The greatest crown of all

We do not work for our salvation, for we are saved by Grace; it is the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8). Our salvation is sealed (Ephesians 1:13). But there are rewards in Heaven for which we work for. There are three crowns which we can obtain:

CROWN OF RIGHTEOUSNESS - For those that love His appearing

2Ti 4:8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.

CROWN OF LIFE - For those that love the Lord and endure even to death (martyrs)

Jam 1:12 Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

Rev 2:10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

CROWN OF GLORY - For the Sheppard of the flock (Pastor)

1Pe 5:2 Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; 1Pe 5:3 Neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. 1Pe 5:4 And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.

The greatest crown of all goes to King Jesus. When He came a Saviour, He bore the crown of thorns that He might die for our sins and give us eternal life:

Mat 27:29 And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews!

But when He shall return as King Jesus, He shall bear the greatest crown!

Isa 28:5 In that day shall the LORD of hosts be for a crown of glory, and for a diadem of beauty, unto the residue of his people,

Rev 6:2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.

Rev 14:14 And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.

I cannot wait to meet KING JESUS, and I too wish to cast my crowns before the throne of my King.

Rev 4:10 The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Rev 4:11 Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.

Some things never change

Often times at the church, when the congregation is singing hyms with all their might, you will notice a person or two lifting up their hands. Well usually just one hand, they hold the hymn book with the other. I find it nice. Sometimes during prayer you feel like lifting your hands up high to the sky.

Then I came acrross this verse from David. It's a very short Psalm:

Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord. ~Psalm 134:2

How nice! You see, some things never change. Next time that happens, maybe I too will lift up my hand, and think upon this verse.

Playing Office Manager

Whenever my office manager is away, I get to take her place. I love sitting in her office, I pretend it's mine! She's not in today and tomorrow, yippie.

As fun as it is, it's such a big responsibility...and so much stress. I do not like stress, and therefore, I will stick to my day job, daydreaming, haha. Just kidding.

I still think the best job in the world for me, and where I would be happiest and more than satisfied, is a job at church, or at least in God's ministry. I love the feeling of doing something that MATTERS. And the only thing that does matter is the Lord's work.

And yet, somebody has to witness to the peoeple outside our church, which is also the Lord's work. Honestly, the best things that have happened to me with this office, are the opportunities that I have had to share the gospel. And the best thing that could happen, is for somebody to get saved and start living their life for Jesus Christ.

I am therefore very thankful for the Lord. I get to go to church and serve as much as I can. I'm in a very good church. And I also get to do some personal training in the world, not always a peice of cake, but it does MATTER. I just want to add that I'm also very thankful for weekends.

.....oooh, must get back to work now!

Always a no show

My friend, and colleague, Mitchelle (yep, with a T in the middle), has been invited numerous times to come to church. It was originally her idea! I was sharing the gospel to her a while ago, and she said she really wants to come to church, at least, she knows she should. That was probably two months ago, and she has been a no show every Sunday ever since!

Here's the odd thing. Every weekend the staff does something to hang out, and I very rarely join them, make that almost never. I spend my weekends with my church people, and would not want to have it any other way. Mitchelle, however, is the opposite, and always joins them!

Mitchelle accepted that I call her every Sunday morning and remind her to come to church. I have kept my part of the deal.

Finally, last Friday, I got serious with her. The Lord put it on my heart and in my mouth to be frank with her:

As your friend, I'm only saying this for your own good. How come you always go drinking, smoking and chilling every weekend with the
girls??? You've accepted every single invitation and have not missed one
outing. But you have no time for the Lord. You spend Saturdays
nights consuming alcohol, drinking, smoking, doing all sort of stuff you
always say you wish you could quit. Yet, come Sunday mornings, you're in
bed, because you have had quite the night prior. God will be
harder on you than all your other friends you hang out with, because you have
heard the gospel much more than once. You get an invitation to come worship at the Lord's house every week, but you always refuse.

I was pretty amazed that the Lord gave me courage and boldness to speak such words to her. She took it really well though, and asked not to forget calling her on Sunday morning, which I did.

Did she come to church this past Sunday? NO

Will she be in church this Sunday? Probably not. The girls from the office are going to some sort of fancy gala, organized by a bunch of JW's, for breast cancer awareness on saturday night!!!!! I feel like yelling at Mitchelle.

She goes to events raising awareness for breast cancer, not to mention the whole JW thing, when her own body, and her own soul are cursed and condemned to everlasting and unquenching fire. What will it take? Pastor Larry has been preaching on the Fear of the Lord during Sunday School.

That's it, I will pray that the Lord will put His fear in her heart. I really want to see that girl saved!

Be Ye Holy

~If ye love me, keep my commandments. John 14:15

Often we do things because we fear the Lord, as we ought to. But we also ought to love the Lord will all our soul. The words from John 14:15 are Jesus Christ's own precious words.

