Category: Blessings

The Banquet

Annette Coffey1 Comment

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.” Psalms 23:5

Our God is surely good to us. And yes, everyone is watching. That is why we are persecuted. People are jealous and envious. If they can’t be blessed, then why should we. They don’t understand us and they think we are crazy but the proof is that we are happier and full of peace and favor. God doesn’t hide it either, he loves to show love and goodness to those that love him and are called according to his purposes. If they only knew exactly how much they are missing out on. They think they have more stuff, friends, money, or whatever but they are only living on crumbs. Drugs, alcohol,sex, and stuff can’t buy true happiness and peace. The more I learn about God’s true power and amazing miracles , that I couldn’t believe if I didn’t see it every day, the more I just want to shout, “did you see that?”. God is good to everyone because everything good comes from him , everything we could ever wish for in places and things. A breath taking sunset, or a fancy meal. Good friends and family. Think of all the good things we will one day have in heaven. Only perfect days forever more. No pain, death or sadness. Everything waiting for you to explore. God does good things for everyone but their eyes are only on the negative and they miss out because they aren’t grateful for what they do have. There is beauty and wonder around us every day but they take it for granted and don’t enjoy it. I remember a time when I thought I had to make my own good (emphasis on I) by doing what I wanted. It didn’t matter who it might affect along the way. I probably hurt other people to get what I wanted. Now I don’t have to strive or push to get my way. God’s ways are my ways and he blesses me all the time. Or maybe I’m just grateful for what I do have and I am thanking him all the time.

Blessings For Generations

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“but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.” Exodus 20:6

This is such a special promise. Growing up I had a wonderful life and I thought everyone had the same things I had. My family had been serving the Lord for as long as I knew. My grandfather had a church and I was in it from my very beginning. All my extended family served the Lord and my parents loved all of us kids and we had a wonderful life. It wasn’t till I was grown that I saw people who didn’t have it so good. My kids married Christian’s and my grandkids loved the Lord. Then my daughter’s husband walked out on her and their three children. She was a very good mom and eventually met and married a great young man who loved the Lord and who adored her and her children. They had a baby and this week I saw a video of my daughter bouncing him on her lap and tickling him. He was squealing with laughter through the whole thing. He was just 3 months old and I just couldn’t get over how perfect we were made. He didn’t have to be taught to laugh, we were made to enjoy this life and rejoice. There is no way with all that we just know and can do that we just happened or evolved from an ape or a fish. We can learn and understand and have natural emotions and thoughts. I also watch people who don’t know the Lord struggle and have diseases and problems. I know that trials and problems come to everyone but not as much to those serving the Lord. People who don’t know the Lord have so many more trials that they bring on themselves with their lifestyle choices. This life can be hard and I appreciate every advantage I have and serving the Lord has proven to be so worth all the effort. Having somebody who is always giving you the strength day to day to do all that comes your way is so valuable. Also knowing that I am loved unconditionally by someone who will bless me and is in control of my future is so comforting also.

Overcoming

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“We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the word of life.” 1 John 1:1

God is sovereign over all. There is nothing that he does not have control over. What he wants to happen does and he is very good. I have no control over anything and actually I don’t want it. I know the one who does and he does more than I could ever ask, think, or imagine. And I have a pretty good imagination. I first look to everything around me. Everything is from him for my enjoyment. So much that you could spend forever thanking him for things your whole life and barely scratch the surface. Things he has made like stars and planets, animals, plants, natural wonders, emotions, family, friends, gifts and talents. My son-in-law is an airline pilot and just got promoted to the top. He just started flying jumbo jets all over the earth. Last week he flew to England. I am so proud of him and excited for all he will experience. So I have been learning everything I can about all the places he’ll be traveling to. About the people, the natural wonders they are known for, industry, the arts, museums, commerce,churches and their religions. Yes God thought of it all. But not just the things he has made but all about him. He is living inside of me and I can do all things with him. Even greater things than he did, wow. There is nothing to stop me but myself. But that’s not going to happen because he can have all the control he wants. I am retired and can’t do a lot so I live in a nursing home. That sounds like a hard life but I have a chef and my meals come right to my room, housekeepers to make sure my room is always spotless, someone doing my laundry, maintenance for anything that goes wrong. Nurses and doctors taking care of all my health needs and making my appointments with doctors or hospitals and transportation. Insurance covering everything. A huge family and friends to live with. I even have my own private room with my own shower. Everything is done for me so I can just do whatever I want whenever I want. The first thing I want to do is talk to God, listen to praise music. I always say, “ What are we doing today God?” He has given me plenty to read, free games and puzzles to strengthen my brain. We spend the day together and I ask what I can do for him. That still small voice is always speaking and I listen. Life is great. It is everything you make it.

