Category: Truth

Hope

Annette Coffey1 Comment

“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people.” Ephesians 1:18 NIV

I heard a pastor tell a story recently that has stayed with me. He was flying to a conference where he was supposed to speak. As he got on the plane he said a little prayer. Lord, help me to have a quiet trip so I can rest before this conference. He got comfortable and tried to get some rest, closing his eyes. At the very last minute a guy sat down next to him. He thought, maybe if I pretend to be asleep he won’t bother me. The man squirmed and squirmed next to him but he finally dozed off. Then all of a sudden the man elbows him in the ribs, “hey, you awake?” “Well ya, I am now.” “So what kind of work do you do?” He asked. This minister thought for a minute. Well, maybe I should just lie and make up something dull, but no I can’t. “I’m a minister.” He said. Well the man just broke down sobbing. Everyone on the flight heard him blubbering. It seems he was coming from the funeral of his very best friend who had died suddenly from a massive heart attack. He had come home from work one day and met his little girl and picked her up. He collapsed dropping the girl. He went on about how shocked everyone had been, how he would never see him again, and he would never get to share life with him. How could he go on from here. This all poured out of him in loud hysterical sobbing. It seemed like everyone on board was staring. “Well I’m sorry for your loss,” he said. This man was really grieving and he didn’t really know what to say. He had absolutely no hope. He was miserable. “You know what you need?”, I said. You really need some hope in your heart. The man gazed questioningly at me, how? So I told him all about the gospel message and how Jesus loved him and wanted to be his friend. The man stopped me and said, “but I’m Jewish.” I said, “that’s ok Jesus was Jewish and he love’s Jews.” The man thought about it and then said ok. They talked through the entire flight. As they deboarded I told him to have a great day and went to get my bags. The man ran after me and fell to his knees hanging onto me. “But wait, I want this hope, don’t leave now.” Everyone was looking at them strangely. I just wanted to get my bag and go. I walked the man to a nearby bench and explained to him that I had told him everything he needed to know. But the man begged. So I asked if he would like to pray? They went through the sinners prayer and I helped him ask Jesus into his heart. He was so excited and exploding with joy. He couldn’t say thanks enough. You see this minister just wanted a nap but God had a divine encounter planned that would change both of their lives. God may not always give us what we ask but they became good friends . We who know Jesus know hope. Without Jesus there is no hope.

Do you know this hope?

Never Alone

Annette Coffey1 Comment

“How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them.” Psalms 139:17 NIV

We are never alone and we never have to do life alone. People who don’t know God don’t understand that. God just makes us do stuff. Be the boss. People assume. We may get very busy trying to do it all and get it just right. I just started to think of all the things I need to get done, and it can get overwhelming. Last night I laid awake thinking of things that I needed to do. At the time they all seemed important and pressing. I tossed and turned for about an hour. I finally dozed off. Today everything got done smoothly with no trouble and I still got to visit with friends. God had it all planned out and his plans prevail anyway so why should we worry. It is so good to just think about that. You know I don’t have to fret when trying to get things done and do my best. Because my best friend, Jesus, has it all planned out ahead of time for my best. In Psalms 139 David is talking about how God is always there and always has been. Before we were ever formed in the womb. God knew us. He designed us just as we would be. He saw just who we would be and just how we would fit into the masterpiece he is creating. How our lives would intertwine with others to have the greatest effect on those around us. Nobody is perfect and we all struggle. But even Moses, David, Noah, and Elijah were just average men. They all were imperfect men who had doubts and fears like us. They felt inadequate at times and unworthy to do what God had called them to do. They knew someone else could do it better. But they did do what God asked most of the time. They had bad days. There were times when they just couldn’t do it. They made mistakes. But do we remember them that way? No! We look at them and see great servants of God. He doesn’t want us doing things just because we have to. Keeping rules grudgingly. He tells us what to do because it works. It is easier his way and you do enjoy more his way. The more I depend on him and try to do things his way, the happier I am and the easier it is. Not one minute do I feel alone. Because I know he is just a word away. This morning I was thinking about the internet. I have a message program and anytime I need someone like my daughters , for example. I just send a little note. No matter how far away they are. (Miles) They respond right away. You can also find out anything you want to know right away on google. Well as children of God we also have 24 hr access. We don’t need a priest to come to him for us. We don’t even need to say it out loud. Just talk to God. He is right next to your heart. He hears the simplest cry of our hearts and he is always listening. He also has all the right answers.