What are his commandments? We were given many commandments, but the one that has been on my heart lately, probably more because of a convicting spirit, is the following:

~As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. 1 Peter 1:14-16

~Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I am the LORD your God. Lev. 20:7

Often enough, we brush sins off so easily, pint-pointing them as "little sins", not a big deal. There is no "big" or "little" sin to the Lord. We must never forget that sin is a big deal. It is because of our sin that we were separated from God, and because of our sin our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ, died on the cross and was much afflicted, wanting to redeem us back to Him.

The definition for holy is to be free from sin. Unfortunately, we are sinners. Holiness is one quality that only attributes to God. Only He is righteous, therefore, without sin. That is why he commanded to us to be holy, as He is holy. I admit, those are big shoes to fill!

Nevertheless, it is wrong of us to hide behind the fact that we are of a sinful nature, and therefore excuse and justify our wrong doing.

Why can’t we do things just because we love Him. Just because I love thee, Lord Jesus, make me holy, as thou only art.

In Finding His Will

Two great verses concerning finding God's will for our life:

My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from Him. ~Ps. 62:5

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thy own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. ~Prov. 3:5-6

Italian Meeting Update

We finally had the first Italian meeting tonight. A lot of non-Italians from the church attended anyway.

It was fun! This is how God works. We support Italian missionaries to Italy, Dean and Melanie Mazzaferri. Their son, raised in Italy, is now living with his family in Toledo, Ohio. Hears about our church starting Italian meetings and praying for an Italian church. The Lord puts it on his heart to come here and check it out. And so, Jake Mazzaferri and his family came 10 hours away to see if this what God wants them to do or not. How amazing is that!

This was the first time I went to church and did not understand a thing of what went on. It was fun singing (or rather attempting to sing) hymns in Italian and hearing a preaching in Italian. Wait, that' s not ture, I have been to catholic churches where the priest blabs and blabs in Latin.

Many of the visitors were elderly since it's their kids who brought them to church. They're just so adorable!!!! I'm looking forward for wednesday evening to hearing feedback. I'm sincerely praying that a soul got saved tonight. If not, then at least, many seeds were planted tonight!

Pastor Larry was all smiles :)

Awana with Pastor Larry

And then there were three. The JV class went from a duo to a trio. No, I'm not talking about Pastor Larry, just yet. Praise God, we have a new addition. Her name is Nicole. Her younger brother is in the Truth & Training, and she seems to really enjoy Awana, especially the JV'ers. That's the nice thing about Awana. It brings people together from outside our little church. I know her brother is saved, but I'm not quite certain about her. Tonight was only her 2nd time with the JV class. So it's now Ram, Ashley and Nicole.

I really wanted a "man" to come and speak to the class. Ram and Ashley first suggested Brian, but since he has to work on friday nights, they immediately shouted PASTOR LARRY, PASTOR LARRY!!!!!!

And just like that, Pastor Larry came to speak to the JV class tonight. I warned him that we also wanted to put him "on the hot seat" and shoot questions at him. He didn't seem to mind. Ram describes Pastor Larry as a pop tart, hard on the outside, but soft on the inside. Don't ask, I told him not to compare him to a pop tart, besides the point that pop tarts aren't really that hard on the outside...teenagers.

Pastor gave them a really sweet and encouraging message. He filled it with many examples from young people from the Bible, but he also gave it a personal touch. Ashley and Nicole were shy to shoot questions at him, so Ram did not hesitate.

- How did you become a preacher?

- What was the hardest time of your life?

- How did you meet Mrs. Judi?

Those were the only three questions. Each one the answers turned out to be a mini-preaching to the class.

It was just so sweet listening to every word he had to say. Even I was fed by every word he uttered. I saw my Pastor in a different light, I just love him so much, I wish he knew. We all love like a Father.

Fridays are so great. My best friend was in Ohio for the past 2 weeks. Her sister (my best friend #2) had her first baby, so she went down to visit her. Since we missed each other so much, we went out to Tim Hortons after Awana. I hate staying out late, but I really missed talking to her. Now for anybody that has not been to Canada, Tim Hortons is kinda like Dunkin Donuts, but miles better! It is the best coffee in the world. I didn't like coffee until I met Timmy. It's much cheaper than the other coffee places (starbucks) and way better. They even have a few Tim Hortons' in the US now. BEWARE!

I was so happy that Pastor Larry came to the JV class that we ended up discussing just how great He is, and how blessed we are to have good people at our church.

So that's what punks do.....

Just after 11p.m. (I was sleepy, I'm really not a late nighter) we were ready to head back home when about 15 teenage punker dudes walked into Timmies. They were probably around the ages of 13, maybe 15. I wished they were part of the JV class, where they could learn about the Lord.

