The Encouragement Thread

Col 1:27
27 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:


God's Word declares that it is "Christ in you, the hope of glory." Not only are we "seated in the heavenly places in Christ," but it also says that it is "Christ in you, the hope of glory."
Eph 1:19-23
19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
20 Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
21 Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:
22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

It was the power of God that raised Jesus Christ from the dead.
It was the power of God that seated him in the heavenly places.
It was the power of God that set him far above all principality and power….
It was the power of God that put ALL things under his feet.
If we are part of his body, then all things, too, are under our feet spiritually.

The righteous weigh their answers; the wicked don’t wait to speak
because they don’t care about the effects of their words.
It is important to have something to say, but it is equally important
to weigh it first.

Do you carefully plan your words, or do you pour out your
thoughts without concern for their impact?

It is vital to think also before acting, to consider the effects of
our choices. Think of your plans for today and consider what
their long-range results will be. As we deal with others, we
should keep these principles in mind.

We should act responsibly and justly with all people-friends
and enemies alike.

Psalm 148:


3Praise ye him, sun and moon: praise him, all ye stars of light.
4Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that be above the heavens. 5Let them praise the name of the LORD: for he commanded, and they were created.

LET US HEAR OUR SAVIOUR’S HEART BEAT.

Let us hear our Saviour’s heart beat,
As we come and worship at your feet,
Give us more revelation of your heart,
That we might to others your love impart.

Help us to hear clearly the beating of your heart,
May our hearts beat in tune with your heart,
You love us with a love beyond all measure,
Surely you Lord are our greatest treasure.

Lord we want to love you more,
May you be the one who we adore,
We bow down in humble humility,
Declaring that you Lord are our surety.

Increase the longing within our hearts today,
Hungry and thirsty we come in search of you,
The desire of our hearts is to really know you,
We are so thankful that you came into our hearts to stay,.

And we incline our ears ready to listen to your voice,
For you want us to listen to your still small voice,
Now we hear you talking and directing our ways,
As to how we can serve you the rest of our days.

Irene McGough 2009

Psalm 96:1-3-NLT
Sing a New Song to the LORD! Let the Whole Earth Sing to the LORD!
Sing to the LORD; Bless His Name. Each day proclaim the Good News
that HE Saves. Publish His glorious Deeds among the Nations.
Tell everyone about the Amazing Things HE does.


Every day we cross paths with someone who needs to hear
the good news that the LORD Saves. We can never fully
plumb the depths of GOD's Character and Attributes,
but with every day and every Experience we can discover
new facets about GOD, new songs to sing to Him.

To "Publish" means to Share and that refers not only
to writing books and delivering sermons about GOD
but also to Sharing what the LORD has done in our
own lives so that others might be drawn to Him.

Each of us can Purpose to do that. The most Powerful Evangelism
doesn't take place within the four walls of a Church Building.
It occurs when we Share with Others in our Neighborhood and
Workplace the Good News of what GOD has done for us Individually
and for the Whole World in the Life, Death, and Resurrection of
JESUS CHRIST !!!

Ask GOD to bring people across your path Today who need to
hear the News that GOD Saves and that HE Loves Them.
And then ask Him for the Compassion and Courage to Share
the reason for your Hope and to Pray for these people.

what a refreshing thread...God bless each and every one of you

Paul offers a Strategy to help us Live for GOD day by day:

(1) Imitate CHRIST’s Merciful, Forgiving Attitude;
(2) Let Love Guide your Life;
(3) Let the Peace of CHRIST Rule in your Heart;
(4) Always be Thankful;
(5) Keep GOD’s Word in you at all times;
(6) Live as JESUS CHRIST’s Representative.

Doing Everything “as a Representative of the LORD JESUS” means
bringing Honor to Christ in every Aspect and Activity of Daily Living.
As a Christian, you Represent Christ at all times-wherever you go
and whatever you say. What Impression do people have of Christ
when they see or talk with you? What changes would you make
for your life to Honor Christ?

