tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79002495893516771492024-03-18T09:04:54.529-07:00MEW-sic BOXMary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comBlogger44125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-91510602123747490012023-11-20T12:07:00.000-08:002023-11-20T12:07:13.998-08:00He Emptied Himself<p><span style="font-size: large;"><b>November 20 2023</b></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Php 2:4-11 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."</b></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><i><b>Have you ever thought what it might be like to be completely emptied of your worldly goods? Imagined a destructive fire raging through your home, destroying everything you hold dear? Feeling completely EMPTY? I woke up this morning with a feeling I have never known before; a feeling of complete emptiness, of being completely in a black VOID of space. It was a bit frightening to say the least.</b></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Then as my day opened up, and thins began to be in a state of reality, I began thinking about the possibilities of a reasonable meaning. This beginning season of the Christmas holidays put me in the path of spiritual thinking; what did it mean that Jesus emptied himself and took on the form of a man? </b></span></i></p><p><i><span style="font-size: large;"><b>To my understanding, Christ was the Word of God. And that Word left the heavenly glory to come among men, walk this earth as a man, learning the feelings and desires of a man, in order to serve the purposes of God's plan of redemption. He emptied Himself of all His heavenly glory to become susceptible to all the temptations of this world. He learned the Jewish ways, and was familiar with the scriptures. And at the age of 33 He humbled Himself and began His work serving the God of Heaven in obedience to God's purposes.</b></span></i></p><p><i><span style="font-size: large;"><b>This is the Day that God has made; let us be glad and rejoice in it. Heaven came down and Glory shone all around ! Glory be to God on High ! God's reconciliation - Peace on Earth - it is God's good Will toward man !</b></span></i><i><span style="font-size: large;"><b> </b></span></i></p><p><br /></p>Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-30258713990228648522021-01-20T12:17:00.000-08:002021-01-20T12:17:21.214-08:00When We Walk With The Lord<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXPsLr6guWJ57M-_PkL99oqj_K10VyX9bPmIFT_9DnNnLH97OoaQK7t0PC0dHw4V1T-PHW7UulfNtJm35chRsW__1MXy9f22TSvusg1LA9u1QONcfOCKyEFYgm_rS539UgE3zr2GtkFkzD/s1600/JesusB.bmp" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;">5 Oct 2010</span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXPsLr6guWJ57M-_PkL99oqj_K10VyX9bPmIFT_9DnNnLH97OoaQK7t0PC0dHw4V1T-PHW7UulfNtJm35chRsW__1MXy9f22TSvusg1LA9u1QONcfOCKyEFYgm_rS539UgE3zr2GtkFkzD/s1600/JesusB.bmp" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><img border="0" data-original-height="476" data-original-width="325" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXPsLr6guWJ57M-_PkL99oqj_K10VyX9bPmIFT_9DnNnLH97OoaQK7t0PC0dHw4V1T-PHW7UulfNtJm35chRsW__1MXy9f22TSvusg1LA9u1QONcfOCKyEFYgm_rS539UgE3zr2GtkFkzD/w218-h320/JesusB.bmp" width="218" /></a><span style="font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: left;"> </div></span><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> Tr</span>uth is eternal; it is irrevocable; it is the
foundation of all life, and without it, we crumble into a heap of rubble.</div></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Gal 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; and it
is no longer I that live, but Christ living in me: and that life which I now
live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith which is in the Son of God, who
loved me, and gave himself up for me.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: left;">Remeber that old hymn “when we walk with the Lord, in the
light of His Word, what blessings He sheds on our way; when we do His good
will, He abides with us still…..”</div>
<div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">His yoke is easy, and His burden is light, and if we walk His path in the
light of His word, we walk in Truth and in Spirit. If we would
serve Him, we serve His brethren, in Truth and in Spirit. Like the
motto of the 3 Musketeers — All for one, and one for all! It is the
Love that brings us to make the scripture act upon the words…. and all
things work for good to them that love the Lord!</div></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: green; font-family: "times new roman";"><u>Rom_8:28</u></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"> And we know that
to them that love God all things work together for good, </span>
<span style="color: grey; font-family: "times new roman";"><i>even</i></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">
to them that are called according to </span>
<span style="color: grey; font-family: "times new roman";"><i>his</i></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">
purpose.</span><span style="font-family: "georgia";">
</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
It is the body of Christ working and co-operating
together that brings the benefit for all; but it is to be done according to
God's purpose and will.</div>
<dir style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span lang="EN"><span style="color: teal; font-size: small;">
</span><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: teal; font-size: small;">Ecc 1:9</span><span style="font-size: small;"> The thing that hath
been, it </span><span style="color: grey; font-size: small;"><i>is that</i></span><span style="font-size: small;">
which shall be; and that which is done </span>
<span style="color: grey; font-size: small;"><i>is</i></span><span style="font-size: small;"> that
which shall be done: and </span><span style="color: grey; font-size: small;"><i>there
is</i></span><span style="font-size: small;"> no new </span>
<span style="color: grey; font-size: small;"><i>thing</i></span><span style="font-size: small;"> under
the sun.</span></div></span></dir>
<div style="text-align: left;">
There is nothing new under the sun; we may understand it
better and more complete as we research, but there is nothing new. Are we
gullible and believe anyone who has "authority" or degrees, or are we our
own person, and search to understand that which is already there?</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
In considering the scriptures, I am pesuaded that Christ
not only spoke in parables (hearing they do not understand and seeing they
do not perceive; let the reader understand), but everything that He said had
that hidden spiritual meaning to be understood. But we as human beings
consider knowledge in the manner of human understanding of this world, and
do not set our mind upon the things from above. (See the entry for January
31, 2010.)</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
____________________________________</div>
<div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div>
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</span><span style="color: maroon; font-size: small;"><b>
</b></span><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: maroon; font-size: small;"><b>Col 2:11</b></span><span style="font-size: small;"> In whom also ye are
circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the
body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: </span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><span style="color: teal; font-size: small;">
</span><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: teal; font-size: small;">Col 2:12</span><span style="font-size: small;"> Buried </span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><span style="color: red; font-size: small;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
From <u>G4862</u> and <u>G2290</u>; to <i>inter</i> in
company <i>with</i>, that is, (figuratively) to <i>assimilate</i>
spiritually (to Christ by a sepulture as to sin): - bury with.</div>
</span><span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;">with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with
</span><span style="color: grey; font-size: small;"><i>him</i></span><span style="font-size: small;">
through the faith </span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span></dir><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
From <u>G3982</u>; <i>persuasion</i>, that is, <i>credence</i>;
moral <i>conviction</i> (of <i>religious</i> truth, or the truthfulness of
God or a religious teacher), especially <i>reliance</i> upon Christ for
salvation; abstractly <i>constancy</i> in such profession; by extension the
system of religious (Gospel) <i>truth</i> itself: - assurance, belief,
believe, faith, fidelity.<span style="font-size: 16px;">of the operation </span><span style="color: red; font-size: 16px;">
(powerful working)</span><span style="font-size: 16px;"> of God, who hath raised him
from the dead.</span></div><dir style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "georgia"; font-size: small;">
</span></dir><span lang="" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div>
<span style="font-size: x-small;">
</span>
</span><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 16px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="color: green; font-family: "times new roman";"><u>
</u></span><span style="font-family: "georgia";">
</span></span><span lang="" style="font-size: 16px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;">
</span><span style="font-size: 16px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;">
</span><span style="font-family: "georgia"; font-size: 16px;">
</span><span style="font-size: 16px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;">
</span><span style="color: red; font-size: 16px;">
</span><span style="font-family: "georgia"; font-size: 16px;">
</span><span style="font-size: 16px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;">
</span>
<div style="text-align: left;">
We who are BAPTIZED and added to the body of Christ by God
himself, are under the blood of Christ, and are protected by His Holy Spirit
as guaranteed, and will remain there as long as we walk in His Ways. As
long as we search (not taking someone else's word as truth until we search
it), and study diligently discerning His Word in the light of His purposes
and according to His Will, we will find the comfort and strength to endure.