I turned around to Virginia (to all my readers, I have 2 Virginias one at the office, and the other, my best friend from Church), and said, oh, so that's what punkers do. I guess even they like Tim Hortons Coffee.

Oh we're so dumb.....Virg and I did not leave a tract anywhere. Told you I'm out early. During the week, I'm always in bed at 11, sometimes I try earlier, fridays, midnight maximum, and saturdays 11:30, maximum. The earlier I can sleep, the happier I am.

This is past midnight, I really should head to my favorite place, Dreamland. Hope to meet you all there!

Living Redeemer

The LORD liveth; and blessed be my rock; and let the God of my salvation be exalted. ~Psa 18:46

Our Saviour is a LIVING God.

For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living. ~Rom 14:9

Had Jesus never rose from the dead, he would just be a dead God, but Amen, He is RISEN SAVIOUR. Even Job knew the great I Am.

For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. ~Job 19:25

And for that end, I will rejoice and the God of my salvation shall be exalted!

HELL

I know this isn't a pleasant subject, but I'm just astounded by the number of false religion, even some self proclaimed Christians which do not believe in Hell. They have deeply fallen in the lie that Hell is either unexistant or that hell is simply this present life on earth. How false!

My Pastor brings about a good point. If you do not believe in Hell, then what are you saved from?

What prompted this string of thoughts is found in 2 Samuel 22:6:

2Sa 22:6 The sorrows of hell compassed me about; the snares of death prevented me.

David knew His God and, therefore, knew the truth and grim reality of Hell. God is love, true, but God is also righteous Justice and a righteous Judge. Sin must be punished. God's love and Justice compensate each other in Romans 6:23 (For the wages of sin is death, but the girft of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord)

Hell is a real and physical place, much like Heaven. Heaven is above and Hell is beneath. The wicked shall meet their destruction in Hell. Our authors in the Old Testament knew this very well. Here are but a few verses, for there are far too many to be quoted all:

Job 11:8 It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell; what canst thou know?

Psa 9:17 The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.

Psa 55:15 Let death seize upon them, and let them go down quick into hell: for wickedness is in their dwellings, and among them.

Psa 86:13 For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell.

Pro 15:24 The way of life is above to the wise, that he may depart from hell beneath.

Isa 14:15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.

Eze 31:16 I made the nations to shake at the sound of his fall, when I cast him down to hell with them that descend into the pit.

And so many more. Jesus Christ, the greatest preacher ever known to man, came to save sinners from their sins, as to not meet their end in Hell, but have everslating life.

Mat 10:28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

That salvation is brought about by God's precious Grace, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Rom 3:24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.

Rom 5:15 But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.

Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.

2Ti 1:9 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began.

Jesus did it all and cried It is Finished.

Rom 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

It is not a lie, it is the truth. We are all sinners (Rom. 3:23), and unless we put on the righteousness of Christ Jesus we cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven. It is simple:

Rom 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Saved from what? Saved from the slavery of sin which has condemned our soul deep into Hell.

Act 16:31 Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.

Italian Meetings

Our church will be holding its first Italian Service next Sunday evening. We are very blessed in having quite a few Italian Roman Catholics which have boldly come to the throne of the Lord Jesus Christ. Some real genuine Italian converts, Amen!!!

However, many of their families, mostly elderly parents, are lost (some speak neither English nor French, only Italian). It has been on our Pastor's heart to have some Italian meetings in order to bring their families out, and Lord willing, an Italian church in the long run. Praise the Lord, we will be having that first service next Sunday. I believe it will be once a month for now. We are just treading the waters for now. Carlo will be doing the preaching. His wife Nadia prepared invitations to be handed out.

I am hoping to hand that invitation to my friend Virginia. May the Lord put in on her heart to come and bring her family along. Please pray that many unsaved Italians will come to the meeting, and meet their Saviour, Christ Jesus, face to face.

Act 10:1 There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band, Act 10:2 A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.......

It is also on our Pastor's heart to eventually have some French meetings as such, and again, Lord willing, a French church. Pastor Larry also has such a vision for a Greek church. Nothing is impossible with the Lord.

Pro 29:18 Where there is no vision, the people perish

The Whole Duty of Man

Pastor Larry preached on the Fear of God yesterday morning. It was very nice.

He read the following verse:

~Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. Ecclesiastes 12:13

Two Saturdays ago, while tract passing at the metro, a lady asked me what is the duty of the Church. I gave her Matthew 16:15. Our commandment is to "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature". I didn't want to get too doctrinal for fear of messing myself up and saying something wrong or just unecessary.

I'm not too certain she understood what I meant. Only a believer perceives the importance of winning souls to Christ. Had I known this passage in Ecclesiastes, I would have read that to her also. The whole duty of man is to Fear God and to keep his commandments.