Can you give Gods ways a try?

Open Our Eyes

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“Open my eyes that I might see wonderful things in your laws.“ Psalms 119:18

Over the last several years God has opened my eyes greatly to several truths and things in his laws. In 2013 I set out to seek the Lord with all of my heart. I made a deliberate effort to pray every day and to read my Bible daily. Those were my two main goals. I still keep those goals every day but it is habit now. If I forget the day just doesn’t go as good. I know God doesn’t expect perfection from us. But even if I realize it at 10:00pm I can’t sleep till it’s done. I used to get up early in the morning and go outside to pray. That was nice but three years ago I had surgery and it took a lot to recover from it. So I began sleeping in. So I would pray before getting up. Now I relish that time I have to just talk to God for an hour or two and hear him speak to me. He has shown me how important praying is. Lately I’m wanting to be bolder and ask more from God. I see it as a privilege to get to pray for others and to see God working in their lives. I see miracles happening all around me. It feels so indulgent at times laying in bed but God has shown me so much lately. I have also read through the Bible several times over the last 15 years and those words are getting seared into my brain. His laws are important. He gave them to us for our good. Each law has a purpose. By following them we will live a better life. Without them we would be lost. I know that people see that laws as restricting us from freedom. But I do not wish to be free to screw up my life. I have had my eyes opened to his ways. Another way he has opened my eyes is in worship. I love to sing and love music. I listen to praise music often because it lifts me up. One day I went from singing along not really thinking about the words. Then ‘Pow’. One day I heard every word and what it meant to the writer, and now I sing with passion and understanding in my heart. Praise and worship will never be the same. He has shown me a great love for his ways. I can lay around in the mornings and get so inspired by how great and awesome our God is.

Do you understand and try to keep his laws?

God’s Plans

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“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 NIV

I learned this scripture when I was in my 20’s. I was a very young mom struggling to make my way. Learning who I was and who God wanted me to be. It was always a scripture that I loved and I quoted it a lot. It held so much promise and hope. But it wasn’t till a month ago I heard it preached in its entirety. I never knew the context of what was going on at the time it was written. Now it means so much more to me. God’s chosen people had been rejecting him and his prophets for some time now. God tells us in his word that sin will be dealt with eventually. God is very, very patient. We sometimes see him as if what is going on before him goes over his head and will never be dealt with. But that is not true. He loves man even if we don’t deserve his love. He wants the best for us a keeps waiting for us to change. He doesn’t want us to perish. He allows other countries to sweep on in and carry his people off to bondage. He has it all worked out. They will suffer for a while and then they will remember how good I was to them and then they will be sorry. In the meantime the nation’s who put them into bondage will be punished for their evil and new country’s will prevail. God has it all planned out. All the time he is in control. He is supporting his people. What he tells them when they are in a tough spot is just what he tells us when we are struggling. Just keep on keeping on! Don’t give up. I am God and I am in control. He is supporting his people. It is going down just as I planned it. It may be tough right now but keep going. Marry and have families. Keep doing just what you have done for generations. Family and friends are important and they are what will see you through. But don’t forget me! Remember I am always working everything out for your good. It may not feel like it just now but I don’t lie. You can trust me to do what I say. Right now I have been quarantined to my room because several people got the flu and I was one. It was breaking out throughout the facility and they panicked. It had to be stopped. So I had to remain in my room all the time for two weeks. It seemed a little extreme at first but I have a private room with plenty to read, plenty of good food, my very own shower, and a big picture window so I can enjoy the weather outside. It seems like it has been a long month. But it is for my safety and it will be over eventually. God told me to just keep reading and enjoying my time with him. Just relax! What good does it do to complain and pout? None. I’m sure God is working through this time and is teaching us so much. He always is.