Even the sparrow that falls is under His care and mercy; how much more for
those who become His little children?</div>
</div>
Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-52901740638147753212020-09-29T07:34:00.000-07:002020-09-29T07:34:43.724-07:00Vanity of Vanities<p> Do Not Love the World</p><p>The admonition not to love the world or the things in the world is directed to Christians by John the Apostle in the Word of God: "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever" (1 John 2:15–17).</p><p>1Jn 2:15 LoveG25 notG3361 theG3588 world,G2889 neitherG3366 the thingsG3588 that are inG1722 theG3588 world.G2889 IfG1437 any manG5100 loveG25 theG3588 world,G2889 theG3588 loveG26 of theG3588 FatherG3962 isG2076 notG3756 inG1722 him.G846 </p><p>1Jn 2:16 ForG3754 allG3956 thatG3588 is inG1722 theG3588 world,G2889 theG3588 lustG1939 of theG3588 flesh,G4561 andG2532 theG3588 lustG1939 of theG3588 eyes,G3788 andG2532 theG3588 prideG212 of life,G979 isG2076 notG3756 ofG1537 theG3588 Father,G3962 butG235 isG2076 ofG1537 theG3588 world.G2889 </p><p>1Jn 2:17 AndG2532 theG3588 worldG2889 passeth away,G3855 andG2532 theG3588 lustG1939 thereof:G848 butG1161 he that doethG4160 theG3588 willG2307 of GodG2316 abidethG3306 for ever.G1519 G165 </p><p>The three temptations that satin put before Jesus<br />1. Lust of the flesh: Passions</p><p>2. Lust of the eye: Greedy desires</p><p>3. Pride of Life: Vanities<br /> 1. Emptiness; want of substance to satisfy desire; uncertainty; inanity.<br /> Vanity of vanities, said the preacher; all is vanity. Eccl 1.</p><p> 2. Fruitless desire or endeavor.<br /> Vanity possesseth many who are desirous to know the certainty of things to come.</p><p> 3. Trifling labor that produces no good.</p><p> 4. Emptiness; untruth<br /> Here I may well show the vanity of what is reported in the story of Walsingham.</p><p> 5. Empty pleasure; vain pursuit; idle show; unsubstantial enjoyment.<br /> Sin with vanity had fill'd the works of men.<br /> Think not when woman's transient breath is fled, that all her vanities at once are dead; succeeding vanities she still regards.</p><p> 6. Ostentation; arrogance.</p><p> 7. Inflation of mind upon slight grounds; empty pride, inspired by an overweening conceit of one's personal attainments or decorations. <br /> Fops cannot be cured of their vanity. <br /> A vain man of weak understanding and much ostentation; one whose ambition is to gain admiration by showy dress and pertness; a gay trifling man; a coxcomb.</p><p>Vanity is the food of fools.<br />No man sympathizes with the sorrows of vanity.</p>Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-50246944879718871982020-08-26T05:04:00.000-07:002020-08-26T05:04:10.403-07:00What I Wanted<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7900249589351677149" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>I wanted places to go.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>He laid the world at my feet.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>"Go ye into all the world."<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>I wanted things to do.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>He laid a door at my feet.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>"Do good unto all men, especially those of the household of God."<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>I wanted things to learn.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>He laid His Word at my feet.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>"Take my yoke; learn of me; for it is easy and my burden is light."</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>I wanted to serve Him.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>He laid a towel at my feet.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial black" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>"Be a servant; if you love me, you will keep my commandments."</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>I wanted a home.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>He laid Heaven at my feet.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>"In my Father's house are many mansions; I go to prepare a place for you.”<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-84436145531285350262020-08-19T13:42:00.000-07:002020-08-19T13:42:36.695-07:00Whole Armor of God<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang=""><br />
27 Sep 2010 </span></div>
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Eph 6:14 Stand therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and
having put on the breastplate of righteousness, Eph 6:15 and having shod
your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; <br />
Eph 6:16 withal taking up the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able
to quench all the fiery darts of the evil one.<br />
Eph 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit,
which is the word of God:<br />
<br />
girded your loins with truth<br />
girding the loins is the area of vulnerability – it is the part an animal
exposes to his enemy when he surrenders.<br />
You shall find the truth, and it shall set you free </div>
<div align="justify" style="font-size: 16px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: justify;">
breastplate of righteousness<br />
covers the heart which is the commitment (#1 desire) – when we are baptized
into the body of Christ, we put on His righteousness </div>
<div align="justify" style="font-size: 16px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: justify;">
shod your feet with preparation<br />
the vehicle by which the walk is made - three fold: obedience; study;
following Christ </div>
<div align="justify" style="font-size: 16px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: justify;">
helmet of salvation<br />
your mindset – the Spiritual mindset for commitment </div>
<div align="justify" style="font-size: 16px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: justify;">
sword of the Spirit - the word of God</div>
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Shield of Faith - your belief and trust in the promises of God</div>
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Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-21529611315278824172020-08-17T07:14:00.055-07:002022-08-03T13:14:55.571-07:00 Refining Silver<div class="separator"><div dir="ltr" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /> </div></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">the crucible is for the silver; the _____ is for the gold.</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> REFINING SILVER</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span> Anonomous</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator"><div dir="ltr" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" trbidi="on">Malachi 3:3 says: “He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver.”</div></div><div dir="ltr" trbidi="on"><br /></div><div dir="ltr" trbidi="on"><br /></div></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study. <br />
That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn’t mention any-thing about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining Silver.<br />
As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.<br />
The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot; then she thought again about the verse that says: “He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver.”<br />
She asked the silver-smith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined.<br />
The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.<br />
The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silver-smith, “How do you know when the silver is fully refined?” He smiled at her and answered, Oh, that’s easy — when I see my image in it.”<br />
If today you are feeling the heat of the fire , remember that God has his eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.<br />
<br />
“Life is a coin. You can spend it any-way you wish, but you can only spend it onc</div>
Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-62236336411445947012020-07-25T06:16:00.000-07:002020-08-19T13:26:58.563-07:00The Road We Walk<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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29 Sep 2010 <br />
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The journey that we take, may not always be upon a pleasant path, for there will be hills and valleys; forests, plains and deserts; but there will also be paths mapped out to make that journey just a little bit more secure, if we follow those that we have known to be traveled safely before us. There is a guide book for our comfort and compass, and there will be paths that are marked with warnings, as we reach the forks that lead aside; so if we make the right choices our journey’s end will not be unattainable.</div>
