Eyes Wide Open!

"blessed are your eyes, because they see;

and your ears because they hear."

Jesus, Matthew 13:16

This is a story from John chapter 6 in the Bible. You can read it in the Bible yourself, but here is what it is about.

One time, when Jesus was here on the earth, there was a large crowd of people following Him. The reason they were following Him was because they saw Him healing sick people. This was a sign from God. It was a wonderful thing to see all the sick people be healed! Jesus also did a miracle of feeding over 5000 of them with just one boy's lunch. The boy had five loaves of bread and two fish. Jesus fed the whole crowd with it! It was a great miracle. There was more left over than what they started with!

The next day, Jesus and His disciples were on the other side of the lake. The crowd was looking for Him. They got into boats and found Him. Jesus knew that the only reason they were looking for Him was because He fed them, not because of the miracles they saw. So He talked to them about seeking Him for more than food. He said to seek Him for the eternal life that Father God gives to those who believe in Jesus. What the people said next was so bad! They asked Him what kind of sign He could do so they could believe in Him. What! Remember, that was the whole reason they followed Him in the first place was because of the healings and miracles He did. And now they say they can't believe until He does a sign!

It was like the crowd of people didn't even see the miracles that Jesus did, even though He did them right in front of them. Or they forgot them already. Some people are like this today. They have hardened their heart and closed their spiritual eyes and ears so they can't see that God is real and doing great things.

Jesus said to His disciples, "blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear." Be sure to keep your eyes, ears and heart wide open to Jesus. Seek Him--look to get as close to Him as you can, and you will see just how amazing He is! If you don't know how to seek Him, then pray, "Jesus, show me how to seek You!" He will.

Friends of God!

Jesus said
"You are My friends if...."

John 15:14

Wouldn't it be cool to know what God is thinking about? Wouldn't you like to know His plans, ideas and what He is going to do? Well, Jesus said that His friends will know what God--our heavenly Father--is doing because He will show them! If you are friends with someone you know what they like and don't like. You know where they live and you talk to them a lot. They will tell you what kind of things they've been doing or planning to do. What an awesome thing to be a friend of Jesus!

Jesus told us how to be friends with Him. He said if we keep His commands then we are His friends. His commandment is for us to love each other just like He has loved us. He said the two greatest commandments are to:

1. Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength
2. Love your neighbor as yourself.

When we love like this, we are keeping His commands and we are His friends. Ask Him anything. Ask Him what He likes and doesn't like. Ask Him what His ideas are and what He thinks about. Jesus loves you so much that He even died for you. But God raised Him up from the dead and now He wants to be your friend! 

John 15:12-17; Mark 12:28-34

Your Mind Border

And you will know the truth
and the truth will make you free

John 8:32

Do you know what a border is? A border is like a line that shows where one thing ends and something else begins. It's like a fence you put up around something. You might put a fence around a yard to keep your dog from running away and getting lost. You might put a fence around a garden to keep animals from going in and eating your food. After all your hard work, you don't want little critters stealing your food!

There are other kinds of borders too. There is a border that keeps your spirit from being invaded. Your spirit is the real you. In your spirit God has put all kinds of cool things. They are like treasures buried inside you. They are ideas and hopes and dreams and gifts and all kinds of things like that. But there is an enemy--the devil--that would try and steal these things from you. You can win against him because Jesus in you is greater than he is. The only way the devil can win against you is if he tricks you. One way he tries to trick people is by bringing thoughts and ideas to you that go against what God says. (Kind of like what he did to Adam and Eve). So what do you do to protect the border of your mind?

First of all, you need to know the borders that God set up. They are His truths. He wrote them down for you in the Bible. The more you read the Bible, the stronger the border of your mind will be. Then, when the enemy brings tricky thoughts to your mind to try and trick you, or deceive you, you will know it's him because you will know that thought is not the truth. Be sure to read the Bible a lot so you will know the truth. When you know the truth, the devil won't be able to trick you. Reading your Bible makes the border of your mind strong!

With your mind-border strong so the devil can't invade it and trick you, then you can discover all the awesome things God has put within your spirit. You can spend your time on these things, so that your life becomes an adventure with God like it is supposed to be!