What are his commandments? To go into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature! I know the Lord Jesus also commanded us to love one another as He loved us. (John 13:34)

But really, her question should have been "what is MY duty before God?"

We also as believers should ponder that question and ought to Fear the Lord with all our heart and keep His commandments.

Crazy Street Preaching Adventure

What a day! Right after the morning service, we gathered up, grabbed a bite and headed downtown for street preaching / tract passing. The men knew that they may not be able to do any preaching, since there was the St-Patrick's day parade downtown. And sure enough....

Luckily, we had brought loads of tracts with us. I had never been to the St-Patrick's parade, cuz, obviously, I have no Irish blood in me. We all knew, however, that we were sure to run into drunkards. At first, while the parade was trotting down the street it wasn't so bad. Most of the tracts were being thrown on the floor, but at least, I only saw but a couple of people with stupid beer, but that didn't last long. I kept on thinking, why would people bring their kids to this!???? I know it's a parade, fun, woohoooo, but everybody knows that the St-Patrick's parade = people getting drunk!!!!!!!!!!! You do NOT bring your children to this. YOU shouldn't even go to this.

When the parade was over and people took to the streets, never in my life had my eyes seen such a sinful city. I can't even tell you if I was MAD or just really really really SAD!!! Bunch of drunk young people. The city reaked booze and joints. It is so disgusting, I can't even describe it. We got mocked so much....When the parade was over, Remy, the man in charge of the street preaching, held his Bible up high and started preaching. In case you don't know (I didn't), Saint Patrick was apparently a born again preacher, so all of our men fed on that.

I won't describe the things that occured, because it's too vulgar. But Remy just kept on preaching as we were passing tracts. He was wise though, and only preached for about 5 minutes. You can't talk to drunk people about anything, much less the Lord. It broke my heart. So many people were saying how proud they were that they were going to hell....if they only knew...a young girl (drunk, with stupid beer in her hand, and obiously high on something) told me that the devil lives in her. I feel like crying as I'm posting this. If it touches my soul and my heart so much, how much more the Lord.........

However, through all this chaos, a lot of tracts went out and lots of people put them in their pockets. I really pray they read it. I got approached by this French (drunk) fellow, and I couldn't even make up one word he was saying. I just told him to take the tract, put it in his pocket and read it in the morning.

I was so sad for the city of Montreal, I'm telling you, it reaked alcohool, it was just nasty.

I am so thankful for my church people!!!!! They're so great. I did have a good time, it was fun spending the day all together serving the Lord. Each day, I'm more and more thankful for my church.

Please pray that some wise people will read the tracts. If one soul gets saved out of all of this, it is worth it all.

My New Bible....At Last

I don't normally have lousy weeks, but this one was pretty lousy. Yish, so glad it's over with.

I did, however, want to end it on a good note. We normally have Awana on Firday nights, but today was a night off due to Spring break. After work, I went to a Christian bookstore about 10 minutes away from my building. It's really not the greatest bible bookstore, but good enough to find King James Bibles, and it's nearby, which is pretty neat.

At last, I'm an owner of a Scofield Study Bible (KJV of course). I wasn't certain if I wanted a Scofield Study Bible at first (I know he's not always 100% right on, but then again, who is), but last summer, while flipping through my brother's Bible I got convinced that, indeed, that's what I wanted.

I am super happy! I also got a new Bible cover. Originally, I was supposed to go clothe shopping, but after my Bible purchase, I was so excited to just come home and personlize it. I was also supposed to meet up with friends from work for coffee, but one of the girls is a Jehovah' s witness, and that's another story for another post. All I wanted was to get my Bible and come home.

Firdays are usually very long days, though loads of fun, thanks to Awana...and also cuz it's the weekend!!!! But it's so nice to just come home and "chillax".

Just a random thought

For ever, O Lord, thy word is settled in Heaven. Psalm 119:89

I've often wondered what will "happen" to the Bible when all this is over. I don't know what I would do here on earth without my Bible. God's words are my eyes, my spiritual food and my passion. The Bible is a warning book, a book of teaching and instruction. It is a prophetical book. It has a purpose of redeeming God's people back to Christ their Lord. However, there will not be sin nor folly in Heaven. And what will happen to it when the Scripture is fulfilled? My hope for this present life lies in God's precious Word, His precious promise that He's coming to take me away. At times, I get so anxious and so excited that I feel like my soul is actually about to take off. I want to dwell with Christ my Redeemer for all eternity.

But what about the Bible? Does God have a Bible right now with Him in Heaven? Maybe it's a stupid question, but I keep thinking about it. I like to think that just like we read of the Book of Life in Revelation, that God probably has His own special copy of the Bible.

There is also the classic passage:

Heaven and earth shall pass, but my words shall not pass away. Matt 24:35

Thy word is settled and my words shall not pass away. Is that referring to the Bible? I think so.

