Jesus

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“Walks like a duck, swims like a duck …” (a photo essay)


must be a duck … right?  What kind of  “duck” are you?

Camouflage duck…

 

Pretending to be a duck

Backsliding duck

Popular but hard to understand duck

 

Robot duck

 

Just along for the ride duck

 

Duck in hiding

Fanatical duck

Mere reflection of your old self duck

Bound by circumstances duck

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, new things have come.” 

2 Corinthians 5:17 (HCSB)

 

What kind of Christian are you?  Are you a new creation, or another version of the old you?  Who do you reflect?

RBGREENDESIGNS.COM 2021

 

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Fresh Lemonade?


When you are squeezed, what comes out?

There is More to Lemonade Than Just Lemons

Pressure … comes from all sides.  Home, work, friends, family … pressure.  Good things happen and bad things happen.  Sometimes the bad outweighs the good.   Why do some people have it easy  while others seem to never catch a break? Every time you pick up a paper, turn on your computer or answer the phone you seem to hear nothing but heartache.  After a while you could really get depressed.

The bumper sticker reads, “Life, it happens”.  Someone you love is going to suffer an unjust circumstance.  Something is going to happen that is just not fair.  It happens to your children, your husband … a friend.   That someone could be you.  It may be something small, but like a splinter in the finger it hurts.  It could be something huge that threatens to take you under.  Pressure, it comes from all sides.  Why?  

The pressure of the world is sin.  People get angry over the consequences of sin, especially when they suffer because someone else sinned.  Who is to blame?   People sin because they are sinners, they are not sinners because of sin. People choose to sin.  Bad choices have consequences … SIN has consequences.  We all make bad choices, we all choose to sin.  We are all sinners.

               Romans 3:10 (NLT) “As the Scriptures say,    “No one is righteous — not even one. “

Squeeze a sinner = SIN  ?  

So what do you do? 

  • Cry
  • Hide
  • Throw in the towel
  • Run away
  • Give up
  • All of the above

Yes it is a cliché, “Life hands you lemons, make lemonade” or, “squeeze some carbon, get a diamond.”  Tired of hearing that right?  Today you, or someone you know, will be pressured by life.  The first impulse (because you are a sinner and sinners sin) is ????   You are on the spot and must make a decision not to sin and/or help someone else not to sin.  Worry is a sin.  Blaming God is a sin.  He did not create sin or sin’s consequences, but for the time being He is allowing the devil to run the world (because man CHOSE sin).    Christ died for those sins and that sinful nature.  Claim that victory and do not believe the devil’s lies.  Just remember,  God is in control, He is still on the throne, He loves you and He cares for you.  TRUST Him.  Turn it over to Him.

  • PRAY first
  • Read His word
  • Act on His leading
  • Fellowship/talk with other Christians
  • ENCOURAGE other Christians

Ask God for wisdom today and TRUST Him for the rest.  Trust = FAITH.  A living faith accomplishes in our life what God wants us to have.   A living faith walks on water.  Matthew 14: 22-32



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“A little dab a do ya!”


HAPPY NEW YEAR! 
Got resolutions? 
Broke any yet?
 

I have watched so many over the holidays trying to “cram in” all they did not get done in 2011.  One thing in particular I noticed was God.  People were running around stores looking for symbols of their faith to show others they “got Christ”.  Unfortunately, many get by with “a little dab a do ya”.  Now I know I have dated myself because most of you reading this blog have no idea what product had that slogan.  Brylcreem … a little dab a do you.  (Click on Brylcreem for a good laugh).  Many Christians treat God that way, “a little dab a do ya”.

Wearing a cross, a fish on the car … a service a week; this is how we treat God.  Daily reading of His word?  Praying more than grace, or “fix this Lord”?  At the end of the year with all the commercialization Christians get that guilt complex.  When looking around you see that the children and grandchildren are wrapped up in the holidays as portrayed by the world and not as portrayed by His word.  Why is it every December all the Christians are wearing buttons that say, “Keep Christ in Christmas” or “Jesus is the Reason” ? Only in December are their cars and homes  depicting the Nativity and other Christian symbols .  What about the other 11 months?  What are we Christians saying?  Sadly, “a little God will do us”.

NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION:  Keeping Christ in everyday. You cannot do this in your own strength.  You will need His.  So rise early to read His word and pray.    You make time for other things in your day.  Can you find more then “a little dab” of time for Him?   Unlike other religions, our FAITH allows us to pray unceasingly … anytime, anywhere.  It is a symptom of our heart’s condition.  Walking with Him by our side talking anytime, any where, any how.  Make your relationship with Him by faith.  Not a religious practice.  Then, the other 11 months of the year, people are SEEING you keep CHRIST in the whole year by how you keep Him in your life daily.

By God’s grace and strength this year I will:

Romans 12
” 1 Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your spiritual worship. 2Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.  3 For by the grace given to me, I tell everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he should think. Instead, think sensibly, as God has distributed a measure of faith to each one. 4 Now as we have many parts in one body, and all the parts do not have the same function, 5 in the same way we who are many are one body in Christ and individually members of one another. 6According to the grace given to us, we have different gifts: If prophecy, use it according to the standard of one’s faith; 7 if service, in service; if teaching, in teaching; 8 if exhorting, in exhortation; giving, with generosity; leading, with diligence; showing mercy, with cheerfulness. 9 Love must be without hypocrisy. Detest evil; cling to what is good. 10 Show family affection to one another with brotherly love. Outdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not lack diligence; be fervent in spirit; serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; be persistent in prayer. 13 Share with the saints in their needs; pursue hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep. 16 Be in agreement with one another. Do not be proud; instead, associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own estimation. 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Try to do what is honorable in everyone’s eyes. 18 If possible, on your part, live at peace with everyone. 19 Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for His wrath. For it is written: Vengeance belongs to Me; I will repay, says the Lord. 20But, if your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink.  For in so doing you will be heaping fiery coals on his head.21 Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.” (HCSB)
 

You may be the only Christ some people see; the only Bible they will ever read.

Happy New Year … May You Feel Jesus Near, Every Day Of  This Year!

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“A Baby Changes Everything”


Faith Hill sings the song “A Baby Changes Everything*”, the story of Jesus’ who came to Earth and changed the world.   If you have not seen the video or heard the song, click on the title above.

Fourteen years ago I had just returned from Montana.  God had perfect timing in our lives.  I was in retail and could only get away for a few days.  My youngest daughter was due to give birth Christmas Eve.  However, as I landed on the 10th she was already in the hospital in labor.  I was able to be there for the birth of her first child and our first grandson.  I was able to be there for my oldest at the birth of her oldest daughter, our first grandchild.  God knew my grandmother’s heart and has allowed me to be at the hospital for my daughters.

I often say that God provides minuscule pictures on earth of the ‘big picture’.  Both of my daughters lives have been changed forever by the birth of their children, as mine was with each of their births.  Nothing is the same, everything is different.  Circumstances, challenges, life … day by day a mother handles what is handed her.  What a difference a child makes.

As we come together to celebrate Christmas, let us not forget that a Baby changed everything.  Circumstances, challenges, life … day by day each of us handle what is handed to us … either WITH or withOUT the difference the CHILD of God made when He came to earth as a new-born child, to a mother who had no mother to be there for her.  What a sacrifice He made in leaving Heaven to come to a stable.  What a difference He made.

We often get frazzled by the season’s hustle and bustle, plans, and traveling.  Let us not forget that Jesus is the Reason for the Season and YOU may be the only witness a person sees that “A Baby Changes Everything”.

Will He make a difference in your CHRISTmas celebrations this year?