John 8:32; 2 Corinthians 10:3-5; Proverbs 25:28; Proverbs 22:28

Thank-You: Jewish Help to America

"Deliver Israel, O God, from all their troubles!" Psalm 25:22 NIV

Do you know when you are supposed to say thank you? It's when someone does something nice for you right? Well, there were some Jewish people who did something very nice for the United States of America. If you live in America, you can say thank you to these people.

Haym Salomon was a Jewish person from Poland who was living in America at the time of the American Revolution. This was the war the United States fought to become a free country. Mr. Salomon gave the U.S. army a lot of money so they could give the soldiers food and clothes and win the war that gave us our independence. He, and other Jewish people he gathered money from, gave millions of dollars to the army for the war. They said they could not have done it without him! He was never paid back this money either.

As a way of saying thank-you, George Washington instructed the people who were making the one-dollar bill to put something on the bill for the American people to remember the Jewish people's contribution to our independence. If you have a one-dollar bill, look on the front side and you'll see it has George Washington on it. Look at the back side and find the eagle in the circle to the right. Look above the eagle and you'll see 13 stars in the middle of a cloudburst. The thirteen stars are for the 13 colonies but they are shaped in the Star of David to honor the Jewish people. They are in a cloudburst to represent God's glory cloud in the temple in Jerusalem. 

Let's always remember what these Jewish people did for America!

See Stand With Israel: Friends of Zion by Mike Evans, by Time Worthy Books. Pages 97-102.

Bad Breath!

"...has God said,...?" Genesis 3:1

When someone talks, they breathe out. Say your name out loud. There is air that comes out of your mouth when you talk! This breath of words create an atmosphere--like a cloud--around you. It could be a life-cloud or a death-cloud. If you say things from a heart full of God's Spirit, a heart that is full of the love of God, then you make a life-cloud. But sometimes people say things that makes a death-cloud around them. 

One example of this is the serpent who spoke to Eve. He created a death-cloud of doubt. He asked Eve about what God said to them and which trees they could eat from. He wanted her to start to doubt God and think that God didn't really care about them. This is bad breath! We don't want to listen to those people who breathe out words against God--making us doubt Him or His goodness.

The Bible tells us that Jesus is the Word of God made flesh. When He was here on the earth, His whole life looked like God's breath! His life showed us the love of God and helps us get to know Him better. When we spend time breathing in the Words of God, (by reading the Bible and making sure we understand it), then God's big life-cloud surrounds us. You will be surrounded by His love, faith, peace, and everything that God is. Then, when you breathe out and speak, your breath will make life-clouds around you and other people too!

Breathe in..breathe out...the life-filled breath of God!

John 1:14

Like a Dove

"and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove..." Luke 3:22

After Jesus was baptized in water, heaven opened up and the Holy Spirit came down from heaven, looking like a dove, and rested on Him. Why do you think God had the Holy Spirit look like a dove? There's another place in the Bible that talks about a dove. It was with Noah. After the rain stopped Noah opened the window of the ark and sent out a raven. The raven flew here and there until the water was dried up from the earth. The raven never came back to let Noah know what was going on. It just went on its way exploring the earth. 

Then, Noah sent out a dove, but the dove couldn't find a place to rest so she came back to the ark. The dove came back to Noah, letting him know the water was still flooded over the earth. I love how the Bible says that Noah put out his hand and took her into the ark. You can just picture Noah putting out his hand, the dove landing on it and him very gently bringing her into the ark.

The dove, like the Holy Spirit, will rest with someone who is happy to have her. The Holy Spirit has a special way to talk to us too. Just like Noah's dove. After Noah's dove came back the first time, he waited seven days and sent her out again. This time the dove returned in the evening with a freshly picked olive leaf. Noah understood what that meant--that the water was gone down from the earth. Seven days after that he sent her out again and she did not return. It was time to get ready to leave the ark! Noah learned from the dove even though she didn't speak to him in words. How helpful it is to welcome the dove and learn the language of the Holy Spirit.

See Genesis 8:6-12

Perfect?

"...Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect."