Going back to Psalm 119:89. Forever thy Word is settled in Heaven. I just had another thought. We know that Jesus Christ is the Word. Maybe this verse has a double meaning.

What are your thoughts on this?

Life of a Christian

As believers, we speak the believer talk.

I guess I say "Amen" a lot, thanks to my church. So much so it even comes out at work now. My office manager gave me some good news today, and I responded with Amen!

I'll never forget my college graduation rehearsal. When they called up my best friend's name (from school) I shouted Amen. Everyone turned around and stared. Ha, but that's not nearly as bad as when I supposedly "offended Mary". My school looked like the White House. It was a nun's convent, actually. But they rented half of it to my school. They also rented some fancy gala rooms for conferences and such, hence, my graduation ceremony took place in one of those rooms. Go figure, there was a big Mary statue. We had a Jewish girl by the name of Sura (yep, with an u) who refused to attend because of that thing. I should have done the same. Now behind the statue, there was some sort of a closet. So when I learned Sura was offended by the idol, I shouted "well just put the thing in the closet, it's just a statue".

Aha, you should have heard the murmurs! The day of my grad my mother, along with my 2 best friends attended. I warned them about the idol, and of my so called offense. So when the ceremony was over, everyone went outside for some champagne, ooh la la, but my friends and I went back inside and took pictures of us trying to shove the statue into the closet. Ok, it was funny then, but we're all a whole lot more mature now...

Also, last halloween, the girls from my office asked me if I still went trick or treating. I said that I've not been "tract passing" since I was 14 and since I met the Lord. (Well I got saved at 7, but I only understood better and started my walk with the Lord 7 years later)

But the funniest goes to my mother. I don't remember the details, but once, she was asked to count something and she went "Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus". Lol, she cracked me up when she told me that story.

Ah the fun perks of being a Christian, I love it. Amen!

One alarm clock is enough

I have to wake up earlier than the usual time this week. It's quite difficult. So brilliant little me decided that I should set my alarm clock at 6, and just to be on the safe side, I should also set my alarm on my cellphone at 6.

People, hear me out, bad idea! I almost had a heart attack at 6 when they both went off this morning. My alarm clock is set to the radio and my cell to "when the saints go marching in". I didn't know which one I wanted to pitch across the room first!!!

In any case, on the bright side, I was up on time. So I guess I still accomplished that which I set to do. Yippi.

Are you poor and needy

When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the Lord will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them. Isaiah 41:17

I had a hard day today, not a bad one, just hard. Days as such make me feel weak, and maybe a little sad too. Two feelings which I hate. I don't appreciate it when people step in and try to make you feel small so that they can walk all over you.

That's why I have to remember that I'm in the Lord's army. *I usualy tend to remember things like that muuuchhhhh later.* I just read David and Goliath a few nights ago.

~Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou has defiled. 1 Samuel 17:45

Powerful words. Maybe I sound a little extremest to take a bad day and apply verses like that, but it's how I find comfort, and STRENGTH. I remember the God whom I serve. He is strong!

I always feel needy and thirsty. I need to know God's word much better than I do because that's how I often let my guards down. I need to quench my thirsting spirit. I'm not sure what it's thirsting for, and yet, when I come to the Lord, the feeling goes away. Maybe it's for more time with Him.

The Lords keeps His promises. There is comfort in His promises. The God of Israel promises to hear me and not to forsake me. He is a righteous judge, and I shall plead my case to Him. I know He will hear me and will come through. I already feel stronger...and happier too.

Church Potluck Tomorrow

After our morning service, we're having a church potluck in the honor of...our building!

The church started some 11 years ago, but they would meet here and there for the first 4 years. We've only had this building for 7 years. Thankfully, the church is growing well, and our sanctuary is getting too small to accommodate everybody.

We will be starting renovation this Spring (in a few weeks!) in order to enlarge our sanctuary. Plus it's an really old building and needs a lot of fixing up.

So tomorrow is a jam packed Church Day! Between the morning service, potluck, choir at 5 (I'm not in the choir but I go anyway) and the evening service at 6, I won't be back home before 7:30pm.

I enjoy church fellowship very much. We have so may different nationalities, Italians, Greeks, Portuguese, Phillipenos....yum, the food shall be good! Oh, yes, and the company is great too. :)

My One "Regret"

Fridays at work are know as "crazy burn out Fridays", but I like it that way. It's fun being busy.

In order to keep our sanity, we like to go out to lunch somewhere nice every Friday. For some reason, today just did not work out. I ended up going to a little dinner downstairs of our building with my friend Virginia.

I'm pretty close to her. She's a little bit older than myself, 28 in a few weeks. She's an Italian, but very simple girl. I think we have similar personalities. I know she's been down lately. Long story short, but her and her fiance broke up over Christmas time! I always told her that it was a blessing in disguise. Her boyfriend is a Latin American MORMON!!!!

