Could the World End Today?

Man that is a loaded question.

One that has made many people

laugh...

I am sure some have been in 

tears as they have watched

family members sell

all and walk away

in a mistaken belief that a man

could calculate the date and time

of Christ's return.

May 21, 2011

My friend, Sue, called this week

to ask if I had purchased my 

end of the world pet insurance.

We giggled.

But, over all, this breaks my heart.

Because it gives the world one more 

reason to doubt those who believe.

The Bible is pretty clear when it comes

to specific timing of His return.

Only God, the Father knows.

Matthew 24:36

“But about that day or hour 

no one knows, 

not even the angels in heaven,

nor the Son, but only the Father."

Could the world end today?

Sure.

Could it end tomorrow?

Possibly.

Should we be ready?

Absolutely.

There were hundreds thousands of people

this week who went into eternity

unexpectedly.

Whether it was a heart attack, an overdose,

car accident or a stroke...

Their day of reckoning has happened.

We never know.

Am I going to do anything differently 

today than any other day?

Probably not intentionally.

Because in my heart of hearts

I try always to be ready.

Keeping things right and clear

but knowing that the work of my salvation

and my future is secure in 

my Savior, Jesus Christ.

It isn't anything I do, 

or don't do, 

on a daily basis.

I did not earn this.

And neither can, or did, you.

 In him we were also chosen, 

having been predestined 

according to the plan of him 

who works out everything

in conformity with the purpose 

of his will, 

in order that we, 

who were the first to put 

our hope in Christ, 

might be for the praise of his glory.   

And you also were included in Christ 

when you heard the message of truth, 

the gospel of your salvation. 

When you believed, 

you were marked in him with a seal,

the promised Holy Spirit, 

who is a deposit guaranteeing 

our inheritance until the redemption 

of those who are God’s possession

—to the praise of his glory. 

He chose me,

changed me

and 

showed me the way

to belief.

Thank you, Jesus.

Aren't You Glad it Isn't Up to Us?

In our Family Bible Studies on Friday
nights we are studying the Great Men and
Women of the Bible.
Yep! Perfect they were...
Noah, Rahab, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob...

O.k, so they weren't perfect.
But they were chosen to complete
a plan put in place by God, their
Creator.

I think it is amazing that God shows us
the flaws of these people that He has set
before us as examples of faith.

Noah...got drunk and behaved terribly in his
later years.

Rahab...was a prostitute when we first met her.

Abraham....got impatient and tried to "help God"
with "the plan" by having a son by his maidservant.

Isaac...played favorites with his twin boys and lied
when he called his wife his sister out of fear.

Jacob...was a schemer and a thief.

All of these people are saved by Faith in God
and were used to accomplish His purposes.

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
From Ephesians 2

Praise the Lord, that even though my life doesn't
reflect the obvious nasty sins listed above, the
genuine sins that do exist are forgiven and
covered by the blood of Jesus.
My sins are every bit as damaging to an
eternal life without a Savior.

Never would I pretend to be perfect.
Neither can any other human being on the planet.
We know that about ourselves.

We also know that our hearts don't seek
the Lord...but He seeks His own sheep,
He finds His own Sheep, and He cares for
those same sheep.

I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice." Jesus used this figure of speech, but they did not understand what he was telling them.

Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved.[a] He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father." John 10: 1-18

Jesus spelled it out pretty clearly when He said in John 14:6 "I am THE WAY, THE TRUTH and THE LIFE....NO MAN comes to the Father BUT THROUGH ME." Yes, I added the emphasis. It is critical that we not think there is any way but this.

I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.Isaiah 61:10

In all of this I give Him the Praise and
all of the Glory.

He is good...
all the time!

Our salvation is His work.

How is it looking in Your life?

You don't have to answer that to me.
I am available to answer questions or
pray with, or for you, though.
Feel free to email me at
beckykcandles (at)gmail.com.

Only One Way

Jesus said:

"I am the gate;
whoever enters through me will be saved.
He will come in and go out,
and find pasture."
John 10:9












Therefore Jesus said again,
"I tell you the truth,
I am the gate for the sheep."
John 10:7

Worship...and a story about cheese...really!

Thank You, Lord
for saving my soul....
Thank You, Lord
for making me whole...
Thank You, Lord
for giving to me...

Thy great salvation so
rich and free!

This is a little chorus that
I learned when I was oh, so young.

It sticks with you.

Very simple.

Yet much truth.

We should give thanks to our Savior.

Our salvation does "make us whole."
It is often said that we have a God-shaped
hole in our hearts that can only be filled
by a relationship with Him.

It is true that this salvation is a gift.
It cannot be earned. There are not enough
good works on this earth to pay for the sin
that we have committed since birth. We came
here sinful...we will leave here sinful people.
Even if there was just one sin committed ever...
it is too much. God abhors sin.
We must accept the gift.

That gift is the acceptance that Jesus Christ
took our place on that cross. He accepted our
punishment as only One who had never sinned could
do.

Remember that the Passover lamb had to be the best,
spotless lamb from the flock. Just so, Christ as our
sacrificial lamb had to be blameless.
Praise the Lord, He was!

This salvation is rich. There is no better prize than
eternal life with Him. None!
Rich...and free.

On a comical note: My son, Mikey loves cheese.
This kid is a cheese expert, I tell you.
The other day I brought home some Borden Pre-sliced
Colby/Jack cheese. He declared it the best cheese
he had ever eaten.
He went on and on about it.
Finally his raving reached
a high point when he said,

"If the streets of heaven were gold because they were
made of cheese, This would be the cheese!!!"

