Don't Hold A Grudge

Colossians 3:12-14\

(Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.)

Don't Hold On To A Grudge

Arguments and disagreements can lead to grudges,

That leave hurts, that seem to be unrepairable

Yet God calls for us to have a compassionate heart

With love applied we can make compassion a work of art

Grudges left unattended, will cause a rift in the road

Causing a lots of rough rides along the way

God says be kind, love your enemy, and forgive a soul

When we do this our way grows smother and we become more whole

So in order to bring resolution, one must become humble and meek

Setting the example for others that may be sickly and weak

Growing in patients and excepting the one causing you grief

Find forgiveness and then dig real deep finding relief

Family and friends are important in life, relationships a must

So forgive as the Lord has forgiven you, letting the past go

And make the best of the future, building on the good

Our relationships won’t drift, and we will be more understood

When one is not feeling good, because of holding a grudge

In fact one is really sick and tired of the whole thing

Just remember, don't go to the Dr. or call a nurse

Because a grudge is one thing that doesn’t get better when it’s nursed.

Have a good day, and save a relationship by swallowing your pride and forgiving a brother/sister. Be humble and walk with God in LOVE

By Peter C. Salmond

from The Heart

(Ps. 50:9-10)

“I will not take a bull from your house, nor goats out of your folds. For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills”. What He wanted was their praise and obedience (v.23).

From The Heart

May my worship to my Lord

Be with praise that comes from the heart,

From a heart surrendered to following Him

His ways are true and good, I offer Him praise

May my praise be a worthy offering to You Lord

May it overflow from a heart that is whole

An offering of unconditional love may raise

From deep down within my heart I praise

For Your blessings from above, are mine

You own the cattle on a thousand hills

All that is yours is mine, my heart you see

For you want my praise, and the best for me

At the heart of my worship and praise

Is worship that comes from my heart

For I know the world moves at Your command

For you own every country and land

You want all of me, in every way

Not only my worship, but my everything

All that I am I give to you, my Lord

To be away from you forever I cannot afford.

The heart of worship comes from the heart of hearts

It comes from deep, deep down with in the soul

As I come to Him in all I do

May all and everything I do be only for YOU

My LORD

By Peter C. Salmond

So often when we go to church, we go expecting to be blessed, (entertained as we sit in the pew). When our main reason for going to church should be to bring thanksgiving and praise to the ONE that gave us His all . Because of us worshiping and praising Him we will be blessed and we will be strengthened by fellow believers. Because God blesses those that are obedient to Him.

But the reason we come is to worship Him. We should leave the church asking ourselves not “What did I get out of it?” but rather “Was God pleased with what happened?” Was He please with my worship? What was my attitude towards God and others while sitting in church? Was I there to please God, or to gain the respect and praise from others?

The Bible encourages us, not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another, and so much the more, as you see the Day approaching. This does not mean just on Sunday morning. This means not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together. We need each other all the time. There is strength in numbers.

Every day is a spiritual war out there in the world, we are to be separate from the world and yet we are to be part of the world. The Lord says, "Get away from unbelievers. Separate yourselves from them. Have nothing to do with anything unclean. Then I will welcome you." (2 Cor. 6:17) We need to be in the world, but not doing worldly things. Others need to see that Jesus has made us different in every way and in everything we do.

When you get up in the morning are you prepared for war? Eph. 6: 12 say, "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." So I ask again, Are you ready for war?

Verse 13 continues , Therefore- and goes on to say prepare for war, put on the armor of God and go ye into all the world and preach the gospel. Turn to Eph. 6 and read it all from verses 10-20 and see for yourself. If we are not standing with God in this war then we are standing against Him, and we are then fighting a loosing battle, because He has already won the battle over sin and the devil all we have to do is follow Him, he will protect us and He promises us eternal life. When we come to the end of the race of life and we have followed Him and His word, we will cross the finish line and we will win.

All praise and honor and worship will be His forever and ever Amen.

Choices, Choices

Gal. 5: 22-23 Verse of the day

Make the choice to live a life filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Gal. 5:22-23). Then enjoy watching what happens around you, it is amazing.

“Life is not made by the dreams that you dream but by the choices that you make.” Your life today is the sum total of all the choices you’ve made up to this point. (not my quotes, not sure who made them)

The choices we make in this life
Will map out the road we will take
We either choose to walk in the light,
Which will take us on the road to right
Or we will choose darkness and wrong
Which will take us down a road that's a way to long
When we make excellent choices we will know
Because we can watch the ripple effect of blessings it will bestow
On those all around us, as we walk down the road of life.

by Peter C. Salmond

Happy Valuntines DAY

LOVE BETWEEN FRIENDS

John 15:13 "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you."

Friendship with Jesus, is LOVE unconditional
Fellowship with Jesus is oh so divine;
O what blessings He bestows upon us
Sweet communion with the friend of all friends
Jesus is a friend like no other, Jesus is a friend of mine.

Jesus longs to be your Friend in this world, not just on face book.
For He wants to walk beside us, where ever we go
He is a friend that will never leave us alone
He is the best friend we will ever know.
He wants us to be with Him every where we go

He is a friend that will stick closer than a brother
To Him, our on dieing love we owe

By Peter C. Salmond

The Volcanic Ash Filled The Air

The Volcano

Ephesians 4: 29. Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

31. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Romans 12:10 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another;

At one time these next few lines were written about me. For a lot of years when I was younger, I was a time bomb with a short fuse. So, I had to do what these next few lines say.