Persevere

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“You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.” Hebrews 10:36 NIV

God is good and he wants to give us an abundant life, but it does depend on us also. There are so many great promises in scripture. God has stored up for us more great stuff than we could ever imagine. But our behavior is important. When I had my stroke my life changed drastically overnight. One day I was an active mother of three and very independent. The next day I was 45 and living in a nursing home. I was unable to walk, talk or even take care of myself. I easily got overwhelmed and frustrated. I would cry from frustration. I couldn’t communicate very well so it was a difficult time for me and those caring for me. Now after 15 years I am a much better person and more at peace. God is a very big part of my life and I would do anything he asks of me and I try hard to get along with and enjoy everyone. So when God says persevere I understand. I used to live so differently and many of my struggles I brought on myself. Living for myself and the moment. God wants me to love and respect him. This is the fear of God and that’s important. Until we fear the Lord and will do whatever he asks, we will have struggles. But he wants to get beyond that with us. He loves us and it hurts him to see us that way but this is how we learn. He wants to lavish love on us. I am at a place now where I can see his promises being fulfilled. He is so good to me. Every person in my life is a blessing and I believe God has hand picked them just for me. Even the ones who irritate me. My children, my friends, my caregivers and nurses. I don’t take them for granted anymore. Life is short and I want them all to know how much they mean to me and to God. As my family and friends celebrated my 60 th birthday I can look back and see God’s hand on my life. It was hard at times but God has been so good to me. Way more than I think I deserve. The blessings just keep coming. My God is my greatest champion and he goes before me and with me against it all and he will make me victorious. The best is still to come.

Can you imagine all the great things God has for you?

He Is Faithful

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“If we are faithless, he remains faithful because he cannot disown himself .” 2 Timothy 2:13 NIV

We are flawed and sinful. But God is perfect. He cannot sin, it’s not his nature. We can trust that he will be faithful to do all that he promises. His promises are so good that it seems too good to be true. At one time I knew of his promises and believed they were true, but I had doubts. But now I have such a good relationship with him and I know him. He has proven true time and time again throughout the years. Being 61 years old he has always taken good care of me. I still have pain, heartaches and trials but I know he is there with me through it all and is helping and encouraging me through it all. He also teaches me so much about his ways through it. I no longer just believe, I have seen with my own heart his goodness for myself and he is faithful. Lately I have been so easily touched by him. I hear a song or someone says something good about God, and I get all choked up. I just get so blessed because he’s not just good he’s awesome. You can get to know him better for yourself. He promises as we seek more of him he will give it. But we need to make the first move to get to know him better. Pray! To get to know anyone better you need to talk to them. Read God’s word! We need to read all about him. His ways and his character. Why he does what he does. You can only get to know him by reading about him every day. You can read the same things over and over and always get something different out of it. That’s why the word is alive. The spirit shows you something different each time. Listen to praise music! Hearing others sing about how great he is rubs off. I hear myself singing in my sleep and I do sleep peacefully. Go to church! Being around other Christians and hearing them talk about his goodness inspires and relationships are strong. Pray and intercede for others! Praying for others needs encourages you when you hear answers to their prayers. He will also take care of your needs. I have come so far in my walk with him in just a short time. I find myself excited for each new day of his blessings. He is so very good.

Do you know the one who is always faithful?