We laughed and it still brings a smile to my face.

This son just gave his testimony two weeks ago.
He knows Jesus as his Lord and Savior.
We, as his parents
are so blessed to know that his salvation was bought
and paid for and that Mikey has seen his need and
accepted that gift.

I love the "heavenly perspective" that came so
quickly to his mind.
Too funny.

By the way...I went back to the store
and bought ten more packages of that cheese.
Yum!

(((grin)))

Enjoy your Sunday...I'll be thinking about you.

Becky K.

Thanksgiving is a Beautiful Thing

My dear daughter, Chelsea, has posted five things that she is thankful for at Its About Friends. She is so excited about Thanksgiving this year and as a part of natural conversation reminded me of a new family tradition started by my sister-in-law, Bev.
Bev has each person at the table say something that they are thankful for and then each one lights a tealight on a plateful of tealights. Pretty soon you have a growing glow symbolizing the combination of everyone's appreciation and it makes an impact. It is beautiful. Being thankful is contagious...it spreads light to the atmosphere around us.
Just as reading Chelsea's list of five things she is thankful for blessed my heart I hope that in some small way my attitude of appreciation for all that I have been blessed with lights my corner of the world.

Here, Chelsea, I'll make my list of five:

1. That God, in His infinite mercy, has provided a way of salvation through Jesus, His Son and that the Holy Spirit moved in my heart to bring me to understand and accept this wonderful gift!

2. The gift of a loving husband who has been my very best friend through these 18 years of marriage. He is that person who knows what I am thinking from across the room. The sight of him still makes my heart flutter.

3. Three children - so different one from another - but so special, each one. Jonathan, the artist and "thinker". Mikey, the athlete and motivated worker. Chelsea, the little homemaker and helper. I am so thankful to have the opportunity to really know and enjoy their company.

4. A home that meets our needs. I was thinking, as I saw footage of the cyclone damage this week how many people in this world do not have even basic shelter. I am blessed beyond any comprehension.

5. The friendships of many! Friends are the key to my every day survival. I need my friends and I hope that I return the favor of the support and unselfish giving that I have been blessed to experience.

As everyone has seemed to note during this Thanksgiving season, the list could go on and on...we have 365 days in a year and we don't have to stop expressing our Thankfulness just because this day of recognition of Thankfulness passes by.
Lord, please help me to remain Thankful!

Wishing you a fantastic Thanksgiving.

If this season is not a joyful one for you this year because of a loss or other reason beyond your control, please know that my thoughts and prayers are with you. It can be so hard to "smile" through these Holidays when you are hurting inside. My prayer for you is that you will be able to heal and see hope for better days ahead. I pray the Joy of the Lord into your life. If you feel like sharing, I am here to listen...

Gratefully,

The Body of Christ

I am often amazed at the differences among the body of Christ. We read the same Bible and yet come up with so many differing conclusions. How can the same words speak so differently to so many? I believe that this partially goes back to our personality and "makeup". God created us to think and come to conclusions therefore we have the ability to reach different conclusions.
There are some basics that cannot be argued, however, they are so black and white that they are foundational. Jesus is the Son of God...No man comes to the Father but by Him...The taking of innocent life is murder...Fellowship with other believers is important...and more! These things, and more, are spelled out. The ten commandments are not wishy washy. They were carved in stone!
I find myself saddened by the competition and finger pointing, (although, I am guilty of it too) that goes on between individual bodies of believers. Do you not think that often times we settle on a church because the others in that church are similar in their thought processes, personalities and likes and dislikes in worship. This does not make every other church automatically "bad". We must first look at where they stand on foundational issues then decide if the preferential issues are the way we want to worship. Such things as hymns vs. praise choruses. The Bible refers to both (Colossians 3:16). I love both. Not everyone does and that is fine with me as long as they don't attack my Christianity because of it. We have a dear lady who comes to our church occasionally. She cannot bring herself to come every week because we use an overhead projector and she does not like that we sing "off the wall". She loves our service and the people there. She is as sweet as she can be but singing off the wall is just too much for her. Cute!
Others prefer churches where they can kneel to pray. There is nothing wrong with that. How about defining modesty? One church feels that to be modest women must be in dresses a certain number of inches below the knee while another teaches another form of modesty. Is either of these wrong? I think, again, this comes back to preference...unless...either of these viewpoints believe that this stand is what saves them. At that point it becomes a "works" salvation violating the foundational principle of salvation through Christ alone. Get my drift?
Do I dare print this post? Is it terribly controversial? I do not wish to offend, just to get us thinking about how we see others in the family of God. Some of us have more maturity, others of us are new babes in Him. How Satan would love to get in and destroy, meddle and defeat us. He wants to make our differences seem like mountains and separate and keep us fighting amongst ourselves so that we are distracted from being out there telling others about our Saviour. If the unsaved can use us as an excuse for not wanting to step inside a church...
I pray that the Lord would be at work in my heart to keep my desire for Him and His Word first in my life. That somehow my life would be the kind that would make others hungry to know more about my Saviour. That I would be discerning not judgemental. Oh, this is hard for me. I am very opinionated person. But, when I am tempted to judge, I must seek out the truth as to whether this is a matter that offends the foundational truths or simply a matter of interpretation or preference. My goal should be to become more and more like HIM every day...wherever that leads me.
...Just some of the thoughts swirling around in this brain today.
Oh, I hope that if you are reading this you will not judge me too harshly.
Blessings on your day!