I had witnessed to her, but not nearly as much as I ought to. So today over lunch time, she brings it up. I love it when they get it started!!! She asks about my church. Now Virg is a smoker, and I hate and absolutely despise smoke. For some reason, I compromised and sat in the smokers' section with her.

Obviously, she's Roman Catholic. Praise God, the Holy Spirit got a hold of me, and I witnessed to her for probably 30 minutes. She was all ears asking me all the questions I wanted her to ask. She even asked me for my testimony. It was so cool. Especially sitting in the smokers' section, I was purposely speaking loud. I felt like I wanted all the people to hear. And I'm super shy! Trust me, it was the Lord.

Now my only regret is that I did not have a Bible on me...or so I thought. I have a small New Testament with me in my drawer at work. I kept on telling her that when we go upstairs I would show her the verses cuz she needs to read them for herself and believe. But we can't really chat during work time. I was so mad at myself, I brought my Bible so that I would not be caught in a situation like that. I don't like witnessing without a Bible. But O how stupid am I!!!!!!!!!!! It totally escaped me that last week (or was it the week before) I put another New Testament in my purse. Why? Because I wanted to be prepared and never get caught in a situation without a Bible....and how did I manage to forget that it was in my purse all this time and get caught in such a situation ....because I stink, it's all. Haha

No really though, thankfully the Lord spoke through me. I know she was all ears. She was teary at one point, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything. When it was time to hed back, she said "ok, so Monday, lesson #2". That's right, and next time, I will remember that I have a Bible in my purse and will show her God's Word from His own Holy Book.

Praise God, I was in such a state of bliss after that. Now that's the kind of conversation I enjoy!

I Stand Corrected

Often during prayer I say something like "Lord, if you will just do this, so I that may give all glory to you".

That is not correct. I realized that it is not so through my Oswald Chambers daily devotional, and I stand corrected. I shall share with you what I have learned:

AFTER OBEDIENCE - WHAT?

And straightway he constrained his disciples to get into the ship, and to go to the other side before unto Behtsaida, while he sent away the people. Mark 6:45

We are apt to imagine that Jesus Christ constrains us, and we obey Him, He will lead us to great success. We must never put our dreams of success as God's purpose for us; His purpose may be exactly the opposite. We have an idea that God is leading us to a particular end, a desired goal; He is not. The question of getting to a particular end is a mere incident. What we call the process, God calls the end.
What is my dream of God's purpose? His purpose is that I depend on Him and on His power now. If I can stay in the middle of the turmoil calm and unperplexed, that is the end of the purpose of God. God is not working toward a particular finish; His end is the process - that I see Him walking on the waves, no shore in sight, no success, no goal, just the absolute certainty that is is alright because I see Him walking on the sea. It is the purpose, not the end, which is glorifying to God.
God's training is now, not presently. His purpose is for the minute, not for something in the future. We have nothing to do with the afterwards of obedience; we get wrong when we think of the afterward. What men call training and preparation, God calls the end.
God's end is to enable me to see that He can walk on the chaos of my life just now. If we have a further end in view, we do not pay sufficient attention to the immediate present: if we realize that obedience is the end, then each moment as it comes is precious. ~My Utmost for His Highest - Oswald Chambers

This has definitely been an eye opener, and I certainly stand corrected. It is a beautiful process getting to know the Lord more and more each day!

What Hannah Did

I'm presently in the Book of First Samuel, and I wanted to post this before, but I just did not have the time.

Hannah is a Godly woman, and just like prior to other Godly women in the Bible, she had to wait on the Lord for her heart's sole desire. She was barren. Not only so, but she was provoked by her adversary (Chapter 1, v.6), mocked because the Lord had shut up her womb. That caused her great sadness so that would not eat (v.7). In verse 10, the author writes that she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord and wept sore.

She was a smart woman, what I like to call "a prayer warrior". Quick to get on her knees and unashamed of pouring her heart out at the altar of God. She speaks and reasons with Him, makes a vow unto the Lord (v.11), that if He would look on her affliction and give her a man child she would dedicate Him unto the Lord all the days of His life.

1Sa 1:10 And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the LORD, and wept
sore.
1Sa 1:11 And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou wilt
indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget
thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give
him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon
his head.
1Sa 1:12 And it came to pass, as she continued praying before the
LORD, that Eli marked her mouth.
1Sa 1:13 Now Hannah, she spake in her
heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought
she had been drunken.
1Sa 1:14 And Eli said unto her, How long wilt thou be
drunken? put away thy wine from thee.
1Sa 1:15 And Hannah answered and said,
No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor
strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the LORD.
1Sa 1:16 Count
not thine handmaid for a daughter of Belial: for out of the abundance of my
complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto.
1Sa 1:17 Then Eli answered and
said, Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast
asked of him.
1Sa 1:18 And she said, Let thine handmaid find grace in thy
sight. So the woman went her way, and did eat, and her countenance was no more
sad.