Have a BLESSED CHRISTMAS! ~ RBGreen

*A Baby Changes Everything Warner-tamerlane Publishing Corp

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Just What Is A Miracle Anyway?


mir·a·cle [mir-uh-kuhl] noun

1.an effect or extraordinary event in the physical world that surpasses all known human or natural powers and is ascribed to a supernatural cause.
2.such an effect or event manifesting or considered as a work of God.
3.a wonder; marvel. (Dictionary.com)

Origin of MIRACLE

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin miraculum, from Latin, a wonder, marvel, from mirarito wonder at.  First Known Use: 12th century http://www.merriam-webster.com
What is a miracle to you?  We pray for them.  Some times we pray for a big miracle … and some say,  “I just need a little miracle”.   I think many times we want a quick solution, in a hurry … in the nick of time.  We throw the word miracle around a lot in today’s world.
  • Miracle Whip
  • Miracle Team
  • Children’s Miracle Network
  • Miracle Baby
  • Miracle Mile
  • Miracle Strip
  • Miracle …this and that

And yet on the flip side of the coin some wonder … DO MIRACLES STILL HAPPEN?

I believe:


I think that the times have changed and we do not see  as many of  what some call the ‘fanfare’ type of miracles  recorded in the Bible.  I believe they still happen that way sometimes, but more often than not miracles are quiet and leave us with a sense of awe.  Why?  Because as a whole we do not NEED them like was needed in the times of Christ.  Over two thousand years since Christ arose and people still turn to Him in simple faith, not because they saw the lame walk, the blind see, etc.  We do not need miracles to believe and spread His message.  We need faith.  Miracles still happen.  The fact that today God uses Doctors and technology that He has allowed mankind to develop  is no less miraculous.    I think sometimes we belittle His hand in our lives because of the lack of fanfare in an event.  I do not think there are big and little miracles.  I think it is, or it isn’t.  (Kinda like lies, it is or it isn’t … or Love, you are either in love or you or not).  I think the problem is in our recognizing God’s hand in our life.  We need faith to make it through our lives.  Not huge displays of fanfare of God’s intervention.  We need faith to see the miracles all around us.  God is always at work in our lives.  That is a miracle.

As a Christian you are in the palm of His hand.  Now that is a miracle.  Think about it … He cares about every little detail.  When you look at something you are holding in your hand do you not see every detail?

He sees every little detail as He holds the world in His hands.

For the Jews waiting for the Messiah, a baby born in a stable was not a miracle.  They wanted a BIG miracle, a King on a throne with lots of fanfare. Yet, hundreds of  kings and queens have lived,  have come and gone, and you would have trouble naming most of them.  They were not miracles.  A birth of a baby 2000 years ago in a stable is still the most recognizable name on earth.  Jesus is a miracle.

Bringing these thoughts into prospective (what got me thinking on all of this), for over three years we were praying for a miracle for my husband, a job.  One that would instantly solve our financial woes.  Phil now has a job (PTL and PTA*).  God answered our prayer, He gave us a miracle because in today’s society people over 40 years old who have too much education and experience are not recognized as valuable.  Some have said, “well, you know it’s not what you were praying for and it’s probably not what he wanted, but  it is a job.”  True.  But, it was what he needed.  We were praying for God’s will.  We long since passed the time of telling God what we needed in the way of a job because only God knows what we need to fulfill His plan and our wants seldom have anything to do with that.  Does that mean this job is not a miracle, or it’s a little miracle?  Of course not.  After 3-1/2 years of looking for work he has a job, THAT IS A MIRACLE.  Why?  Because every time God intervenes in our lives through His love for us it is a miracle.  It’s a miracle of love.  We wait expectantly, hoping to apply all that we have learned in the past 3-4 years as we move forward with Him.

Are you overlooking the miracles in your life today?  Do you consider them too small to be a miracle?  Were they not what you wanted?  Maybe we need to look for those miracles we wanted by looking  a little closer at what God places in our hands; at what God knows we needed.

*PTL and PTA: A Southern-ism for Praise the Lord, and Pass the Ammunition.  Or, in other words, the battle is won, the war is still to be fought.  That is life.  The devil rules in this world and evil is prevalent everywhere because mankind chose for him to be here.  God gives us the battle and He has won the war … the devil will surrender.