Can you trust God when times are hard?

Payment For Sin

Annette Coffey1 Comment

“If he were not a criminal,” they replied, “we would not have turned him over to you.” John 18:30 NIV

Jesus a criminal. Only God could have orchestrated that scenario. Jesus was a perfect human being. He lived a life without sinning. He was one of the many loving, caring, and wonderful persons ever. He never argued about being right. But he was always right. He didn’t need to get his point across. Prove himself, or defend himself. All things we do quite regularly. Somehow we see it as necessary to have people like us, agree with us, and cooperate with us. Nobody wants to be looked down on, be picked on, or bullied. We try to prove that what we do or say is right, at least to our reasoning. Jesus stated a fact. Take it or leave it. He did not need people to agree with him or to do what he said. The things he tells us to do really are the best for us and he knows that. If we don’t do them we are just hurting ourselves. He doesn’t want to see us hurting others by our choices but he has given us free will. It gives him so much more joy when we do things because we want to, our choice. He has told us what to do to be blessed. He has also shown us what will bring troubles and curses. Do you know that everything he did should have brought him so much peace and acceptance, but he came here for one reason and only one. To do his father’s will. A sacrifice had to be made, a perfect sacrifice. We are all imperfect. Not one person has ever led a perfect life, but Jesus. The only way, was for Jesus to live a perfect life and be sacrificed. He did it willingly for you and for me. He was right, never wrong, and he should have been accepted and agreed with. Instead he put up with terrible abuse. He was whipped, spit on and humiliated. Over and over he had the opportunity to defend himself but he didn’t. He could have, maybe should have. But that was not the plan. He hung there on that cross and died for you and for me. He looked to the day when each of us would say yes to the gift he offered us. It didn’t have to make sense to us, it made sense to God. He even made a point of forgiving the criminal that hung next to him when he asked. No one has ever done anything they can’t be forgiven for. He loves us. He even prayed, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.”

Do you want to accept this extravagant gift?

A Name

Annette Coffey1 Comment

“The name of the Lord is a fortified tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.”

Proverbs 18:10 NIV

What’s in a name? Oh, the precious name of Jesus. The sweetest name I know. My God, the creator of Heaven and earth, the one true God. I have been made righteous through the blood of Jesus Christ. I can run to God whenever. He is all that I need and all that I want. Our God has many names and with those names many attributes. God is so efficient that just one name doesn’t begin to describe him. Everlasting Father, he is and was and always will be more than we could ever need. He is with us every minute even until the end of time. Alpha and omega, first and the last, the beginning and the end. This is such a comforting feeling. He is there for us always. Adonai, owner of all. Everything is Gods, everything that was ever made was made by God just for us. God is so good. Holy one, Yahweh, I am, Jehovah, Mighty God, El Shadai, The Word, Messiah, the Light of the world, Cornerstone , Prince of peace, Holy Spirit, Comforter, Creator, Emmanuel, Bread of Life, Savior, Jesus Christ, Yahweh Rapha, Yahweh Nissi, Yahweh Jirah, El Oh Lamb El El Roi, El Quanna, Yahweh Shalom, Yahweh Shammah, Yahweh Roha and so many more. But he is alive and not dead. He is in charge. Everything he says he does, he does. He doesn’t depend on me to do anything on my own. No great things that I must do to make him love me. To prove that I deserve anything. He just asks that I love, and obey him. Which is in my best interests anyway. He always hears me and always answers me. There has never been a god like him, nor will there ever be. He does deserve the highest praise for all he is and does. Many gods claim to do much with no proof. Gods of healing, fertility and abundance, but do they really do anything. They don’t ask us to love others, or even be a selfless loving human being. Someone who can and will make this a better world for all. He is everything we claim him to be and more. I have a track record with him to prove it.

