Can I rejoice in the Lord... Always? Philippians 4:4

A brother in Christ at a meeting received a gift of a pair of brand new boots from someone in the gathering. He rejoiced and thanked God for much of the rest of that evening for the unexpected gift he had received. That next Monday he and his wife lost their newborn son to complications at birth. To this another mature and prophetic brother said "it was important for this brother to maintain the joy of the Lord on that Monday much like he had in that meeting the prior week." Wow.. Who is sufficient for these things?!

What did I come to understand from the true account? The joy of the Lord and the peace of God are the two fruit of the Spirit given to hold us up during times of adversity. They are not just human emotions felt when everything is going well. When the world is falling apart around us, HIS joy and peace flood our hearts and we remain focused on Him. I ask myself would I be able to say what Job said in a situation like this "The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away... BLESSED BE THE NAME OF THE LORD"?? Today I say Lord thank you for your grace and mercy which will sustain us during such times.

Need an honest mistake eraser?...

I have made mistakes in my life... I am sure you have too! Some of the scars connected with these mistakes I will most likely carry to my grave. But I was reading my bible recently and came across a scripture that really gave me hope. It is not without requirement mind you, but it does have great merit! The scripture is nestled inside Jesus' first public proclamation widely known as the Sermon in the Mount. Jesus simply says these words that are recorded in Matthews 5:7... "Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy." There it is... no doctrine, but just a simple message saying if you want people, the world, the universe, and your creator to give you a break, start giving others the same consideration. I am amazed at how hard we are on others but totally expect to be given every consideration. Showing a little mercy is something that can change the world! How about it? Let's cut each other some slack! Maybe the next time you need a mistake erased hopefully you have stored up some mercy chips you will be able to cash in.

Mi2N.com - Makarios Productions Announces The Release Of Gospel Artist Reginald MaGee's Album "Pressing On"

Mi2N.com - Makarios Productions Announces The Release Of Gospel Artist Reginald MaGee's Album "Pressing On"

Bishop James Manning is Wrong

There has been a great misconception in the Body of Christ. What is this misconception? It is the idea that a person Preacher/Prophet/Saint/whatever is only accountable to God for what they say. On the contrary, what keeps us humble is the understanding that no one is above the other. Jesus said he would not advocate us exercising dominance over one another (Matt 23 chapter), the least would be the greatest. What does this really mean? It means that the oldest most experienced believer is accountable to the youngest least experienced. In 1st Corinthians Paul speaks eloquently about the metaphor of the church being a body. We are members of a collective, not mavericks.

The Old Testament has the example of the prophets who were only accountable to God who gave them his direct word. However, in the N. T., specifically according to Paul - 1st Cor. 14, those who would speak prophetically are subject to others who would have to weigh carefully what they proclaim as the Word of God. This speaks of accountability.

To this end I believe that Bishop James David Manning is wrong first for singling out another member in a public forum like that. It is one of the first things taught in homiletics that you never do that. You preach Christ and him Crucified. A social gospel is probably better when it is used to help the disenfranchised, not to get your gun off about a particular person. I believe that too much hijacking of the pulpit to espouse ideas other than Christ centered messages is not the will of God. If Manning has a problem with Barack he should do as the bible says in Matthew chapter 18. That is the proper way of things in the Body of Christ. I believe he is out of order.