She prayed with sincerity and didn't hold back anything. She prayed in her heart, probably in purpose of humility. In relation to my other post "Unbelief", Hannah certainly did not lack belief in the Lord. After having prayed and having received a blessing from Eli (v.18) Hannah gets back on her way, eats and her countenance was no more sad!

Two verses below, she conceives Samuel and Hannah keeps her vow unto the Lord:

1Sa 1:21 And the man Elkanah, and all his house, went up to offer unto the LORD
the yearly sacrifice, and his vow.
1Sa 1:22 But Hannah went not up; for she
said unto her husband, I will not go up until the child be weaned, and then I
will bring him, that he may appear before the LORD, and there abide for ever.
1Sa 1:23 And Elkanah her husband said unto her, Do what seemeth thee good;
tarry until thou have weaned him; only the LORD establish his word. So the woman
abode, and gave her son suck until she weaned him.
1Sa 1:24 And when she had
weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bullocks, and one ephah of
flour, and a bottle of wine, and brought him unto the house of the LORD in
Shiloh: and the child was young.
1Sa 1:25 And they slew a bullock, and
brought the child to Eli.
1Sa 1:26 And she said, Oh my lord, as thy soul
liveth, my lord, I am the woman that stood by thee here, praying unto the LORD.
1Sa 1:27 For this child I prayed; and the LORD hath given me my petition
which I asked of him:
1Sa 1:28 Therefore also I have lent him to the LORD;
as long as he liveth he shall be lent to the LORD. And he worshipped the LORD
there.

In chapter two, we read a beautiful prayer by Hannah. Not only does she keep her vow unto God but gets right back on those praying kness which served her well. In verse 5, she says "so that the barren hath borne 7". Now again, just a few verses below, in verse 21, Hannah conceives again and bares three more sons and two daughters!

Prayer is a must but for Hannah (and for us), it would have been in vain had she not trusted that the Lord would hear her cry and fulfil her heart's desire in due time. There comes that Belief again! There was a change in her attitutude prior to the answered prayer. And how important is it to keep our vows and to remember the Lord who beheld our affliction.

I'm really enjoying reading my Old Testament again. There are so many great hidden lessons. Truly the only way to Know the Lord is through His Word.

Thought I Should Also Post This On My Blog

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MATTHEW!!!!!!!

:)

The Saga Goes On

I told you Jeffrey asks me every Monday about church!

Today was no different. He was having late lunch in the kitchen at 2 pm. I went in, not knowing he was in there, to get a glass of water. We struck a conversation. *By the way, Mondays are great for witnessing. When you are asked about your weekend, you mention church and Score!* Which of course Jeffrey asked. And the "how was church?" came in. But this time, he asked about the sermon. The morning preaching was on the simplicity that is in Christ (2 Corinth 11:3). Sunday morning preaching is usually a salvation message.

The evening preaching was on vanity (Ecclesiastes). Discerning with what is vain and what is not. Of course, the work of the Lord is the only thing that is not in vain. Jeffrey, however, could not help but to ask what is vain. As I was going down the list, he stopped me at beauty.

He often makes fun of me by telling others "Sarah is a sinner." He cannot understand that I'm a sinner saved by grace. I put on the righteousness of Christ. Long story short, but I was telling him that I do plenty of vain things, such as fixing my hair for 15 minutes, when I can spend them in prayer on my knees. Jeffrey rolls his eyes "yes, but your hair looks great." I tried to bring it back to salvation, but he wasn't interested.

Finally the Lord gave me the courage to ask him to come visit my church, since he's so curious. He just rolled his eyes. "Ah now you're trying to recruit me", I wanted to shout, NO IT IS NOT I, BUT JESUS, WHO IS JUST TRYING TO SAVE YOUR SOUL FROM HELL. But I lacked boldness. That was the end of our conversation. When I went to wish him good evening on my way out, he just winked, and said "nice hair". Aaaaaaahhhh, I wanted to pull out my hair!!!!!!!!

Nevertheless, I shall continue praying for him and ask you to please do so too, if you happen to remember. I shall keep you posted on any new developments.

Unbelief

Mat 13:53 And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these parables, he departed thence.
Mat 13:54 And when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works?
Mat 13:55 Is not this the carpenter's son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?
Mat 13:56 And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things?
Mat 13:57 And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house.
Mat 13:58 And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

I think we all want the Lord Jesus to do mighty works in our life. Verse 58 is the key to that success. Belief! How important it is to have Faith. After all, He is still the same God, the God of miracles, which worketh mighty deeds in our heart and in our life.

