I Have A New Blog Site!

Hi!  For those of you following my Blog and those of you who have landed here, please know that I know longer post on this site.  I have a new Blog page on Word Press.  I invite you to head over to it now and check it out.  Please add your name to the Follow list.  I think you will be blessed by it...at least that's my hope.  The address is thevoiceofonecryingfromcyberspace.WordPress.com

Real Men Do This

A real man is faithful to his wife and family and loves them as Christ loves His church. I'm tired of hearing about Ministers that can't go to the beach without lusting after women. I'm tired of hearing about Christian men that are hooked on pornography. I'm tired of hearing about men on websites like Ashley Madison and young men like Josh Dugger. I want to hear about the men who are faithful to their marriage vows they made before God, the men who work hard and come home to eat at the dinner table with their wives and children and who take an interest in what their kids did at school that day, who listen to their stories, play ball in the yard with them, help with the dishes, and let their children see them hug and kiss their mother. Real men change the babies diapers, stay up at night rocking a sick baby so mom can rest, lead devotions with the family and pray for their families. Wimpy men drink, womanize and are selfish. If this post makes you upset, take it to God because His Word teaches what a REAL man is. He's calling you to be a real man. Real men know and serve Jesus.

You've Already Got It!

What exactly is faith?  If your a student of the Word you will probably quote "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." Hebrews 11:1 NIV  This is the Biblical definition of faith. 


Faith is not something you do, however, to make God move!  That is legalism.  Yet, that is what most Christians think when you mention having faith.  They think they have to do something and then God will move.  No, that's not it. 


This is more accurate:  Faith is simply your positive response to what God has already done by grace.  Get it?  God as already done it and your responding in a positive way to what He has already accomplished. 


Another way to say it is like this:  Faith is simply how you appropriate what has already been provided by grace. 


Most Christians think they have to do something to make God move in their behalf, but God has already provided everything we need on the cross.  He's already done it and we've already got it!  We just simply make a positive response to what He's already done. 


You're not trying to get healed...your already healed!   Just reach out and take it by faith, because you've already got it!  Got it?  Release your faith right now and receive.

The New Normal Is Not Normal

The times they are a changing sang Bob Dylan back in the '60's and he was right.  The world is certainly changing and has changed in many ways.  I'll be the first to admit I like all the modern conveniences we enjoy.  I remember seeing my grandmother wash clothes in a wash pot with lye soap and a scrub board.  I like throwing clothes in a washer in my nice laundry room and pushing a few buttons.  I like having a world of information at my finger tips by going to my laptop and logging on to the world wide web.  I like Facebook to an extent because you can connect with family and friends living miles away.  I like not having to go out in the backyard and ringing a chicken's neck for dinner.  I like these things.  They make life comfortable, easy and nice, but there are other changes I do not like.


I don't like our Federal Government sticking it's nose into our business.  I think they have way too much control that they shouldn't have.  One thing that I particularly dislike is the government redefining marriage and family.  Marriage and family was instituted and ordained by God himself in the Garden of Eden.  Man is not to mess with God's ordinances.  When man interferes with the plan of God, he gets in trouble every time.  God's ways are higher than ours and He knows best what's best for man because He created us.  Who are we to question God? 


Redefining marriage and family concerns me a great deal.   It is now acceptable for 2 men or 2 women to live together as marriage partners.  This is not what God ordained.  In fact, His Word, the Holy Bible, absolutely condemns a man and a man burning in their lust for each other.  This is not normal and is absolutely contrary to God's plan.


God's plan is for a man to leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife.  He is to love his wife as Christ loves His church.  If we had more marriages like this, raising children in a Godly home we would have less crime, less health problems, and just to be honest, less mess! 


Man makes a mess when he interferes with God and His plan!  Just look at Abraham and Sarah.  Abraham is called the "Father of the Faithful".  He did follow God and left his home to look for the Promised Land after God called Him.   But there was at least one occasion where Abraham failed to trust God.  God promised Abraham and Sarah a promise child, an heir.  When this didn't happen as soon as Sarah thought it should, she took matters into her own hand and convinced Abraham to sleep with her maid servant, which Abraham did as she suggested.  What happened?  The bond woman conceived a son and the result was Ishmael.  Ishmael brought confusion to the household.  Sarah did later conceive the promised child, Isaac, but when Sarah thought Ishmael was making fun of Isaac, she then convinced Abraham to send Hagar and Ishmael away.


That was a sad day.  Abraham hated to do this, but to bring peace back into his house he obeyed his wife.  If you study this story out, you will see to this day there is still confusion and chaos because of Abraham and Sarah's decision to take matters into their own hands.


We must follow God's laws, or commands.  When we follow His plan, life will be good.  God is a good God and He knows what's best for His children, just like you and I know what's best for our own children.  We will walk in His blessing.  Life will be orderly. 

The Best High Is The Most High

My senior year of high school found me living in Phoenix, Arizona and attending a large school, around 4,000.  The night I graduated there were a little over 700 seniors in my graduating class.  It took awhile for us all to march across the stage setup on the football field to receive our diploma and the band was dragging by the time it got to the end, plus it was hot in that Arizona sun. 