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Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-27275463010466732012020-07-25T06:10:00.000-07:002020-08-15T13:44:55.645-07:00Priest Forever<span lang="" style="font-size: 16px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><br />
05 Nov 2009 <span style="color: #ff3333;"><b> </b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #ff3333;"><b>Melchizedek King of Salem (Peace; Old Jerusalem)</b></span><br />
A high priest of the Almighty God <br />
Had no mother; had no father.<br />
Had no beginning and no end.<br />
Came out to meet Abraham in his victory.<br />
Brought bread and wine. (a table prepared before his enemies)<br />
Gave him a blessing (Abraham refused the gifts of the King of Sodom). <br />
Praised God who brought victory.<br />
Was given a tenth of all the spoils.<br />
<span style="color: #ff3333;"><br />
<b>Christ Prince of Peace (Salem; New Jerusalem)</b></span><br />
Our High Priest from God <br />
His mother – Mary; His Father – God.<br />
Is the Beginning and the End: Alpha & Omega.<br />
Came out to meet us for our victory.<br />
Brought His Body and His Blood (Bread and Wine of communion- a table prepared before our enemies)<br />
Gave us a Blessing. (Refused the offers of Satan)<br />
Glorified God in victory.<br />
What do we give to Him?Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-67967091377595260672020-07-25T05:34:00.001-07:002020-09-22T07:07:17.857-07:00Concept of FaithCONCEPT OF FAITH<br />
10 Jan 2011<div><br />
Godly faith is the credence and persuasion , especially in reliance upon Christ for salvation, and the trusting of His promises, and it is the basis or support of the concrete essence, or abstract assurance, that we have in our hope and what we expect. And because of this trust (the things which we PRACTICE and COMMIT ourselves to accomplish) we take heed and regard of that which is never seen visibly.<br />
The very miniscule components of our bodies are never seen visibly, but we are convinced that they are there because of the evidence that we see as the whole, and that the body functions according to the purpose of all that is compiled there, whether it be in health or in disease.</div>Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-53411583343148397352020-07-25T05:32:00.001-07:002020-09-22T07:25:57.689-07:00Barriers of Our Faith<div>BARRIERS OF FAITH</div><div>(<span> from the thread of an old site)</span></div><div><br /></div>This was a thread from an old Christian Mirror board I was on. I thought it exceptionally good, and wanted to keep it. So now I will add it to my devotionals:<br />
Ok Ladies I need your help<br />
As sisters in christ, what are some things that keep us from developing loving relationships? What are some barriers that separate us? Have fun with this one. Thanks<br />
<br />
Angie<br />
Hmmm... my number one obstacle would be great expectations!<br />
I often get a picture in my head of how I think things should be or how people should be and I forget that I can't live up to my expectations, much less anyone else.<br />
Then resentment and hurt crowd in and then my heart starts to turn to stone. Hmm... I think they call that bitterness...<br />
Being content with what I have and realizing that only God knows how everything will turn out (realizing this helps me let go a little easier) and a big, huge dose of forgiveness and the reality of who I really am (big, ugly warts and all), remembering what God had done for me helps the love to sink through and soften the stone.<br />
It really seems to be key for me to honestly see myself as I am... that long, hard look in the mirror really hurts, but when I see how God loves me regardless of how messed up and stubborn I am... it makes it so much easier to love those around me.<br />
Not easy... but easier.<br />
Amanda<br />
Hello! I think one of the major barriers is time. So many christian woman are trying to juggle church, work and home. Woman have a tendency to be more relationship oriented but everything now seems to make our lives task oriented. We need to get beyond the, "hi, how are you," which becomes so superficial. I wish we would just see that all of us have struggles and need to bear one another's burdens. One of the many wonderful rewards in Heaven will be the fellowship we will all enjoy.<br />
<br />
Mary<br />
I see many have read, but few answers. Here are my thoughts.<br />
Great expectations- a good one and well put, Angie.<br />
Pride- the prideful and haughty heart says that no one is worthy of my relationship for no one can do or say things like I can say or do them. This can show up in many, many “little” ways that is so subtle in our lives, but hard-hits the one that is recipient to the barbs.<br />
Selfishness- nothing like selfishness can keep one’s world small. One usually chooses the “small clique” to associate with for strong relationships, and someone else seeking a relationship with them is so easily pushed out. And those accepted are the ones that praise and agree, so that one’s self-esteem can be supported all the time.<br />
Fear- keeps one from feeling worthy to have friends or relationships.<br />
Frustration and resentment- feeling like one is a failure in this world can ruin the integrity, and the more we “deal” with other people the greater this burden can become.<br />
Revenge (and bitterness) One of my favorite sayings …Revenge is a huge stone that cannot be moved, and forgiveness is the hammer that reduces it to pebbles.<br />
Lack of Trust<br />
(Leah)<br />
There are so many women that have a hard time believing that someone really likes them and wants to get to know them. They need to be affirmed all the time. Plus they think that people are always talking about them and judging them when they should just be having fun. I get frustrated with this. I think this is a huge barrier to friendship. It's hard to connect with someone if they don't feel good enough about themselves to let their guard down and feel safe around others. I'm so sorry for the things that made them that way.<br />
Time:<br />
Angie:<br />
There are many, many wonderful godly things to be doing, I know. But raising my children and being a help-meet to my husband soaks up 95% of the time that I have. The way I look at it, I have one chance for success and there are no do-over's.<br />
Mary:<br />
Angie, think of your "time" spent in care and concern for children, husband, family (small, tedious, humdrum tasks), as being just that part of the "doing good" that God expects of wives and mothers.<br />
Two good verses: 1 Timothy 5: 10,14 and Titus 2:4, but one I cannot remember where it is ... something about a woman being saved through the raising of her children, intimating that it is a Godly woman that raises her children in the Lord.<br />
Learning and/or teaching:<br />
Word Woman: I was especially aggravated with the young mothers who were unwilling to teach their child's Bible classes.<br />
Mary: It should be the older women that should do the teaching while the younger women are yet leaning and experiencing.<br />
Self-esteem<br />
Leah:<br />
It's just that my two best friends struggle with self esteem and while they are doing great now, it has really made their relationships difficult in the past and kept them from living a full life. I can also name about a dozen women I know that are upstanding, beautiful, intelligent, compassionate, loving, loyal, interesting and Godly but their relationships really suffer because they are crippled with low self esteem. It makes me furious that Satan uses our self doubt to make us feel unlovable.<br />
Mary:<br />
Another thought on self-esteem. It was a hard lesson to learn for me, too, but I finally decided that to know myself for what I am and what I can do and not listening to what others say about me, and accept just that, knowing that my "worth" is IN Christ, and Him alone. Does that make sense?<br />
<br />
Word Woman:<br />
Please be patient with those of us who have low self-esteem. I'm a little older and I know that a lot of women in my age group really weren't raised to "think too highly of themselves" (to the point of not thinking well of themselves at all). It's a lot to overcome. My parents didn't teach that, but a lot of others did. I struggle with my self-esteem; there are things that I know I do well, but I don't think too much of myself as a person. Another thing to "conquer".<br />
<br />
Mary: Maybe we need to look at "self-esteem" in a little different light.<br />
Self-esteem is defined as 1. Self-respect and 2. as self-conceit. These are opposite values.<br />
Self-respect is knowing what our capabilities are, how well we can do them, and how we hold them in priority. Self-conceit is holding these qualities as giving us a higher station in life and condescending in our relationships. Which is to say "lowering ourselves" to the level of others for a relationship.<br />
