

At the hospital, I had someone that worked in the check in room for surgery tell me that I have a rare gift of compassion that is very hard to find. She said to keep the sweet Spirit of mine and stay just the way that I was rather than the way that most of the people are that she sees. She said that she sensed the Spirit of Christ in me. I talked to her for a long time about a situation that was happening and that is how she came to the conclusion that she had come to. Normally, people would have been in and out of her office but it turned out that my brother knew her and it was the end of her day, so we were able to sit and talk to her. I gave her a hug when I left and thanked her for her kind words. She told me that she felt I was gifted to work with others and that she would pray with me that I could find my true purpose in life. What it looks like in the natural. I have an idea of my gifts but I just don't know how it looks as a profession besides the possibility of a center for Women.  I am looking for more details and direction. It's not usual that you have this type of encounter in the hospital where everyone is so pressed for time. It was as if God designated that time as an appointment for me or both of us.  

After that, I was walking to find the car and I smiled as I passed someone by on the walkway and he said now I can tell that you are a happy person! My smile was all it took to give him a good feeling. 

I truly felt in that moment that the prophetic words were true and I did bring the light of Christ with me. I feel as if this light is Spirit and His Spirit is LOVE. 

Pay attention to the Spirit that you are bringing with you. Can they see Christ in you or do you blend in with the rest of the secular crowd? Do they see something in you that is different that they want a part of? 

Bring the love of Christ with you and that love will light the room. 

Everything I have is already yours... (The Prodigal Son..and his older brother)

AUDIENCE: Publicans, sinners, and also the Pharisees,scribes (group of so-called righteous men)

SETTING: The Pharisees and Scribes were grumbling and complaining that Jesus was was eating with the tax collectors and sinners. 

KJV LUKE 15 Jesus spoke this 1 of 3 parables to them. 

11 And he said, A certain man had two sons:

12 And the younger of them  said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living.

13 And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living.

14 And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want.

15 And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.

16 And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him.

17 And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!

18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee,

19 And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants.

20 And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.

21 And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son.

22 But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet:

23 And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry:

24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.

25 Now his elder son was in the field: and as he came and drew nigh to the house, he heard musick and dancing.

26 And he called one of the servants, and asked what these things meant.

27 And he said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound.

28 And he was angry, and would not go in: therefore came his father out, and intreated him.

29 And he answering said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment: and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends:

30 But as soon as this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fatted calf.

31 And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine.

32 It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found.

At first glance of this story, one may believe that the condition of the younger brothers heart, is far worse than the elder brother.  The glory however of Jesus's parables are that they seldom fall short of teaching more than a couple of lessons to us. Today, I would like to turn our focus to the mentality of the elder brother. Upon our first introduction, he is angry because his Father appears to be lavishing the best of the best that He has, all over the younger brother. How could He do this when the younger brother did such horrible things? Why is He celebrating this type of behavior? He continues in his anger further, justifying his position of worth by the acts of service he has performed and his supposed impeccable character at the commandment of his Father. Finally, he expresses that he is hurt because his Father has never given him any of these these things that the younger brother has just been blessed with, when he clearly deserved them more due to his service: 

29 And he answering said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment

We see here that the elder son was doing all the right things because his Father said to do them however it does not appear by his words, that any of it was done because he wanted to. It was more of an obligation that eventually led to his resentful feelings towards his Father and his brother and caused him to miss out on the celebration and pure joy of his brothers return. 

The Father's response is something that we all need to grab a hold of: 

31 And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine.

In my opinion the younger brother was in a much better place than the older. He may have left but because of having the time away, he was then able to FULLY appreciate what he used to have with the Father. I feel as if it renewed him and allowed him to stay because he wanted to stay, not because he felt he had to. There was also nothing left for him to expect as he had already blown all of his inheritance. If you noticed, the entire time the younger son tried to plead his case for grace, the Father wanted nothing else but to love him and celebrate his return and gave him this grace freely. 

The Father in the story is symbolic of God and how He feels about us. There is nothing that we can or cannot do to make Him love us, less or more. He is no respecter of persons and loves us all the same.   It shows us that we have many things available to us as sons and daughters of the King and we need something sometimes to open our eyes to what we have. 

Notice that the younger brother did not even have to ask for anything. All he had to do, was to remember where he came from and go back and take part in what was always his in His Fathers House.  

If you want to know what you have available to you in the Father, you can find it all in His Word and in seeking time with Him to reveal it to you. All you have to do is believe and receive.  

His Seal, His Promise

MANIFEST- :  readily perceived by the senses and especially by the sense of sight, easily understood or recognized by the mind :  obvious

On 11-28-06, I saw a similar image to that as above,  in the sky as I was walking. I was reading a paper about what is generally referred to in some circles as manifesting. I see manifesting as God's ability and desire to fill our lives with miracles and super natural and our taking hold of that which is waiting to be received and ever available to us.  Before my eyes beheld the circular rainbow above me, I had spoken the words Faith, Faith, Faith to myself and had steered my mind into total concentration on only my desire for a deeper Faith in God. A berry from the sky (probably dropped by a bird), hit me right in the nose as I finished my declaration of the word Faith. At that moment, I looked up and saw this breathtaking picture in the sky.  I had never seen anything like it before at that time. 