Do you know this amazing God?

A New Way

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“by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” Hebrews 10:20-23 NIV

We no longer are bound by the old covenant. We are free. Jesus paid a very high price for our freedom. By his death on the cross and God’s having raised him from the dead those chains were broken. There is a new way. What wonderful grace! The early believers in God were required to do so much because they were sinners. Always trying to be something they just couldn’t be. To do just the right things. I don’t think it could be done. At least not completely. The priests were our go between. Between us and a Holy God. They approached God for the people with sacrifices and prayers to somehow make us right. The most holy place was where the chosen priest went alone to talk with God on our behalf. When Jesus died the curtain that separated that room was torn into from top down. Showing that this was no longer necessary. God was saying, ” it is no more, there is a new way, Jesus has paid it all.” With the tearing of that curtain by the hand of God we no longer have to go through a priest. We have direct access to the Father through his son. I had someone explain that to me real well. There was a little boy named Johnny, he was having a problem. His friend Dave said he could help. He would take him to see the president surely he could help. They walked right in to the White House and directly before the president. No one even tried to stop them. Not even once. You see what Johnny didn’t know was that Dave was the presidents son. The president would do anything for him. Everyone new he had direct access to his dad at any time. If we come to our Heavenly Father through his one and only precious son God will do whatever we ask. If our hearts are right and we do his will he sees us just as he sees his son. We are that important. You do not have to fear that you don’t measure up or that God is mad or upset with you. He sees you and loves you unconditionally. No other God ever created ever deserved that kind of love and respect. But our God has earned it by over and over proving who he is. All the great things ever said about him don’t even come close. I get so choked up at times just enjoying his goodness to me. One little old lady that is nothing special. But i can be bold in my confidence in him. And I will be, because he has never let us down and he never will.

Do you know that he wants you to come to him for everything?

Be Light

Annette Coffey1 Comment

” And God said, “Let there be Light,” and there was light.” Genesis 1:3 NIV

This one short phrase really says so much. In the very beginning ALL was dark, and there was nothing. When God said this God was very aware of our need for him. We were never meant to live apart from him. In the beginning he walked in the garden with the man and the woman, sharing all he had with them. It was never about us, but everything he can do for us. He made a perfect garden far better than any man could create. The animals he created are more beautiful and unique, but everyone of them has a purpose in this world. They are made just for the environment they were created to live in. Whether it be cold or warm, and flat or rocky. I do not know how you can look at some of these wonders and not think about their creator. Jesus is the light of the world and God is light, in him there is no darkness. Without him there would be nothing. Contrary to many so called wise men who say, “The Earth just happened.” In all its unique perfection and purpose. This is so far from anything that has happened and there would be no way to prove it. We all know man is far from perfect, and to just grasp at straws proves it. The Light of the World spoke and things happened. Amazing and awesome things happened. Their abilities of greatness and wisdom are evident. Everything was taken into consideration. How would the plants be watered? What would the people eat? In the very beginning the world was perfect. Man didn’t need clothes because the climate was moderate. Everyone ate plants and there was no death. Everything they could ever want was available. God has called us to be his light to the world. We are anticipating Jesus great return, but Jesus is waiting for his people to stand up and be that light and be victorious. He has called us to be salt. What this world desperately needs. So many people have become complacent, thinking that the world is just going to get worse. That it’s just too late. But Jesus has asked us to continue sharing the gospel to all till he does return. And we don’t know when that time will come. Tomorrow you may change someone’s thinking by the love you share and they could be saved. If we just give up how will we know just who might have been saved from death. It can be something very simple that finally gets through to them. So don’t give up. Continue to speak hope and love. So many people just don’t know that there is hope or that they are loved. We should never stop being light because this is such a dark time. Even some who call themselves Christians, just do not know the hope that is set before us.

What can you do to be light?