I would think that if we can't respect ourselves, we can't respect others, so that would be the self-esteem that we should be seeking, and which we really cannot do without. But the "lack" of self-conceit would be humility, pure and simple, but could look much like low self-esteem.<br />
So, we sort of need both aspects of self-esteem, and view both in their true light as the Bible teaches, knowing ourselves with respect and esteeming others before ourselves.<br />
Phi 2:3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.<br />
Angie: Aha!<br />
So it is important that we have respect for ourselves and our abilities as well as see that God values us, and so we are valuable...<br />
But!<br />
That we aren't more valuable than anyone else that God has created.<br />
Everyone is valuable and lovable in God's eyes... and as women who profess to know God we should look to the hearts of others and do what is best for them and not what is best for ourselves.<br />
Hmmm.... that particular description reminds me of someone who went before us<br />
Mary<br />
And oh, yes, YES! Angie....<br />
Hmmm.... that particular description reminds me of someone who went before us!<br />
Let us therefore walk this valley in the shadow of His death... for His Rod and His staff, they do comfort us! He has prepared us a table in the presence of our enemy; and anointed our heads with oil; our cup surely runneth over!!! THIS is the DAY that the Lord hath made! Let us rejoice and be glad in it!I love that song “The Oil And The Wine”. So… What CAN be done with an old heart like mine???<br />
Angie<br />
Mary, I love that song! I learned to sing it a few years back and it's one of my favorites. Sometimes it goes through my head and I think to myself... hmm... time to get back to center now.<br />
<br />
<br />
Nancy<br />
Rikki, I'm going to approach this question from a positive perspective. The most loving relationships I've had with Christian Sisters are those that have developed over time as we met regularly to pray together.<br />
Leah<br />
Just piping in to say that Jesus told us we are to love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength. And then He said to love our neighbors as ourselves.<br />
Love God above all. Period.<br />
Love our neighbors (just as if they were ourselves – holding them in respect and treating them with concern and care)as we love ourselves - I really feel that we have a hard time loving(respecting) others if we have little love (respect) for ourselves. We are all children of the King and Jesus loves us. That makes us worthy of love. (Love one another even as I have loved you)<br />
<div>
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Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-3508594565192441042020-07-25T05:03:00.000-07:002020-07-25T05:03:04.583-07:00Forgive Us; As We Forgive<br />
01 Oct 2010<br />
Sometimes our path leads us over the hot sands of the desert. Our feet drag, and we dehydrate; our lips burn and chap, and our mind sees illusions of beauty and peace that is not there! In seeking out a waterhole, we might find a place that looks so refreshing, but find it poisoned! Where do we find relief?<br />
There were times when Christ encountered those who were standing on that desert, hopeless and helpless, and in His compassion said ” thy sins are forgiven”. He offers the living water that sustains us over those stretches of our path that leads us on to our journeys end. His “relief” is offered through those who would be His followers and His servants, through His Church. In His followers is found sustenance; comfort; forgiveness and fellowship.<br />
Mat 25:40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of these my brethren, even these least, ye did it unto me.<br />
The prayer He “taught” His disciples: “forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.<br />
Maybe one doesn’t sin as much as the next one, but none have not sinned in one way or another, and is just as guilty, needing forgiveness. So why try to remove the mote from the brother’s eye before removing the beam from one’s own eye? Would that not seem an impossible task?<br />
James said:<br />
Jas 1:6 But let him ask in faith, nothing doubting: for he that doubteth is like the surge of the sea driven by the wind and tossed..<br />
Ask and it shall be given unto you! Seek and ye shall find! Forgive and you shall be forgiven! As an obedient child, trust in the promises of Christ, even though you might doubt yourself, believing that your are too sinful to be forgiven!.Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-19259494132124029222019-11-16T11:57:00.009-08:002023-07-15T12:43:06.291-07:00July 15, 2023 - Forgive<span style="font-size: medium;"><b>I have been thinking about this thing of forgiveness and struggling with it for sometime now. The Lord's Prayer: forgive us our sins - AS WE FORGIVE OTHERS. I was watching a movie recently (Amish Grace), and it has helped me understand better the concept of the forgiveness that is required. Forgive involves concepts of harboring anger and resentment, pardon, excuse and excuses, exonerate as to absolve blame from someone from a fault or mistake or wrongdoing especially after due consideration of the case. </b></span><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b></b></span><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>[fərˈɡiv]</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>VERB</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>stop feeling angry or resentful toward (someone) for an offense, flaw, or mistake: </b></span></li><ul><li><div style="display: inline !important; font-size: large;"><b>Be ye angry and sin not Eph_4:26 Be ye angry,G3710 andG2532 sinG264 not: letG3361 notG3361 theG3588 sunG2246 go downG1931 uponG1909 yourG5216 wrath:G3950</b></div><div style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="font-size: large;"><b>What would be the sin if you fail to forgive? </b></div></li></ul><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>SIMILAR:</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>pardon</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>excuse</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>exonerate</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>(be forgiven) </b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>stop feeling angry or resentful toward someone for (an offense, flaw, or mistake): </b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>"he was not a man who found it easy to forgive and forget" · "they are not going to pat my head and say all is forgiven"</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>cancel (a debt): </b></span></li><li><br /></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>used in polite expressions as a request to excuse or regard indulgently one's foibles, ignorance, or impoliteness: </b></span></li><li><br /></li><li><br /></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>ex·on·er·ate</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>[iɡˈzänəˌrāt]</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>VERB</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>(especially of an official body) absolve (someone) from blame for a fault or wrongdoing, especially after due consideration of the case: </b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>"they should exonerate these men from this crime" · "the court-martial exonerated me"</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>SIMILAR:</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>absolve</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>clear</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>acquit</b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>(exonerate someone from) </b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>release someone from (a duty or obligation): </b></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>"Pope Clement V exonerated the king from his oath to the barons"</b></span></li><li></li></ul>