The verse speaks for itself. Our unbelief will be an stumbling block in our walk with the Lord. How to cure our unbelief?

....Cried out and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief. (See Mark 9:24)

A Home With God

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. ~Psalm 23:6

As Spring is fast approaching and March breaks are just around the corner, many people enjoy this time off to work on their homes. Fixing the bathroom, the kitchen the bedroom, spring cleaning and renovation is hard to avoid. Don't get me wrong, I believe in maintaining our homes nice and tidy. Just the thought of having a messy bedroom makes me anxious. I cannot work and relax in a messy environment.

It just never hit me the ridiculous amount of money people spend on fixing their homes. I personally avoid fixing that which is not broken. On the upside, isn't it amazing that as Christians and Believers we do not have to lift a finger for our home in Heaven!

In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there ye maybe be also. ~John 14:2-4

A MANSION for moi? Now that is something worth the wait. The greatest gain of all is that we will dwell with Jesus Christ ou savior in a place where righteousness dwells for all eternity.

For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain...having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ, which is far better. ~Phil 1:21-23

I feel like breaking into a Hymnal. Won't you join me?

*I've a Home beyond the river, I've a Mansion bright and fair, I've a Home beyond the river, I will dwell with Jesus there.*

Meet my Boss

Greetings to all!

You probably already know that I work at a law firm. Nothing too fancy, just a legal secretary. I assist with the litigation department and have been there for just over a year now. The Lord has truly blessed me and I give Him all thanks and Praise for all that He's provided me with, for truly I am not worthy of His grace.

It's isn't a big law office, we only have 10 lawyers, one law student, one stagiaire (intern), 2 girls in the corporate department, 5 secretaries, one office manager and one receptionist. The "head" of our litigation department, and therefore my boss, Jeffrey, is one that I just cannot figure out.

He's very good to me, to all the girls and to the other lawyers. He is, however, quite the educated fellow. He's a very well established lawyer (a partner at our firm), not only on the Quebec Bar, but also with the Ontario Bar. He's an author and He also acts as an arbitrator. We all see Him making it as a judge some day. (Plus his wife is also a lawyer and a partner at her firm). He esteems education very highly. As nice as he is, he's a little bit of a snob!

Last year, after the easter weekend, I found an easter chocolate bunny on my chair. I was very pleased! Once I figured out it was from Jeffrey, I went into his office to thank Him. This is how it started.

"I'm glad you like it, I was a little bit afraid for I'd heard you were religious", he said. Now don't ask me how, but the Lord put the right words in my mouth that day. I was so nervous as I explained to Him what I stand for, and as tried to share the gospel. My cheeks felt very red (I get red cheeks and feeverish when I'm extremely nervous, or tired). I even felt faint and as though my knees were about to give out on me. That was a first. I could not believe that God gave me an opportunity to witness to my boss. He's not just any kind of boss, he's really intimidating.

About a month later, I had another open door. It was a tiresome day at work and I was hoping not to work overtime. But of course I did. For Jeffrey, of course. I had to finish a letter and fax it. It was a long distance fax and it was just not going through, I was getting frustrated. 15 minutes later, I figured out I was dialing the wrong number. Ooops! As I went to wish Jeffrey good night, he asks me about my church. (Every monday he asks how was church, which I appreciate). That day, I got to give him a tract. I went from being frustrated, to praising the Lord. Now, here's what you have to know, when Jeff asks me about churhc I never know if he's teasing me, or if he's actually interested to find out. He's a bit sneaky!

Last May, we were having a Bible conference at our church, and when Jeff asked what that is, I did my best to explain. I told him we have a Pastor form the US and a bunch of people from the states that come up, kinda like a big gathering. I also told him that I had gone to Toledo, Ohio for a Bible conference there and had a blast. TOLEDO, OHIOOOOOOOOOOOOO. He screamed, who goes there for vacation? Ever since, he NEVER dropped the Ohio Act. Here's the weird thing, he's actually funny!!!!!!!

Once I had to open a file for a client living in I don't know where (weird city in Quebec), he asked me if I knew where that is. NO. "Well it's nowhere near Ohio!" he said. And it's been like that ever since. Yes, I know it's funny. But it's like that every day. Today for instance, we have a client by the name of Henri, but his e-mail address reads Hank something @. I asked Jeffrey why Hank and not Henri "well, ask you Ohio friends". I finally understood that it's a nickname, like Robert is Bob, and William is Bill, etc.

As irritating as his remarks can be about Ohio, my going to church on sundays, wednesdays and fridays, and that I actually read the Bible, I feel the Lord has blessed me with an open door with Jeffrey.

All this to ask you fellow readers and friends for some prayer as I try and witness to him. I believe that if he's asking so much, maybe it is because the Lord is working in his heart!