Matthew 6:48

Do you know what it means to be perfect? If something is perfect it means that nothing is wrong with it. It means its complete or finished. It's all done and there's nothing to do to make it any better. But who is the one who decides if something is wrong or not? If you take some clay and make a vase and you finish it and feel like it came out exactly the way you wanted it to, then you think its perfect don't you? What if someone else comes along and says they think it should be a different color so they don't think its perfect, who is right? That's the problem with trying to be perfect. Everyone has their own opinion so its hard to tell who is right. The only way to be perfect is to live by God's truth--His opinion.

Truth means that something is real or right. It means its not a lie. If I tell you that the sun will rise tomorrow and it does, than I've told you the truth haven't I? But I could lie and tell you that your best friend said something mean about you when he didn't and that would not be true. The next time I tell you something you might not know if you can believe me because I might be a liar--someone who lies a lot. 

Some people think they are telling the truth but they aren't. It could be because they just don't know the truth so they make up an answer, or someone else lied to them so they are deceived. If a person believes a lie we call that being deceived. Eve believed the serpent's lie in the garden so she was deceived. That caused a horrible thing to happen and brought sin into the world. Being deceived makes your life full of problems!

God always tells the truth. He never lies and He never deceives people. He always knows the truth because He decides what truth is! You can always trust God. You can always believe what He says. He is the only one who is always right. 

The Narrow Gate

 “Enter through the narrow gate;

for the gate is wide and the way is broad

that leads to destruction, 

and there are many who enter through it. 

For the gate is small and the way is narrow

that leads to life, 

and there are few who find it." 

Matthew 7:13-14

Jesus said we should go through the narrow gate. What does He mean? He means that we shouldn't do things just because everyone else is doing them. We shouldn't follow the crowd, but follow Him. Just because your friends do something doesn't mean that you should. You will get into trouble eventually if you follow people without seeking the Lord for yourself.

You might get all kinds of people telling you what you should do and what you should think. When you watch television or go on the internet there will be advertisements and commercials trying to get you to want their stuff. Some people don't want to sell you stuff, but they want to get you to believe what they believe and think like them.

When you follow God's way it will lead to life. There may not be a lot of people on that path. You might feel like you are the only one sometimes that is looking to find the narrow gate and stay on the Lord's path. But it's worth it! Remember that God created the whole world and everything in it--even the people. He knows what's best no matter what!

Reflections

"For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face..."

1 Corinthians 13:12

A reflection in a pond isn't the real thing is it? When we look at what's real, we see the truth. Reflections are pretty, and the calmer the water is, the more clearly we can see the real thing in it. If you're looking to learn more about good things--like truth, wisdom and love-keep your heart and mind calm, and God will show you truth. Your life will become a beautiful reflection of Him!

Don't try so hard that you lose your peace.

Don't compare and compete with others, but be creative instead.

What seems like is better might not always good. 

What seems to be good might not always bring life.

Instead of trying to please someone, what about loving them?

When you've failed, it's not the end, you still have hope.

Instead of finding ways to always have fun, remember your clear conscious will keep you happy.

Instead of trying to force something to happen, have faith in God to make it go right.

Instead of making excuses, admit it when you've done wrong, and don't go that way again.

Instead of looking at what you don't have, look at what you do have and say thanks.

Instead of always asking God to do something for you, ask Him what you can do for Him.

When you think you can't, God says when you are with Him, you can.

Your Life Story

"...everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them,
may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock."
Matthew 7:24

Have you ever been in a really tall building? Did you walk up the stairs or take an elevator? The upstairs in a building is called the second story. Some buildings have more than one upstairs, so we say they have 3 stories or 4 stories. The Empire State Building in New York has 103 stories! There are taller buildings in the world but this was the first one to have more than 100 stories. Tall buildings like that are called skyscrapers.

Just like a tall building has one story on top of another, history is like that except it builds on the stories of people instead of bricks. Every person has a story. You have a story too. Your story is about where and when you were born, your family, and what you've done in your life. In order to build a tall building you have to have a strong foundation. You can't build on the sand because when the building is done it would be so heavy it would sink into the ground! Your life story needs a strong foundation too. The only foundation that is strong enough for your life is Jesus Christ! History is really His-story.