<span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Eph_4:32 and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving each other, even as God also in Christ forgave you. </b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Col_3:13 forbearing one another, and forgiving each other, <u>if any man have a complaint against any; even as the Lord forgave you, so also do ye: </u></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Christ lived a perfect life; we don't. We may think we do because we really want to, but we are comparing our good life to the bad life we see in others. The point is ; it is not the sin, but the sinner we are to forgive, and forgive them even as the Lord forgave you. </b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Someone sins according to our standards. Turn your back on him. If they neglect , disrespect or hurt you in any way, turn your back on him. Is that what Christ did to us? NO. He went to the Cross for us ! </b></span><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><div><b>FORGIVE</b></div><div><b>Refusing to hold a grudge but rather to release oneself from anger and hate because of a wrong committed. Would we ever be so unforgiving to blame God for what happens to us in this world because of someone else's sins? God does not hold anger against us for our mistakes through His Son, Jesus Christ. We forgive and do not hold anger or hate against our brethren in the same way. </b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b> </b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Exonerate</b></div><div><br style="font-size: medium;" /><b>01 Oct 2010<br />Sometimes our path leads us over the hot sands of the desert. Our feet drag, and we dehydrate; our lips burn and chap, and our mind sees illusions of beauty and peace that is not there! In seeking out a waterhole, we might find a place that looks so refreshing, but find it poisoned! Where do we find relief?<br />There were times when Christ encountered those who were standing on that desert, hopeless and helpless, and in His compassion said ” thy sins are forgiven”. He offers the living water that sustains us over those stretches of our path that leads us on to our journeys end. His “relief” is offered through those who would be His followers and His servants, through His Church. In His followers is found sustenance; comfort; forgiveness and fellowship.<br />Mat 25:40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of these my brethren, even these least, ye did it unto me.<br />The prayer He “taught” His disciples: “forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who wrong us.<br />Maybe one doesn’t sin as much as the next one, but none have not sinned in one way or another, and is just as guilty, needing forgiveness. So why try to remove the mote from the brother’s eye before removing the beam from one’s own eye? Would that not seem an impossible task?<br />James said:<br /> Jas 1:6 But let him ask in faith, nothing doubting: for he that doubteth is like the surge of the sea driven by the wind and tossed..<br />Ask and it shall be given unto you! Seek and ye shall find! Forgive and you shall be forgiven! As an obedient child, trust in the promises of Christ, even though you might doubt yourself, believing that your are too sinful to be forgiven!.</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><ul><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>pardon: t</b></span><b>he action of forgiving or being forgiven for an error or offense: </b></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>excuse: </b></span><b>attempt to lessen the blame attaching to (a fault or offense); seek to defend or justify: </b></li><li style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>exonerate: </b></span><b style="font-size: large;">release someone from (a duty or obligation)</b></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>absolve: </b></span><b>set or declare (someone) free from blame, guilt, or responsibility: </b></li><li style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>clear </b></span></li><li><div class="dc_nml"><div class="dc_pm"><div class="dc_mn b_promtxt">easy to perceive, understand, or interpret: </div><div><span class="b_demoteText b_sectxt" data-applinkhookid="demoteText">"clear and precise directions" · "her handwriting was clear" · "am I making myself clear?"</span></div><div class="b_factrow"><div class="dc_synb" ig="1" nl="1"><div class="b_hPanel"><div class="b_nymsList"><span class="cbl b_lower">SIMILAR:</span><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5337.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+understandable&FORM=DCTRQY">understandable</a></div><div class="b_hide" data-exp-noani=""><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5338.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+comprehensible&FORM=DCTRQY">comprehensible</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5339.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+intelligible&FORM=DCTRQY">intelligible</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5340.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+plain&FORM=DCTRQY">plain</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5341.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+direct&FORM=DCTRQY">direct</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5342.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+uncomplicated&FORM=DCTRQY">uncomplicated</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5343.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+explicit&FORM=DCTRQY">explicit</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5344.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+lucid&FORM=DCTRQY">lucid</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5345.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+perspicuous&FORM=DCTRQY">perspicuous</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5346.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+coherent&FORM=DCTRQY">coherent</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5347.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+logical&FORM=DCTRQY">logical</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5348.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+distinct&FORM=DCTRQY">distinct</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5349.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+simple&FORM=DCTRQY">simple</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5350.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+straightforward&FORM=DCTRQY">straightforward</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5351.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+unambiguous&FORM=DCTRQY">unambiguous</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5352.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+clear-cut&FORM=DCTRQY">clear-cut</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5353.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+crystal+clear&FORM=DCTRQY">crystal clear</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5354.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+accessible&FORM=DCTRQY">accessible</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5355.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+user-friendly&FORM=DCTRQY">user-friendly</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><span title="easy to understand">easy to understand</span></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><span title="clearly expressed">clearly expressed</span></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><span title="in words of one syllable">in words of one syllable</span></div></div><span aria-label="More synonyms" class="DictInlineExpansion" role="button"><img class="cipa vam rms_img" data-bm="17" height="16" role="presentation" src="data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20width%3D%2224%22%20height%3D%2224%22%20viewBox%3D%220%200%2024%2024%22%20fill%3D%22none%22%20xmlns%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%22%3E%0D%0A%20%20%3Cpath%20d%3D%22M4.21967%208.46967C4.51256%208.17678%204.98744%208.17678%205.28033%208.46967L12%2015.1893L18.7197%208.46967C19.0126%208.17678%2019.4874%208.17678%2019.7803%208.46967C20.0732%208.76256%2020.0732%209.23744%2019.7803%209.53033L12.5303%2016.7803C12.2374%2017.0732%2011.7626%2017.0732%2011.4697%2016.7803L4.21967%209.53033C3.92678%209.23744%203.92678%208.76256%204.21967%208.46967Z%22%20fill%3D%22%23212121%22%20%2F%3E%0D%0A%3C%2Fsvg%3E" width="16" /><div class="expansionAccessibilityText" lessalttext="Less content will be shown above the current area of focus upon selection" morealttext="New content will be added above the current area of focus upon selection">New content will be added above the current area of focus upon selection</div></span></div></div></div></div><div class="b_hide" data-exp-noani=""><div class="b_factrow"><div class="dc_synb"><div class="b_hPanel"><div class="b_nymsList"><span class="cbl b_lower">OPPOSITE:</span><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5357.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+vague&FORM=DCTRQY">vague</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5358.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+unclear&FORM=DCTRQY">unclear</a></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><div class="b_hide" data-exp-noani=""><div class="dc_sms"><ul class="b_vList b_divsec b_bullet"><li data-priority=""><div class="dc_mn b_promtxt">leaving no doubt; obvious or unambiguous: </div><div><span class="b_demoteText b_sectxt" data-applinkhookid="demoteText">"it was clear that they were in a trap" · "a clear case of poisoning"</span></div><div class="b_factrow"><div class="dc_synb" ig="1" nl="1"><div class="b_hPanel"><div class="b_nymsList"><span class="cbl b_lower">SIMILAR:</span><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5361.