Immediately I envisioned myself climbing through the perfect hole where the Son was shining through.  It became a portal in my mind that was going to transform my then present thoughts of fear, lack, anger and judgement into thoughts of Love, Faith and Grace. The word Grace came to the forefront of my mind once I was inside the Light. When I was finished thanking God for this wondrous and awesome experience, I looked away and saw around every pine tree a sapphire blue light next to each one that looked like a flame burning inside the light. There must have been 7 or 8 of them. 

I knew that something had changed in me. I did not have firm grasp at that point what it all meant and I am still learning till this day.

I saw this again in the sky on 10-25-09. This day was a very difficult day for me in my life. By the time the circular rainbow made it's way back on my path, God had shown me many things. I knew at this point in time that this circular rainbow is what I understand now to be the seal of God. Every King of old would seal any covenant (promise) that was decreed by him. The seal that was chosen to define a particular King, was always something representative of his characteristics. Just as God promised that it would not rain and put His Bow in the sky as a sign of His Promise. I knew on that day that God was reminding me of His promise of His Son to save me and at the time was promising something new to me as well. 

They have done and are still researching the many properties of colors. Each color represents different feelings and characteristics. White encompasses all colors of the rainbow. 

The next time you see a rainbow in the sky, let it ever serve as a reminder of how much He loves you and gave His Son to die for you so that you might have life. If you believe, anything is possible. 

Ephesians 1:13

King James Version (KJV)13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

Revelation 4:3

King James Version (KJV)3 And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.

**I feel they are speaking of the way that an emerald is cut and shines** 

1 Kings 8:56-58

King James Version (KJV)

56 Blessed be the Lord, that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: there hath not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant.
57 The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fathers: let him not leave us, nor forsake us:
58 That he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers.

Happy Birthday Jesus !!!

Though we do not know the real date of the birth of Jesus, let us choose today and every day to recognize His birth and what that means for all of us as Christians. ETERNAL LIFE..... 

I bought a new Christmas Tree this year because I had given my tree to my son and his wife. My ornaments were still in my storage unit and I did not feel like going to get them this year. The lights on my new tree are so pretty,  I figured it looked pretty enough without them. Wouldn't you know that even though everyone was unaware of this in my circle of friends and family, that I would receive more ornaments this year than any other year to date. While each one is taking on it's own special story, I will speak of one specific ornament and the story behind it:

When my Grandma passed away on May 25 2012, a message was given to me that when you see a cardinal, it's a reminder to Keep the Faith. I received this picture frame in a white elephant gift exchange. Notice the cardinal on the top. I wanted to put a picture of Grandma in it. I looked in my photo box and there was this one that was taken in May 2012 at the nursing home. Even though the printer I have is low on ink, I was able to print this on regular paper and it could not have come out clearer. I could not get the frame to sit right on the branches, till I found this spot. I had wondered why there are more pinkish lights on this tree rather than red when I had first plugged it in. Even though I love them, I thought it was kind of odd. Now I know why. My Grandma loves the color pink. From the spot that the frame finally settled in, there is pink all around. Now I can see her at Christmas while knowing she is all around us now and always. 

or·na·ment

  [n. awr-nuh-muhnt; v. awr-nuh-ment, -muhnt]  Show IPA

noun

1.

an accessory, article, or detail used to beautify the appearance of something to which it is added orof which it is a part: architectural ornaments.

2.

a system, category, or style of such objects or features; ornamentation: a book on Gothic ornament.

3.

any adornment or means of adornment.

4.

a person or thing that adds to the credit or glory of a society, era, etc.

5.

the act of adorning.

Some interesting tidbits about the origin of the Christmas Tree.. 

http://www.allaboutjesuschrist.org/origin-of-the-christmas-tree-faq.htm

Choose Christ Rather Than Traditions And Doctrine

Mark 7

King James Version (KJV)

5 Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands?

6 He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.

7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

8 For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do.

9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.

10 For Moses said, Honour thy father and thy mother; and, Whoso curseth father or mother, let him die the death:

11 But ye say, If a man shall say to his father or mother, It is Corban, that is to say, a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; he shall be free.

12 And ye suffer him no more to do ought for his father or his mother;

13 Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.

CORBAN:  a sacrifice or offering to God among the ancient Hebrews

DOCTRINE: a particular principle, position, or policy taught or advocated, as of a religion or government

TRADITION: the handing down from generation to generation of the same customs, beliefs, etc, esp by word of mouth: 

In modern day times, one may refer to the highlighted words above as, "lip service". 

We have all been there, someone says one thing but their actions prove otherwise. When we are sincere in the words that roll off our lips, our actions will prove those words to be true. It will show what we truly believe. How can we be sincere in our beliefs if they are merely a tradition that was passed down to us? Jesus said if you love God, you would obey God and follow Him. How can you follow Christ, if you don't know what He taught? 

