I am so excited to announce that my book – “Refined By The Fire; Stories From A Life Of A Firewalker” is finally finished and available! It has been a long time coming!
For more information, check out the book page and view the trailer here:
https://titus345.com/my-books/
God Hates Me! Okay maybe He doesn’t hate me, but at the very least He is 
mad at me! He’s just waiting to get a hold of me and punish me. I have sinned so much, there is no way that He could ever forgive me. If I can’t forgive myself, why would He forgive me.
Sadly, that is the prevailing opinion of many Americans today. God is unrelenting. He is vengeful and angry. How could He ever forgive me for what I’ve done?
Gods promise in Isaiah 54: 9-10 gives us the hope and assurance we so need.
9 “In the time of Noah I promised
never again to flood the earth.
Now I promise not to be angry with you again;
I will not reprimand or punish you.
10 The mountains and hills may crumble,
but my love for you will never end;
I will keep forever my promise of peace.”
This prayer was taught to me by my mother many years ago. It is still so very valuable.
Before opening the pages of your Bible,
ask the Holy Spirit to be your Teacher and Guide.
Father God,
I ask that You send Your Holy Spirit to be my Guide as I open Your Holy Word.
I ask that You open my eyes, that I may read Your Word.
I ask that you would open my ears, that I may hear Your Word.
I ask that you would open my mind, that I may understand Your Word.
I ask that You would open my mouth, that I may speak Your Word.
And Lord I ask that You would open my heart, so that Your Word will come and live in me.
Thank You Father God, I pray this in the name of Your Son Jesus. Amen.
I don’t know about men, but most of the women that I know will tell you that we live in our heads. We typically have so many seemingly random thoughts running around, that if you were to take a peak… well let’s just say it might be a bit scary in there. We carry everything from what’s for dinner, did we take something out of the freezer, when does the dog go to the vet, did I take my medicine, when can I get to the gym, remember to pick up daughter for lessons, don’t forget son needs help with project, and oh yes, I am married and he needs me to do thus and such… and usually all of that takes place before the second cup of coffee.
Add to that the chatter and self talk that we’ve carried around with us for so many years. You know those voices, those condemning, hateful voices that work so well at reminding us just what a mess we are. And don’t forget the voices of past friends, relationships – professional and personal- that continue to remind us of other not so wonderful times in our lives.
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish by have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” John 3:16-18
Are you whoever?
Some people are turned off by the idea of an eternal life because their current lives are so miserable. But eternal life is not an extension of a person’s miserable mortal life. Eternal life is God’s life embodied in Christ given to all believers now as a guarantee they will live forever. In eternal life there is no death, sickness, enemy, evil or sin.
When we don’t know Christ, we make choices as thought this life is all we have . In reality, this life is just the introduction to eternity. Ask God into your heart and receive this new life by faith.
“As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins…” Eph 2:1
When I look at the life I have in Jesus it is no doubt that satan wants to stop my forward
movement by filling my thoughts with “what if…” the “what ifs” of my past; what if I had made a different decision in 1998 or 2008 or 1972 or 1979. How different my life would have been. The images and thoughts are not ugly thoughts, they are not condemning thoughts. They make me want a “do-over”. They almost make me long for those days again. But do they really?
Then I read just a bit further to Eph 2:4 and I see… “But God…” But God is so rich in mercy, and He loved us so much…
We live in a society of noise. Right now, it is mid evening and I am alone in the house. Yet it is noisy here. I can hear the music playing in the living room. I can hear my upstairs neighbors walking… walking… walking (God bless older home with squeaky floors!) I can hear the whirring sound of my computer. I can hear kids running outside. I can hear cars coming and going. And to top it all off, someone overcooked their dinner and set off the fire alarms! Everybody outside till the firemen come! Chatter, Chatter, Chatter. All kinds of noises.
All that, and its evening here. What about during the day. How much noise is there that goes on in our lives every day? And not just the noise of our life, the noise that we have no choice but to hear. Think about it and make a list the different sounds that you hear before you make it to work in the morning, or that you hear during a simple one hour lunch break… the noise is never ending, and it is deafening.
Even with all of that, there are some noises that we just know, sounds that we can hear over the din of our daily life. There is the sound of “mommy” coming from your child among all of the other children at the playground. Then there is cry in the middle of the night that can wake you from a solid slumber.
“The Stress Cure” by Linda Evans Shepherd is a book that I read and reviewed in October 2014. This is a profound book that touched me deeply. I felt that I needed not just to read the book again, but to really give it my attention and let it work to soothe me in the craziness of all that is going on around here.
With head-strong, unbelieving extended family members, there is never a shortage of drama. Lately however, the level of crazy has gone to a whole new level. One that I didn’t think was possible. Most days, I don’t want to answer the phone and consider running away as a viable option.
So the other day as I was flipping through the pages of this book, I can upon this prayer:
Dear Lord, Please forgive me for allowing my circumstance to overwhelm me instead of trusting in You. I close all the doors I have opened to the enemy in this area. In addition, I cancel any plans the enemy has for my life. I cast out any power of influence from any evil spirit trying to overwhelm me. I pray this in the power of the name and blood of Jesus I exchange the enemy’s work for God’s peace. Send the river of Your peace not only to me, but also to those overwhelmed by the same influences and circumstances. I pray this also in the power of the name and blood of Jesus! (The Stress Cure – page 45)
This article was originally posted on Charisma Magazine/News. My attempts to “share” the link were not successful, so I have copied the entire article – unaltered. The original link is:
http://www.charismanews.com/opinion/clarion-call/44394-the-top-8-things-to-think-about
The news is negative. The enemy is pulling out all the stops because his time is short. Christians need to take a deep breath and focus on the things of the Spirit. (CreationSwap/Paul Burger)
Look at your life. Life is hard. Look at the news. In our fallen, sinful world, evil swirls about like a violent dust devil, clouding the air of absolute truth and muddying the waters of pure grace that flow to eternal life through Christ Jesus. Continue reading
God IS…
It struck me as I was reading this the other day that God IS… it does not say that God “was”… it says…. God “IS”. God is not past tense. He is with us today, just as He was with Adam, Moses, Abraham, and Isaac… all the saints that have gone before us. He is present and available to you and me just as He always has been throughout all eternity. It continues to boggle the mind that the same God that walked with Adam in the cool of the evening in the Garden (Genesis 3:8), is that same God that “IS” today.
God IS our REFUGE…
He is our safe place, hiding place, our shelter from danger, our shelter from the storms. He is our safe haven, our sanctuary. I found this definition interesting… a place to flee Back To. Interesting… “Back To” suggests that I’ve been there before and I can go there if I need???
God IS our REFUGE and STRENGTH…
Strength is not just physical power. It is also defined as courage, authority and influence. It is the inherent capacity to endure. It is also a stronghold or fortress. I know that everything is under Him; He has authority over all. I know that nothing can hurt me, attack me, or remove me from the REFUGE I seek in Him. He is our stronghold … our fortress. Continue reading
Saved Because of His Mercy 