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+obvious&FORM=DCTRQY">obvious</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5362.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+evident&FORM=DCTRQY">evident</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5363.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+plain&FORM=DCTRQY">plain</a></div><div class="b_hide" data-exp-noani=""><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5364.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+apparent&FORM=DCTRQY">apparent</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5365.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+crystal+clear&FORM=DCTRQY">crystal clear</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5366.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+transparent&FORM=DCTRQY">transparent</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5367.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+sure&FORM=DCTRQY">sure</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5368.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+definite&FORM=DCTRQY">definite</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5369.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+unmistakable&FORM=DCTRQY">unmistakable</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5370.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+manifest&FORM=DCTRQY">manifest</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5371.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+indisputable&FORM=DCTRQY">indisputable</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5372.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+patent&FORM=DCTRQY">patent</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5373.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+incontrovertible&FORM=DCTRQY">incontrovertible</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5374.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+irrefutable&FORM=DCTRQY">irrefutable</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5375.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+beyond+doubt&FORM=DCTRQY">beyond doubt</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5376.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+self-evident&FORM=DCTRQY">self-evident</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5377.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+palpable&FORM=DCTRQY">palpable</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5378.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+visible&FORM=DCTRQY">visible</a></div><div class="b_nymsItem"><a h="ID=SERP,5379.1" href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=define+discernible&FORM=DCTRQY">discernible</a></div></div></div></div></div></div></li></ul></div></div></div></li><li><div class="dc_nml"><div class="dc_pm"><div class="dc_mn b_promtxt">free of any obstructions or unwanted objects: </div></div></div></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>acquit: </b></span><b>(be acquitted)</b><div class="dc_mn b_promtxt" style="box-shadow: none; color: var(--promtxt); font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; padding-bottom: 2px;"><b>free (someone) from a criminal charge by a verdict of not guilty: </b></div></li><li style="font-size: medium;"><br /></li></ul></div></span></div></div></div>Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-43808895708384362262019-10-21T17:38:00.001-07:002019-10-21T17:38:10.532-07:00Factual explanations versus Lying There is more power in facts and simple explaninations than in lying.<br />
Trust is fragile. Secrets and lies jeopardize trust and can damage us and our relationships — sometimes irreparably.<br />
We all tell “white lies.” We say, “I’m fine,” when we’re not, compliment unwanted gifts, or even fib that “The check is in the mail.” But in an intimate relationship, emotional honesty includes allowing others to know who we are. Honesty is more than simply not lying. Deception includes making ambiguous or vague statements, telling half-truths, manipulating information through emphasis, exaggeration, or minimization, and withholding feelings or information that is important to someone who has a right to know, because it affects the relationship and deprives that person of freedom of choice and informed action. Although we may consider ourselves honest, few of us reveal all our negative thoughts and feelings about the people we are close to. It requires courage to be vulnerable and authentic. And the culture and societies that we live in now, demands just that deception under the name of "political correction".Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-51882106617118828782019-01-23T12:52:00.000-08:002019-01-23T12:52:26.244-08:00Do I Believe in Santa Caluse?My first thought and answer is no. I do not "BELIEVE" in Santa Clause, but I do BELIEVE in the birth of Jesus, who walked this earth in order to fulfill the law, becoming the perfect Lamb of God, living life to die upon the cross in order to redeem us from Sin. If we will "esteem" the chosen day to celebrate His birth, and give gifts to one another with love, then we celebrate the day "unto the Lord".<br />
<br />
The world has come to celebrate "Christmas" given into believing that it is all about Santa Clause, making him their idol. God said "Exo 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.<br />
Exo 20:4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:<br />
Exo 20:5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God..... "<br />
<br />
<br />Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-9424740459651084582019-01-23T12:49:00.000-08:002020-08-19T14:21:18.438-07:00Walking in the Shadows<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
WALKING IN THE SHADOWS<br />
<br />
Shadows of the evening push away the day.<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>the quietness,<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span><br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>the cherished,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>the time of thought;<br />
Katydids begin a chorus of evening lulabys.<br />
<br />
Walking in the shadow of the great,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>the wealthy,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>the renouned,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>the super intelligent;<br />
I feel I am a total loss .<br />
<br />
But with every beat of my heart,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>My desire<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>my hope,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>my life,<br />
Is to walk in the shadow of the the GREAT I AM </div>
Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-89735609788228359602018-12-20T08:51:00.001-08:002018-12-20T08:51:59.019-08:00Self-Esteem and RelationshipsThis was a thread from an old Christian Mirror board I was on. I thought it exceptionally good, and wanted to keep it. So now I will add it to my devotionals:<br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Ok Ladies I need your help</b></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br />As sisters in christ, what are some things that keep us from developing loving relationships? What are some barriers that separate us? Have fun with this one. Thanks<br /><br />Angie<br />Hmmm... my number one obstacle would be great expectations!<br />I often get a picture in my head of how I think things should be or how people should be and I forget that I can't live up to my expectations, much less anyone else.<br />Then resentment and hurt crowd in and then my heart starts to turn to stone. Hmm... I think they call that bitterness...<br />Being content with what I have and realizing that only God knows how everything will turn out (realizing this helps me let go a little easier) and a big, huge dose of forgiveness and the reality of who I really am (big, ugly warts and all), remembering what God had done for me helps the love to sink through and soften the stone.<br />It really seems to be key for me to honestly see myself as I am... that long, hard look in the mirror really hurts, but when I see how God loves me regardless of how messed up and stubborn I am... it makes it so much easier to love those around me.<br />Not easy... but easier.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Amanda<br />Hello! I think one of the major barriers is time. So many christian woman are trying to juggle church, work and home. Woman have a tendency to be more relationship oriented but everything now seems to make our lives task oriented. We need to get beyond the, "hi, how are you," which becomes so superficial. I wish we would just see that all of us have struggles and need to bear one another's burdens. One of the many wonderful rewards in Heaven will be the fellowship we will all enjoy.