I'll never forget the 60's.  It was a time of great change in America.   President Kennedy was assassinated in November of 1963, which everyone living then can tell you exactly where they were and what they were doing, the Viet Nam war was raging and controversial, the Civil Rights Movement was in high gear, drugs were everywhere it seemed, the Hippie Movement and their Woodstock concert, the Beatles invaded America and changed the music we listened to, and the Jesus Movement.  Lots of changes.


I managed to live through that era with the help of God.  Lots of changes going on in our country, but it didn't change me.  I went to high school with drugs all around me, partying, girls sleeping with their boyfriends, smoking and drinking and the world saying God was dead, but I knew better!


I knew God was alive and He was living inside of me.  I'm so thankful I knew the Word and what God did for me was true.  You see, I accepted Jesus when I was 8 years old and fell madly in love with Him.  No boy, no drug, no alcohol, no music could take the place of Jesus Christ in me!  I was high alright, but I was high on the Most High which is the best high of all. 


The Bible says I'm seated with Him in Heavenly places, so that's pretty high.  It's a high I never want to come down from and the best part is someday He's coming back for those who have made themselves ready.  To be ready you just have to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior.  Just confess your sins, ask Him to forgive you and invite Jesus to live in you too.  He'll come in and make your heart His home.  You'll be high too! 

God's Train of Favor

     One of my favorite persons in the Bible is Joseph.  I admire him because he lived an exemplary life in the midst of a pagan nation and prospered in spite of it.  Joseph's brothers were jealous of him.  They talked ugly about him, plotted and schemed against him, even discussing murdering him, but who knows you can't stop the plan of God!
    
     God did indeed have a plan for Joseph's life.  When Potiphar's evil wife tried to seduce young, handsome Joseph, he ran.  That should be an example for today's youth, or anyone for that matter.  When the devil tries to seduce and entrap you, run!  God will always make a way of escape.  Don't linger around the devil and his playground. 


     When Joseph foiled the devil's evil plan by running, Potiphar's wife lied and told her husband  Joseph tried to seduce her.  The devil can do nothing but lie, but even she could not stop the plan of God in Joseph's life.  Joseph had the favor of God on him.  He was a Godly young man and God's favor was on him.


     Joseph was wealthy and he was wise.  Why?  Because he served God and gave Him first place in his life.  Be encouraged today and learn from the life of Joseph, who is a type of Christ.  If you walk in love and forgiveness, you'll also have the favor of God in your life.  The devil can't stop God's train of favor!  It will run over him every time.

Ain't No Place Like The South

Some friends of ours traveled out west and stopped to eat lunch.  They related how every time they spoke the waitress would grin.  When she came back to the table to bring their drinks she brought another waitress with her and they would both grin whenever our friends spoke in their slow, southern, Alabama drawl.  They knew the servers were making fun of their southern accent, but as any true southerner knows, it happens.

My family experienced the same response when we traveled to Philadelphia one summer.  We were city center and decided to eat at this rather posh restaurant.  By that I mean it wasn't your local Bar B Q dig that's so familiar in the south.  We noticed a group of waiters and waitresses standing in a little huddle close enough to our table so they could hear us speak and every time we did, that familiar grin crossed their lips. 

One of my favorite Jerry Seinfeld episodes is the one about the Soup Czar.  I like it because I can totally relate to the frustration of trying to order, but can't spit it out fast enough.  Again, in Philadelphia, my daughter and I stepped into a sidewalk cafe to order a sandwich.  I told her to order because she speaks fast.  She speaks fast, but with a southern accent.  She placed our order and I was relieved that it went down so well, until we turned to walk out the door.  The cook from the kitchen hollered out, "Hey, are you guys from south Philly?"  We didn't know if he was being serious or playing us.  I think it was the latter.

I'd always heard of Southern hospitality, but didn't think it really existed until our trip to Philadelphia, Boston, and Richmond.  Easterners don't make eye contact when meeting someone on the street.  In the south, you not only make eye contact, you give them a big hello.  Never mind that you've never met the person before.  Your just being polite.  Another thing I noticed were people in the northeast wear dark colored clothing, like black, browns, greys, navy blues.  Southerners wear bright, pops of color, like magenta, orange, reds, pinks.  When a server takes your order in the northeast they just take your order.  I mean that's what their getting paid for, but in the South the server comes to your table wearing a huge smile and they introduce themselves.  "Hi, I'm Mary Beth, I'll be your server today!  Now, what can I get you?"  They don't seem to be in any hurry and they may even start a conversation with you at the table, like asking, " what part of Alabama are ya'll from.  Oh, my aunt lives there!" 

I realized after traveling to the northeast that Southern hospitality is alive and well.  I enjoyed our visit to all the historic places and eating at different restaurants, but to be honest I couldn't wait to get back down below that Mason-Dixon line and order me up a plate of that good 'ole Bar B Q we all love so well (there's 2 in our small town) by a waitress named, Lily Beth, Mary Ann, or Jimmie Sue.

Yep, there ain't no place like the south and we like it that way down here in the heart of Dixie.