The Pharisees and scribes were a religious, pious group of people that spent the majority of their time following handed down traditions that served man rather than God, in the hopes that the people would follow them rather than Christ/God. Several times in the New Testament Jesus addresses this group and rebukes them for their actions. I do not believe you will find a verse where Jesus is talking about them or to them and is not rebuking their behavior. In a few instances,  He warns us to not be like them. It is so important to know your Bible and God on a personal level. Why trust your salvation in the hands of man?  In the end, it will be you who is responsible for your choices and actions. If you love the Lord, follow the Lord. Not man. If you are a part of any type of religion, I challenge you to search your heart. If the religious sect that you are a part of has any celebrations or traditions, find out where they originated. If it is a sect that professes to be Christian, the Bible is the source that you would need to go to in order to learn the teachings of Christ. I prefer the King James Version (KJV). The American Standard Version (ASV) is also a good translation. 

I was born and raised Catholic. I am no longer a Catholic however since I have been trained up in His Word, I consider myself to be follower of Christ and a part of no religious sect. Because I have experienced Catholicism first hand.  I am able to offer an example of a tradition that they hold to that is not Biblical and that is to BELIEVE in the Catholic Church. It is a part of their doctrine that in full is known as the Cathecism: http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P26.HTM

750 To believe that the Church is "holy" and "catholic," and that she is "one" and "apostolic" (as the Nicene Creed adds), is inseparable from belief in God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In the Apostles' Creed we profess "one Holy Church" (Credo . . . Ecclesiam), and not to believe in the Church, so as not to confuse God with his works and to attribute clearly to God's goodness all the gifts he has bestowed on his Church.¹³⁸

The Catholic church is not mentioned in Scripture, though their doctrine teaches that to believe in their man made institution, is the same as believing in Christ. There are very many instances of this in their doctrine, that glorifies their church and Mary (also not Biblical) rather than keeping the sole focus on Christ. There are very many teachings that are solely tradition and in some cases, against what Christ taught.  I respect all paths and religions,  for I know there are many roads to Christ; however I feel that it is up to us to search Scripture and to be sure of what we believe. Jesus stated in our verse above: 

13 Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.

Be weary of anyone or anything that urges you to believe man made traditions and doctrines for in doing so, you could be believing in something that was never a part of God's plan and it could make His Word of no effect in your life. You will not know if it is man made, until you read the Bible for yourself. I am sure that some of the people that were participating in what was known as Corban in the Bible verse above, were doing so of pure intentions; however they made a mistake and followed man rather than God and this led to going directly against God's law to Honor their Father and Mother. They were giving to the church of the Pharisees what belonged to their Father and Mother and doing so in the name of God because the Pharisees led them to believe it was His Word through their doctrine. They however were the ones that chose to believe it. 

What happened to the Pharisees? I would say they are still here today. They are any religious sect that teaches man made rules and traditions rather than teaching you to have a personal relationship with the Lord and to only receive your revelation from His Holy Spirit who is the ONLY person that revelation belongs to. 

Heavenly Host / God of Hosts Hosts = Armies

The word angelic host kept coming up for me, so I looked in the dictionary to see what the word means. One of the definitions in the dictionary is army. I never realized this. Through the Old Testament, it titles our God as the Lord of Hosts. Some have depicted this to means the stars and planets, however after reading a few passages, I would have to say the depiction is clearly of an army:

1. 1 Kings 2:5
   Moreover thou knowest also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner, and unto Amasa the son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his girdle that was about his loins, and in his shoes that were on his feet.
   1 Kings 2:4-6 (in Context) 1 Kings 2 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations
2. 1 Kings 15:20
   So Ben-hadad hearkened unto king Asa, and sent the captains of the hosts which he had against the cities of Israel, and smote Ijon, and Dan, and Abel-beth-maachah, and all Cinneroth, with all the land of Naphtali.
   1 Kings 15:19-21 (in Context) 1 Kings 15 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations

more occurrences of the word hosts in KJV: 

http://www.biblegateway.com/keyword/?search=hosts&version=AKJV&searchtype=all&startnumber=1

There is a post in here from 5-5-13 Army of the Lord / a story and a prophetic message for you

It makes even more sense now the word that I was given and the messages about our being in The Army of the Lord.

After I came to this conclusion, I saw this site. It is pretty good http://www.alienresistance.org/ufos-the-bible/the-heavenly-host/

God speaks in pictures

Jeremiah 18

King James Version (KJV)

18 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying,

2 Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words.
3 Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels.
4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.
5 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
6 O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.

I love this verse because it reminds me of the ways that God has spoken to me. Notice how He led Jeremiah to a potter's house so that he could watch the potter and get a better idea of what God was explaining to him. 

If you feel that God is calling you someplace that has nothing to do with your ministry, remember that He may be trying to get a point across to you and the only way for you to understand and see the picture in your head, is to see it with your own eyes first.