<br /><br />Mary<br />I see many have read, but few answers. Here are my thoughts.<br />Great expectations- a good one and well put, Angie.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Pride</b></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">- the prideful and haughty heart says that no one is worthy of my relationship for no one can do or say things like I can say or do them. This can show up in many, many “little” ways that is so subtle in our lives, but hard-hits the one that is recipient to the barbs.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Selfishness</b></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">- nothing like selfishness can keep one’s world small. One usually chooses the “small clique” to associate with for strong relationships, and someone else seeking a relationship with them is so easily pushed out. And those accepted are the ones that praise and agree, so that one’s self-esteem can be supported all the time.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Fear</b></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">- keeps one from feeling worthy to have friends or relationships. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Frustration and resentment</b></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">- feeling like one is a failure in this world can ruin the integrity, and the more we “deal” with other people the greater this burden can become.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Revenge (and bitterness)</b></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> One of my favorite sayings …Revenge is a huge stone that cannot be moved, and forgiveness is the hammer that reduces it to pebbles.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Lack of Trust<br />(Leah)</b></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">There are so many women that have a hard time believing that someone really likes them and wants to get to know them. They need to be affirmed all the time. Plus they think that people are always talking about them and judging them when they should just be having fun. I get frustrated with this. I think this is a huge barrier to friendship</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">. </span><span style="color: #339966; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">It's hard to connect with someone if they don't feel good enough about themselves to let their guard down and feel safe around others. I'm so sorry for the things that made them that way.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Time: </b></span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br />Angie</span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>: </b><br />There are many, many wonderful godly things to be doing, I know. But raising my children and being a help-meet to my husband soaks up 95% of the time that I have. The way I look at it, I have one chance for success and there are no do-over's.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Mary: </span><span style="color: #339966; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Angie, think of your "time" spent in care and concern for children, husband, family (small, tedious, humdrum tasks), as being just that part of the "doing good" that God expects of wives and mothers.<br />Two good verses: 1 Timothy 5: 10,14 and Titus 2:4, but one I cannot remember where it is ... something about a woman being saved through the raising of her children, intimating that it is a Godly woman that raises her children in the Lord.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Learning and/or teaching: </b></span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Word Woman: I<br /> was especially aggravated with the young mothers who were unwilling to teach their child's Bible classes</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">. Mary: It </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><u>should </u></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">be the older women that should do the teaching while the younger women are yet leaning and experiencing.</span></div>
<h1 class="western">
<span style="font-size: small;">Self-esteem</span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Leah:<br />It's just that my two best friends struggle with self esteem and while they are doing great now, it has really made their relationships difficult in the past and kept them from living a full life. I can also name about a dozen women I know that are upstanding, beautiful, intelligent, compassionate, loving, loyal, interesting and Godly but their relationships really suffer because they are crippled with low self esteem. It makes me furious that Satan uses our </span></span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><u>self doubt </u></span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;">to make us feel unlovable.</span></h1>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Mary:<br />Another thought on self-esteem. It was a hard lesson to learn for me, too, but I finally decided that to know myself for what I am and what I can do and not listening to what others say about me, and accept just that, knowing that my "worth" is IN Christ, and Him alone. Does that make sense?</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br />Word Woman:<br />Please be patient with those of us who have low self-esteem. I'm a little older and I know that a lot of women in my age group really weren't raised to "think too highly of themselves" (to the point of not thinking well of themselves at all). It's a lot to overcome. My parents didn't teach that, but a lot of others did. I struggle with my self-esteem; there are things that I know I do well, but I don't think too much of myself as a person. Another thing to "conquer".</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br />Mary: Maybe we need to look at "self-esteem" in a little different light.<br />Self-esteem is defined as 1. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Self-respect</b></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> and 2. as </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>self-conceit</b></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">. These are opposite values.<br />Self-respect is knowing what our capabilities are, how well we can do them, and how we hold them in priority. Self-conceit is holding these qualities as giving us a higher station in life and condescending in our relationships. Which is to say "lowering ourselves" to the level of others for a relationship.<br />I would think that if we can't respect ourselves, we can't respect others, so that would be the self-esteem that we should be seeking, and which we really cannot do without. But the "lack" of self-conceit would be humility, pure and simple, but could look much like low self-esteem.<br />So, we sort of need both aspects of self-esteem, and view both in their true light as the Bible teaches, knowing ourselves with respect and esteeming others before ourselves.<br />Phi 2:3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Angie: </span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Aha!<br />So it is important that we have respect for ourselves and our abilities as well as see that God values us, and so we are valuable...<br />But!<br />That we aren't more valuable than anyone else that God has created.<br />Everyone is valuable and lovable in God's eyes... and as women who profess to know God we should look to the hearts of others and do what is best for them and not what is best for ourselves.<br />Hmmm.... that particular description reminds me of someone who went before us</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Mary<br />And oh, yes, YES! Angie....</span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Hmmm.... that particular description reminds me of someone who went before us!</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br />Let us therefore walk this valley in the shadow of His death... for His Rod and His staff, they do comfort us! He has prepared us a table in the presence of our enemy; and anointed our heads with oil; our cup surely runneth over!!! </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>THIS</b></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> is the </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>DAY</b></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> that the Lord hath made! Let us rejoice and be glad in it!I love that song “The Oil And The Wine”. So… What CAN be done with an old heart like mine???</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Angie<br />Mary, I love that song! I learned to sing it a few years back and it's one of my favorites. Sometimes it goes through my head and I think to myself... hmm... time to get back to center now.