I had to pray, Dear God, please change my heart,

I don't want to blow up any more, I do not want to hurt anyone

And give me a desire; to get passed all of my hurt and pain

I want to be a man of peace, and give you control of my emotions

So that I am not controlled by anger’s fire, but by your sweet Spirit. Amen

I found that losing my temper was not the way to get rid of it.

It only came back stronger and more forceful and hot

Kind of like a volcano waiting to blow, and torch everything in it's way

I am so thankful I gave it away to the One who controls the world

Now the only times it comes back is when I want to take control again, not a good idea!!!!!!

Thank you Lord for always reminding me when that happens and thank you for your forgiveness.

by Peter C. Salmond



Secret #2 In Helping a New Believer

TALK TO GOD

Ask ten people what is the most important ingredient in making a relationship work, and most of them will likely give you the same answer. "Communication". And it is no less true in a personal relationship with God. So in the early days of belonging to Jesus, A person needs to learn how to talk with the One they have just come to know.

As you meet with a new believer you have the privilege of introducing them to God's exciting invitation to His children: "Let's then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Heb. 4:16) God has invited us to come right into His presents, and claim His forgiveness for our sins, and His help for our needs. This is talking to God. As Paul wrote:"Do not be anxious about anything, butin everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your heart and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4:6-7)

Having been introduced to the importance of talking to God, the new believer needs to experience communicating with Him. One possible action lab you can encourage is to write some letters to God before your next get-together. You may even want to give the person a template for the letters that include the following

Dear Lord,

I love you because....

Thank you for......

I'm sorry for......

Please......

With Love from........

As a new child of God writes thoughts like these to their father, he is practicing the ingredient in powerful praying. And this outline puts talking to God in the same kind of straightforward language we use in our conversations. When you get together again, your new brother or sister can bring those letters so you can talk about how their first communication with God went.

Secret #1 in Discipling a New Baby in Christ Is

READ WHAT GOD HAS WRITTEN TO YOU

I am quoting from the book - Called To Greatness By Ron Hutchcraft

When I was in college, my roommate Don used to get love letters from his girlfriend. We all knew when he had received one ------- he was in "la la land" all day. I noticed that he would always go off somewhere alone and read what Amy had written to him. Then he would read it again and again. After his fifth reading or so, I want to say, Don, there is no more new information here! But it wouldn't have done any good.

It was when I started receiving love letters from Karen that I began to understand. Now I was reading the same words over and over again. Why? Because when I was reading what she wrote to me, I was being with her--- until I could really be with her.

It is the same way with the new believer and the Love Letters he has received from the One who loves loves Him most ---it is called the Bible. Some one who belongs to Jesus feels he is with Him as he is with Him as he reads what He wrote to him. The lover of Jesus continues to read regularly, until one day in heaven when he will be with his Savior forever.

That's why God tells us, "Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your Salvation" (1 Peter 2:2) That "spiritual milk" is "the living and enduring word of God" (1 Peter 1:23) known to us as the Bible. So in their first days in Christ , new believers should be introduced to the importance of daily reading God's Love Letter to them. We need to call their attention to the privilege of spending time with Jesus through what He wrote. This is not to be a ritualistic "Bible reading time" but time with a friend.

THE FIRST SECRET OF A GREAT GOD RELATIONSHIP
IS ABOUT TIME WITH A PERSON, NOT TIME WITH A BOOK

As a practical matter, it is important for us to help new believers set a time and a place to meet with Jesus each new day. If we leave Him until we "get around to Him" we never will. It is fundamental to growing in this new relationship that believers set a daily date with the Person who loves them most.

It is important, too, to help God's new child know where to read in the Bible. The "where" should be a book that is easy to understand and easy to apply to your life ______books such as Mark, Ephesians, James, and Proverbs. The "how" should emphasize asking oneself two questions about what he or she reads. Two primary questions would be, " In my own words, what is God saying here?" and "What am I going to do differently today because God said that?" In other words, "Do not merely listen to the word,....do what it says" (James 1:22) The Apostle James compares someone who takes in what God says but doesn't do anything about it to " a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like" (James 1:23-24). If the Bible is supposed to be a believers mirror, then the believer can't just look into that mirror without changing something.

Once you explain the importance of reading what God has written, it is time to give God's new child an "action lab" so she can do what she just learned. So give her a notebook and ask her to write this title on the front of it: "My Times With Jesus" This will be her, "Jesus Journal"

Your challenge to the new believer might go something like this: "Each day for the next week, ask God to show you something He wants you to know, then read a few verses in the book of James. It's easy to apply to your life! Read them two or three times. Then write in your Jesus Journal the date, what verses you read, and your answer to two helpful questions: "In my own words, what is God saying here?" and "What am I going to do differently today because He said it?" When you get together the next time, ask the person to bring the journal so you can talk about how those times with Jesus went.

As the spiritual caregiver for this new member of God's family, you have the joy of giving the person some exciting news about her newly begun relationship. Every day, she has the same message from God that greets many Internet users when they check their E-Mail: "You've got mail." In this case, it's from God Himself.