Is Faith Enough

Annette Coffey1 Comment

“Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me.” 2 Corinthians 12:8 NIV

When we go through trials and difficulties we need to run to the Lord. We need his strength and wisdom. Jesus was living a life that was hard and he went through so much. He can understand our struggles. He can relate. He, more than anyone had faith, and trust in his father. Over the last few weeks I have had challenges but through them God has shown me so much. Trials are tests and God may not remove them but he will help you through them. I have an electric wheelchair and have had for 12+ years. My chair is comfortable and allows me independence. My chair will recline to relax. Over a week ago it just shut off and wouldn’t come back on. They put me in a manual chair but it is uncomfortable and I can not move an inch on my own. I can take it only so long. I hate to be so dependent on others. I also have been fervently praying for several others who are knocking at deaths door. People who are young and have so much to live for. I found myself crying out to the Lord. We have been promised that if we have faith we can move mountains. When you really want those mountains to move you will cry out. Jesus really had faith. He was perfect. He commanded storms to calm, the blind to see, the lame to walk, and the dead to rise. When he spoke things happened. As he knew his death was near I know he did not fear death. The chance of being back home with his father was a welcomed thought. But like all of us the suffering coming was unwelcome and unwanted. He cried out to God to take this pain away. Not once, not twice, but three times. When God does something three times it is significant. Jesus was doing something we do instinctively. Help, Enough, I can’t do this. God doesn’t expect us to do more than we can but sometimes he does know more than we do. I was praying for a young guy that was in a tragic auto accident that killed his grandma instantly and by all intent he should have died instantly too. But he held on and everyone was praying for a miracle. After a couple weeks the Lord took him home to be with him. Why didn’t God answer our prayers? Why didn’t God answer the fervent prayers of Jesus? Why did Jesus even pray them if it was not Gods will? We have to trust that God sees the big picture. Everyone and everything involved has needs, and God is working in the best interests of everyone involved. That one trial may have far reaching causes. Just think what would have happened if Jesus had not died for our sins? We were lost and needed a savior. It had to be somebody perfect like the father’s son. He is the only one who could do it. Might God have found a different way? Maybe. But the impact of that sacrifice has changed so many lives. It was not easy but it was God’s will to save the world. Jesus did it gladly and looked forward to the day he would see each of us in heaven with him. God helped him endure the suffering and he will be our strength too. Trials do help us grow. The more we go through the stronger we become. Physical, mental, and spiritual strength.

Can you trust that God does know what is best?

Prayers

Annette Coffey1 Comment

“But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” Luke 5:16 NIV

Praying is very important. Jesus knew this and spent so much time building himself up in prayer. If Jesus who was perfect needed that, how much more do we need it. It says he withdrew to lonely places. It was important that praying to God was in a quiet place. With nobody around for distractions. When we are alone with God in prayer we are far from lonely. But God deserves our complete and full attention. Praying is not something difficult or exact, but just coming to God and talking. Tell God you’re every need, desire, and what’s important to you, and don’t forget thanksgiving for all he has already done for you. It is easy to focus on needs and what you don’t have. It’s more important to be thankful for all you do have. God takes such good care of me and supplies all that I need. He wants to bless me abundantly and he does as soon as I get my mind off of me and back on what I can be doing for his kingdom and others. He wants us to bear much fruit. If we are praying and desiring to bear fruit he can bless us. He will give us more fruit. It is simple sowing and reaping. If you want to be loved and cared for, then be loving and caring. If you want respect, then be respectful of others. This is not complicated, but very simple. Spending time talking to God and doing things to become closer to him will make you a better, happier person. The more you let him solve your problems and shoulder your burdens, the more you will seek to do the same for others. This will only make your life better, and also for those around you. God’s principles are good. He desires to give us a good and abundant life. But it is not just about what he’s doing. We have to believe in what he asks us to do. To do it all because God knows best. He only tells us because he knows it works. We may not understand everything he does know, but I know him and I know he loves me. He would never steer me wrong. I have sixty years experience following him and I have done things my way and I have done things his way. And guess what? His ways are so much better.

Do you have a relationship with him?