The ink is what really matters...

Today Stephanie and I celebrate 21 years of marriage! The cards, flowers, dinner, and presents make me realize something about worship and love. When someone sends me a card I must be honest and tell you that I don't really care what Hallmark or American Greetings has to say in the print on the card. These companies hire professional writers who do an awesome job of expressing thoughts of love, kindness, and sympathy, etc. What I'm really looking for in a card is the handwritten ink of the person who send me the card. It is their thoughts and feelings that really interest me and mean the most.

Now let me relate this to our worship life. There are many professional song writers who do a great job of writing songs about God and directed to God. Speaking as a song writer myself, we write Christian songs because of a moment when God's Spirit moves upon us and inspires us, or at a time in our lives when we go through a struggle and God helps us. In church services we sing the songs or expressions of other people, and that is fine, but what God really needs from us is our own personal expression of worship from our heart to His. He already knows how the famous songwriter feels about Him, but how do you feel about Him. Are you signing your name to anothers song, or expressing yourself to God from your own heart?

It's easy to just sign your name to a card as if the words the professional card writer wrote are your own, but the ink tells the story of how you really feel. The same is true with songs of worship. It's easy to sing a song that someone else wrote, but we need to let expressions from our own heart flow forth to God. He wants to know how we feel about Him. No one can worship God as good as you can! The ink is what really matters! The ink of your heart.

Tips 4 Saving $ Part I.....

Times are getting tough on our personal cash flow in case you haven't noticed. When gas prices soared and broke the $3 mark, everything else increased too. Shipped a package lately? Noticed food prices? Milk over $5 a gallon, wow! What about clothing and personal hygeine items? I might have to stop shaving because I can't afford razors! All of us are experiencing the frustration of our paycheck not going as far as it used to, or needs to.

Now for some practical tips on how you can save money on your weekly food bill.

1. MENU SHOPPING. For several months my wife and I have been doing our grocery shopping on a menu basis. Before going to the store, we decide on a weekly menu and only purchase food items that pertain to that menu. In the old days we would stock up on food and spend extra money to have our cabinets, pantry, fridge, and freezer full of food. The problem with the method is we were duplicating items and purchasing things we already had, as well as overspending week after week. Menu shopping means that we have to inventory our food supply weekly (it only takes 5 minutes), and we buy just enough food for that week. Of course there are things you gotta have such as milk, bread, snacks, etc that don't really go with a meal. We have cut our food bill down by nearly 50% with this method. Having a family of 4 to feed is a big responsibility and can get out of control when you have 2 teens in your house.

These tips are all about increasing your home cash flow. Your paycheck will only go so far, but if you cut out the things that you're wasting money on, or spending unnecessarily, your cash flow will increase. Buying what you need when you need it, rather than stocking up for a year, will put more money in your wallet to pay for gas! Just kidding, I hope?

MORE TIPS COMING SOON.....

Is prophecy for today?

Of all the spiritual gifts in the New Testament, prophecy is the one of which the Apostle Paul says that we should desire to do. Yet the modern church, even pentecostal/charismatics seem to fear prophecy because of abuse and misuse of this gift in recent years. It seems the Body of Christ is to the place where if someone states, "God told me" or "God said" or "The Lord told me to tell you..." we quiver in fear or think "yeah right!" The Church has developed the following extremities concerning this gift...
1. Open Denial. The gift of prophecy, and all manifestation gifts are not for today they died with the apostles. The Bible is all the revelation we need.
2. Disguised Denial. We believe in the gift, but do not practice this gift in day to day Christian living. Tongues is okay, but if someone gets up and starts saying "The Lord says...." without a message in tongues coming first, we don't trust them.

Yes, the gift of prophesy and so called "prophets/prophetesses" have abused and misused this precious gift, but why should we throw the baby out with the bath water? Electricity is one of the most dangerous things on the planet, yet we harness its energy and use it for good. There is more good with prophetic words than bad. We need to overcome our fears and allow this awesome gift to be used in our lives.

Power must have boundaries. For example, a river is awesome force as long as it stays within its banks. When a river gets outside its banks ruin and devastation come. Prophecy is like the river, it must stay within the boundaries of Scripture or disaster will result. I'll speak more on this subject later. What are your opinions and thoughts so far?? Talk to me....

Prophetic Word to the Church of God

From March 1996 @ North Cleveland Church of God during the funeral of Brenda Taylor....

The Lord says you called a Solemn Assembly to hear from Heaven. Heaven spoke, but you did not hear it. It was not a pretty word, it was a hard word, but you prefer your smooth words, which are lies, to God’s Word, which is truth. The word to the body can be found within the body through Brenda Taylor. Her affliction is an affliction unto death. It’s an affliction that is centered in that part of the body that nurtures the children.
You say the church is healthy, it’s moving, it’s going, but I say the malignancy is growing. The malignancy is growing and the children are starving, but I will not let them stave. They will live, but you will die. I am already sharpening My ax. Its blade is very sharp. Its head is very heavy, and it will cut down your systems and your strategies, your schedules, and your salaries. And everyone who holds on to any of these with as much as one little finger, your Solemn Assembly is over, now I’m calling Mine. Come and meet Me around the body of Brenda Taylor. Come and meet Me there, do not delay and do not leave before you have heard from me, or else I will come and meet you with My ax in My hand.

Detours..

I was traveling today from Chattanooga to Cleveland and had to take a detour. The road I wanted to travel to reach my destination wasn't available. Taking an alternate route to my destination in Cleveland was inconvient and a little frustrating, but I still reached my destination. Life is filled with detours as you journey toward your goals and destinations. The road to destiny is filled with detours as well. You may not reach your destination the way you expected to, and you may have to go around some obstacles to achieve your goals. Don't let the detours discourage you! Keep your eyes on the destination. All that matters is that you reach your goal!