STEPHEN PART 1

Act 6:8 Now Stephen, a man full of God's grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people.
Act 6:9 Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)--Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia. These men began to argue with Stephen,
Act 6:10 but they could not stand up against his wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke.
Act 6:11 Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, "We have heard Stephen speak words of blasphemy against Moses and against God."
Act 6:12 So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin.
Act 6:13 They produced false witnesses, who testified, "This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law.
Act 6:14 For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us."
Act 6:15 All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel. (NIV)

We first encounter Stephen in this chapter and what an introduction we have been given here to the first martyr of the Christian church. Stephen is described as a man full of grace and power who did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. I would love to be described like that wouldn’t you?
So what does it mean to be full of grace and power? The Greek word for full used here is plērēs and it means covered over, complete, so we see from this that Stephen was completely full of grace and power. The word translated grace here has also been translated faith. This surely means that this man who incidentally was not counted among the apostles was so full of the Holy Spirit, had great faith and carried the presence of God with him in such a fashion that he moved in great signs and wonders.
The Synagogue of Freedmen or Libertines according to Andrew Wommack were either Jews who had been slaves but were set free by the Roman government or they were possibly from a town in northern Africa called Libertina. At any rate, they were a group of Jews who because of their common bond had separated themselves from the rest of Judaism by having their own synagogue.
Cyrene was an important city in North Africa located just a few miles inland from the Mediterranean Sea in what is today called Tripoli.. The city of Alexandria was founded by Alexander the Great in 332 B.C. on the north coast of Egypt just west of the Nile Delta During the time of this event in Acts, Alexandria had between 600,000 and 700,000 residents, a large part of which were Jewish.. Cilicia was a southeastern province of Asia Minor of which Tarsus, the home of Saul, was a principal city. Asia here refers to a western province in Asia Minor with Ephesus as its capital..
Stephen did not speak with his own wisdom but rather spoke with great Godly Wisdom as empowered by the Holy Spirit and his accusers the so called wise men, with their worldly wisdom could no stand up against this Godly Wisdom. Yet here we have a whole group of accusers against this one Spirit filled man.
Paul prayed for the Ephesians that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to them the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, Ephesians 1:17
Jesus said Therefore settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer; for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist. Luke 21:14 - 15

Stephen spoke the truth to them but it fell on deaf ears, in fact they in their own self- righteousness considered it to be blasphemy against Moses and God. They seized Stephen and took him before the Sanhedrin. They produced false witnesses, who testified against Stephen saying, "This man never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us.” The holy place mentioned here was the temple. The temple ofcourse was destroyed by the Romans in AD 70.

Act 6:15 All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.

What do you think Stephen had about his appearance that he is here described as having the face of an angel?

Surely onlookers saw the beauty of Jesus in him? He reflected his Lord. The glory of the presence of the Lord must have shone like a beacon of light through Stephen at this time. That is my desire to reflect Jesus in such a fashion that people see Jesus shining through me – to have the face of an angel wouldn’t that be tremendous? Even that angelic appearance in this man who was clearly reflecting Jesus within him was not enough to convince the hardened hearts of his accusers and the Sanhedrin. Isn’t that sad?

We need to pray against men and women in high places in our nations hardening their hearts against the Lord and pray for softening of hearts of men and women everywhere, and that we as the people of God might reflect Jesus clearly in all that we do and say, moving in faith, Godly wisdom and Holy Spirit power during his hour of grace.

I've always loved this song...just found it on YouTube:

YouTube - The River by brian doerksen#

If you're feeling down

'Cause you're still here on the ground

Remember Jesus said His Kingdom lies within

And even if we're small

We needn't be quite tall

To give to one of His

A cup to quench their thirst

For which Christ did declare

Our reward would be secure

So even if you're little

You still can solve this riddle

And heretofore then know

The way which you shall go

'Cause if we're feeling blue

The best thing we can do

Is go and find another

Who has it worse than you

And then do something kind

Which will help relieve their mind

And God will then flow through

To lift your spirit too !

wonderful song Angelwind, Thanks for sharing it.

and wayfaring man, I love what you wrote......thanks

sweetMelody said:

wonderful song Angelwind, Thanks for sharing it.

and wayfaring man, I love what you wrote......thanks

Click to expand...

Hi sweetMelody ,

You're Welcome in The Lord !

...The manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. <-----> 1st Corinthians 12:7


wm

angelwind said:

I've always loved this song...just found it on YouTube:

YouTube - The River by brian doerksen#

Click to expand...