His Glory

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“Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.” And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.” Exodus 33:18-19 NIV

The glory of the Lord is an awesome and powerful thing but not everyone can see it. I know I was 50 before my eyes were really opened to how awesome God is. It wasn’t till I really searched for all of him that my eyes were opened fully and I was in awe. Before then I did know of the Lord but, only Bible stories not personally. There was no power or awe in my life and it was a struggle to do the right things. Now that my eyes are opened I am so in love and amazed by his goodness and mercy. I get so emotional in a second when people are talking about him. My heart yells.”Ya, that’s my God, isn’t he awesome!” It’s like the proud feeling you get when someone is bragging about your child or spouse, someone you love dearly. But God is unbelievably good. I see him do special things in my life every day, and I am just one of his billions of kids. Wow. Another thing he tells us is that not everyone sees his mercy and compassion in their lives. He is God and he will do what he will do and there is no one or nobody who can question his motives. But if you read his words and believe in Jesus Christ as your savior, then you know just like I do that he shows favor to his true children. If you are one of his family you know he blesses all the time. He watches over us all the time and enjoys doting over us. The more time I spend with him in prayer, reading his word and meditating on it, singing praises, and all the other things I do to get to know him better, the more I fall in love with him. It brings so much peace and joy knowing him and how much he loves me. I am so glad that I was born into such a good Christian family and got to know him while I was young. But not so many people are so lucky. I did not have some of the struggles and difficulties that others have had. I had a very good life so far. That is why I have a desire to let everyone know how easy it can be to find the true and lasting peace I’ve found.

Don’t you want to be one of his kids and be doted over?

How Far Will We Fall

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“Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lamp stand from its place. Revelations 2:4-5 NIV

I just finished reading a great book about the church in the last days. Called ‘Salt and Light’. It showed how biblical prophecies of the last days can be interpreted and how we as Christians should stand strong and look to overcome the deceptions that will come. Satan still works to deceive even Christians. He will use anything he can to put doubt in our minds. His biggest area of attack is with our pride and our desires. So many things the world tells us we gotta have. Things are not necessarily bad but can take up so much of our time. Causing us to neglect our time with God. We really need to spend time every day with God to stay strong. If we do not take time to strengthen our spirits then we too risk being deceived. I have been there and it is a slippery slope. I never want the enemy to pull the wool over my eyes again. So many in the church are living defeated and ineffectual lives. Thinking they are just fine. The road to heaven is very narrow and few will stay strong till the end. The one thing you can use to judge where you are at is by the fruit in your life. They will know we are Christians by our love, but without plentiful fruit we are ineffective. Love, joy, peace, forbearance, goodness, kindness, and faithfulness. If these are not abundant in our lives we have cause for concern. Our church has so many different ministries for helping others. Out of our several satellite churches it takes continuous miracles to keep up with all the many needs of all the locations. We just keep stepping up the work as that day grows nearer. Each location has its own unique needs. The biggest thing we need to remember is to live at peace with all men. Don’t get dragged into conflict and turmoil if at all possible. Our reputations are more important now, more than ever. The world is where we reside but we are to be different. We are residents of Heaven first. Just passing through this world temporarily. The world says spend, spend, spend. We may be one of the richest countries and have more available to us than everyone else but we are also so far in debt that we will never see ourselves out of debt. The average household owes thousands but we live for today and worry how to pay for it tomorrow. We need wisdom so badly from God. We need to learn how to live within our means and learn how to save. Those who have learned how to give are blessed so much in their finances. It is a very good place to be.

What are you doing to stay strong?

Shall Not

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These two words have sent people running from God because he wants to take away the good life. Right? Who wants to follow a bunch of rules? Well for me I know he asks us to follow his ways but I truly believe his desire is for us to have the very best life we can possibly have. He wants us to have a full, happy, successful life. He knows how because he knows everything especially us. He created us and the designer usually writes the owner’s manual for his product. Right. I read this week in a devotional about the “shall nots” in the Bible that most people miss. The ones that really mean the world to us who claim to be his children and had to share.

“The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the Lord shall not want any good thing.”

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”

“He that hearth my word, and believeth on him who sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation.”

He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”

The Lord is at my right hand, I shall not be moved; Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand.”

There are so many more good promises in the word of God waiting to be discovered. There are over 4000 great promises for his children who live his way. Since my stroke I’ve learned so much and have so much peace. I live for him every day. He truly is my very best friend and he is always working all for my best.