Jesus said whoever does what He says, is just like a wise person who builds his house, (or his story), on a rock. A rock is a strong foundation. Jesus is sometimes called the rock of our salvation because He is a strong foundation to build your life story on. Whenever you make choices, remember that you are building a story. Sometime you will tell your story. One day your children and grandchildren will hear your story. If you want your story to be a good one and a strong one that doesn't crumble, then make your choices be ones that Jesus would do!

Matthew 7:24-27

Waiting All This Time

We used to use the shadows

from the sun to light the earth,

I thought that was old-fashioned

so I looked for something new,

But I looked into the dark, thinking it was light.

Creation kept on going

though I didn’t really know,

I thought that I had found

something better than the old,

But there is One who can see, better than me.

Could I open up my heart

to the deeper truth of life,

and give a great big hug

to the One who gave the light?

He’s been here all along.

If I do then I’ll find peace

I could never get myself,

and I’ll be amazed

at how great His love is,

He’s been waiting all this time

for me.

Rose Murdock

May 9, 2014

The Light

"I am the light of the world"

John 8:12

Jesus said He is the light of the world. If you try and walk around in the dark there's a good chance you're going to trip over something, stub your toe, or get hurt or lost. It's much better when you can see isn't it? 

One thing that can happen in the dark is that someone can lie to you about something going on and you can't tell if that's the truth or not. They can make you afraid, or get  you to do something you shouldn't be doing just because you can't see. In the same way, people have lots of their own ideas about what's good and bad and the only way to know the truth is to listen to Jesus--the light of the world. 

Truth is important. If you don't know the truth about what 2 + 2 is, then you're going to have a hard time doing a lot of things. You will have a hard time at the store trying to buy things, or knowing how many bananas you need to pass out when your friends come over and its time for a snack! The way to know the truth is to have light, and Jesus wants to give you all the light you need--just ask Him for it!

What Kind of Dirt Are You?

"The seed is the word of God." Luke 8:11

Jesus told a parable to a crowd of people. A parable is a story with a hidden meaning. A lot of times Jesus told stories to the crowds of people that they didn't understand, but He told His disciples His secrets. The closer you are to Jesus, the more of His secrets you will hear!

In this story, a man planted seed in the ground, but some of it fell in three different kinds of dirt. The seed couldn't grow very well at all in those kinds of dirt. Finally, the seed got planted in a good kind of dirt and good fruit grew.

The secret of this story is that the seed is really the Word of God. God's Word is written for us in the Bible. Jesus is also called the Word of God made flesh. God made the whole world by speaking words. His words are very powerful! When they get planted in your heart, they will grow up like a plant that is full of life and good fruit!

The thing is, your heart needs to be good ground in order for God's Word to grow in your life. Your heart needs to be like soft dirt that a seed can grow in. A soft heart means that you will listen to God's Words and do what He says.

A Bottle For Your Tears

"Put my tears in Your bottle." Psalm 56:8

Did you know that God has a bottle to put your tears into? He loves you so much that He wants to catch every tear you ever cry. He sees every one. He knows every time someone hurts your feelings. He knows every time you feel stupid and embarrassed. He knows when you are afraid. He knows when you are sad. 

If you will ask Him, He will give your heart a hug. When Your heavenly Father gives you a hug, it takes away all of the bad feelings. His love for you is so strong that it chases away all of the sadness and fear. God is stronger than the biggest, scariest thing there is, so you can feel safe with Him. But He is so full of love, that He is also very gentle and kind to you, and always wants what is best for you. Never forget that God is love and He loves you!

The Walk to the Well

"whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst;"

The Bible tells the story of a woman who walked to a well to get water. In those days, they didn't have water in their house. They had to walk to a well carrying a waterpot. She didn't like walking a long way to the well. But one day she met someone interesting at the well. She met Jesus.

She was thirsty and Jesus talked to her about her thirsty spirit, not just her thirsty body. He told her that He could give her living water so her spirit would never be thirsty again! As they talked, she realized Jesus was the Messiah. He was the One God promised to send to save all people. She was so excited she ran off telling everyone about Him. She became a worshiper and her heart was never thirsty again!

This story is in the Bible in John chapter 4.