Cool song

God&#8217;s Delight Comes In His Enjoyment Of Our Company

The Lord has great joy that the cross has provided us with open access to himself. Indeed, the most glorious moment in history was when the temple veil was rent in two, on the day that Christ died. At that moment, the earth trembled, the rocks rent and the graves were opened.
It was at this very moment that the benefit to God burst forth. In the instant that the temple veil &#8212; separating man from God&#8217;s holy presence &#8212; was torn asunder, something incredible happened. From that point on, not only was man able to enter into the Lord&#8217;s presence, but God could come out to man.
He who once dwelt in &#8220;thick darkness&#8221; didn&#8217;t wait for us to come to him, but he came out to us. God himself took the initiative, and Christ&#8217;s blood cleared away all hindrances. It was a unilateral move on the Lord&#8217;s part, the kind when one party declares, &#8220;Enough &#8212; I&#8217;m going to make peace. I&#8217;m going to tear down this wall of partition. And I&#8217;ll do it out of my own initiative.&#8221;
Before the cross, there was no access to God for the general public; only the high priest could enter the Holy of holies. Now Jesus&#8217; cross made a path for us into the Father&#8217;s presence. By his grace alone, God tore down the wall that blocked us from his presence. Now he could come out to man, to embrace his prodigals and sinners of all sorts.
Here is the key to my message: you cannot come into joy and peace &#8212; indeed, you cannot know how to serve the Lord &#8212; until you see his delight in your deliverance&#8230;until you see the joy of his heart over his communion with you&#8230;until you see that every wall has been removed at the cross&#8230;until you know that everything of your past has been judged and wiped away. God says, &#8220;I want you to move on, into the fullness that awaits you in my presence!&#8221;
Multitudes today rejoice in the wonderful benefits of the cross. They have moved out of Egypt, and they&#8217;re standing on the &#8220;victory side&#8221; of their Red Sea trial. They enjoy freedom, and they thank God continually for casting their oppressor into the sea. But many of these same believers miss God&#8217;s greater purpose and benefit to them. They miss why the Lord has brought them out &#8212; which is to bring them in to himself.

~by D. Wilkerson

wayfaring man said:

If you're feeling down

'Cause you're still here on the ground

Remember Jesus said His Kingdom lies within

And even if we're small

We needn't be quite tall

To give to one of His

A cup to quench their thirst

For which Christ did declare

Our reward would be secure

So even if you're little

You still can solve this riddle

And heretofore then know

The way which you shall go

'Cause if we're feeling blue

The best thing we can do

Is go and find another

Who has it worse than you

And then do something kind

Which will help relieve their mind

And God will then flow through

To lift your spirit too !

Click to expand...

Wow~even as I read this, my son and i are watching a kids' video about how even little ones are Important in His Kingdom. God's timing is cool!

Thanks wayfaring man, this is beautiful.

Amylisa said:

God’s Delight Comes In His Enjoyment Of Our Company

The Lord has great joy that the cross has provided us with open access to himself. Indeed, the most glorious moment in history was when the temple veil was rent in two, on the day that Christ died. At that moment, the earth trembled, the rocks rent and the graves were opened.
It was at this very moment that the benefit to God burst forth. In the instant that the temple veil — separating man from God’s holy presence — was torn asunder, something incredible happened. From that point on, not only was man able to enter into the Lord’s presence, but God could come out to man.
He who once dwelt in “thick darkness” didn’t wait for us to come to him, but he came out to us. God himself took the initiative, and Christ’s blood cleared away all hindrances. It was a unilateral move on the Lord’s part, the kind when one party declares, “Enough — I’m going to make peace. I’m going to tear down this wall of partition. And I’ll do it out of my own initiative.”
Before the cross, there was no access to God for the general public; only the high priest could enter the Holy of holies. Now Jesus’ cross made a path for us into the Father’s presence. By his grace alone, God tore down the wall that blocked us from his presence. Now he could come out to man, to embrace his prodigals and sinners of all sorts.
Here is the key to my message: you cannot come into joy and peace — indeed, you cannot know how to serve the Lord — until you see his delight in your deliverance…until you see the joy of his heart over his communion with you…until you see that every wall has been removed at the cross…until you know that everything of your past has been judged and wiped away. God says, “I want you to move on, into the fullness that awaits you in my presence!”
Multitudes today rejoice in the wonderful benefits of the cross. They have moved out of Egypt, and they’re standing on the “victory side” of their Red Sea trial. They enjoy freedom, and they thank God continually for casting their oppressor into the sea. But many of these same believers miss God’s greater purpose and benefit to them. They miss why the Lord has brought them out — which is to bring them in to himself.

~by D. Wilkerson

Click to expand...

this is very very good. Thanks for sharing it.

sweetMelody said:

wonderful song Angelwind, Thanks for sharing it.

and wayfaring man, I love what you wrote......thanks

Click to expand...

Thank you guys, I'm glad the song was a blessing.


Good writing WM