Where Is Your Heart

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“I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind. To reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve.” Jeremiah 17:10 NIV

According to how we act we will be rewarded. God wants everyone to have a good life. A life full and abundant. The world uses the word ‘karma’. Bringing on yourself inevitable results by good and bad character. We have been given a free will to do whatever we want. It’s all up to us. From an early age we are taught to be good. Even though we have a natural tendency toward sin because of the fall of Adam and Eve it is not true that we will be bad. Your parents are not the only ones who raise you. They may not of been the best examples to live by but there are other people teaching you good character traits. Teachers, sport coaches, churches and other good people in your life. They teach you how to interact with those around you and how to act as part of a team. Dealing with animals in a caring way. Skills in getting along with others. God has given us his words in the Bible that tell us clearly how to have a good life. The rewards for good behavior and what’s happens with bad behavior. They are spelled out very clearly. There are laws to keep us from doing bad things to others. If you don’t break the law you won’t pay the consequences. There are consequences for every action. Deep inside of us we all have a conscience that guides us. It wants us to do good and makes us feel bad inside when we do something bad. If we ignore it and repeat offenses it will grow hard. We can still change it if we want to but it will take God’s help, our creator, to change us. If we want to be blessed again and not always have problems we need to ask forgiveness and ask for help. He is always waiting right there to help. He is not expecting us to behave in a way that is impossible. He tells us the correct way and also offers us all the help we will need to do it. Knowing what is best for us and loving us unconditionally makes him the expert. He is also the one responsible for the outcome of our lives in his world. That is why I always look at the Bible as my owners manual for life. It will give answers for everything if you will just make it part of your life. Just like reading the owner’s manual for your new car will help you understand how it works best.

Have you read your owner’s manual lately?

Treasures

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“but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth consume, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:” Matthew 6:20 NIV

This time of year we need to think of others. God tells us to give 10% of our income to the local church. If we all did this there would not still be needs all over the world but people, at least most people, believe that if they have left over money at the end of the month then they might give some to God. Wrong! That is not what the Bible says. First of all God was here first and all that ever was or ever will be was his, everything. That is why I know that anything I have or earn is from God. It is for me to use to do his will and I will obey his commands. I was raised in the church and my father taught me about tithing when I was a little girl. On weekends I got allowance say $1.00 so I took 10 cents with me to Sunday school for my offering . It doesn’t matter if you get $1.00 for allowance or $2,000.00 a week in pay. It’s still 10% that God expects. 90% of your income totally blessed will go so much further than 100% cursed by God but in your pocket. I have a silly example of tithing. When I decided to tithe after my stroke I had 0 income. I received disability from Uncle Sam and decided to tithe on that. I don’t have a lot of needs but I buy mascara because I have beady little eyes I don’t like. I used to buy a few tubes at a time. Then I began tithing and I don’t remember the last time I bought mascara but it was years ago and it hasn’t gone dry yet. I never need body wash because I always get scented ones as gifts. So God does supply all of my needs, always. Everyone has heard the phrase “it is more blessed to give than to receive.” I really don’t need one more trinket. My room is the only home I have and it is only so big because I live in a nursing home. This morning I was given a little bear. Cute but I didn’t need it. So I gave it to a dear friend worrying about an upcoming surgery. He was upset and scared so I hope it helped. It did feel good. I love to give every time there is a special new need. And I do above what I tithe because My God loves a cheerful giver. I get so blessed every time. Our church has a motto “find a need and fill it, find a hurt and heal it”, well they take that very seriously. Our church has spent millions of dollars doing just that. Now they are having a fundraiser to collect money to help with human trafficking. They are having a walk-a-thon in January and I have decided to walk. Ok so I can’t walk but I will roll for $. We can all be used by God and it can be in simple ways. He just asks for a little. So little that you won’t miss it. Another way to help is pray. It is free! God is still large and in charge and he does answer prayers. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. I have seen some crazy wild answers to prayer and have been blow away time and time again. I get to be apart of it wow!

Wouldn’t you like to be apart of what God is doing in the world today?