<br /><br /></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Nancy<br />Rikki, I'm going to approach this question from a positive perspective. The most loving relationships I've had with Christian Sisters are those that have developed over time as we met regularly to pray together.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Leah<br />Just piping in to say that Jesus told us we are to love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength. And then He said to love our neighbors as ourselves.<br />Love God above all. Period.<br />Love our neighbors </span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">(just as if they were ourselves – holding them in respect and treating them with concern and care)</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">as we love ourselves - I really feel that we have a hard time loving</span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">(respecting)</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> others if we have little love </span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">(respect) </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">for ourselves. We are all children of the King and Jesus loves us. That makes us worthy of love. </span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">(Love one another even as I have loved you)</span></div>
Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-27768687909628667202018-08-15T08:09:00.000-07:002018-08-15T08:09:02.956-07:00Beyond the LawBeyond the Law<br />
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1.”Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.”<br />
2. “Thou shalt not make for yourself a carved image.”<br />
3. “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD your<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> God in vain.”<br />
4. “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.”<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>If you love God with all your might,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>And seek to serve Him in all that’s right,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Then hold Him only in your heart,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>And worship Him at each day’s start.<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Walk with Him through your day, and then,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Give Him your care at your day’s end.<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Put aside all the gods of this earth,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>And shun all it’s evil and it’s dearth.<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Remember Him in all your ways,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>And follow His precepts all your days.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span><br />
5.“Honor your father and your mother......”<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>I see a figure in dispair,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lonely; deeply bowed with care.<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>A soul that will not easy hide<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>A treasured life pushed aside.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span><br />
6.“Thou shalt not kill......”<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>I hear a baby’s cries,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Softly; softer, as it dies.<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>The little heart that does not beat<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Is gently laid at Jesus’ feet.<br />
7.“Thou shalt not commit adultery....”<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>I hear a vow of youth made true,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>When love was young and new.<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Broken dreams when love grew cold.<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Broken hearts when love was sold.<br />
8.“Thou shalt not steal.....”<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>I see a wealth that is amassed,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Where treasures lay that will not last.<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>But lying there within its wake<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Are broken dreams and hearts that ache.<br />
9. “Thou shalt not bear false witness<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>against your neighbor....”<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>In honored love to truth we give<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>To Jesus all the days we live,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>That all may know we walk with Him;<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>But, lies our soul’s brightness dims.<br />
10.“Thou shalt not covet .....”<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>What desires does your heart hold?<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Seek not the lamb of another’s fold,<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>But seek only that which you alone<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Have gained, and that you duly own.<br />
The greatest of all that God demands,<br />
Is wrapped up in just two commands.<br />
Love your God with all your might<br />
Serving Him in all that’s right.<br />
If your love to your neighbor is true,<br />
You will love him as if he were you.<br />
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November 4, 2000<br />
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Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-20593250068611125162018-07-27T04:20:00.000-07:002020-08-19T14:27:45.157-07:00Choices<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>Your Life is Your Own</b><br />
<b> It is you that make the choices that govern your life.</b><br />
<b>You can make good choices and bad choices, but hopefully you won't be making choices that you will regret.</b><br />
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<b>1. Attitude of leaving home. When you reach an age that you think you want to take control of your own life, don't leave home angry and breaking ties to your family if at all possible, because when you reach an age where family becomes more important to you, you may not be able to mend the break.</b><br />
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<b>2. Ethical choices. No matter what your faith is, or how you are reared, there are ethical choices that even the cultures of the world have standardized, but unfortunately don't seem to follow their own ethics. If we could all learn to set our ethical goals and stand by them, we could better learn to cope in this world and have better relationships with each other. And if you are Christian, your ethical goals should be based upon scripture. The Bible teaches and lists the best ethics that the world has ever considered.</b><br />
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<b>3. Choice of vocation. If you make a choice early enough in life, you can work toward a goal with determination for a life of enjoyment in your choice. Make it your own choice and not a choice to please someone else, or you will soon regret it. If you make a choice that becomes a burden to you and pulls you down, then it is better to try to acquire better situations that will help. Better education and understanding what is involved with the choices you make will help you stay healthy and emotionally stable.</b><br />
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<b>4. Choice of a husband/wife. This is probably the hardest choice you will make in your lifetime. Respect and earning an understanding relationship before you marry is a must for a lasting and happy marriage. This should be a lifetime choice, and the better you know that person, and the better you have understanding all that can be involved, the better that marriage will be. You cannot base your future on romantic feelings because after those feelings are satisfied, you begin to see and understand all the problems of misunderstanding and what they can mean to your life. If you go into a marriage with the attitude that "if I am not happy, I can always get a divorce", your life will end up with one regret after another, for you cannot exchange one situation for another that will be another burden to you, which is the usual way divorce ends up. So rarely does one find another marriage to be a happy choice. And divorce is certainly not the Christian way of life.</b><br />
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<b>But if you make a wrong choice that becomes a bitter entrapment to you (in whatever phase of your endeavors), some of them must be endured or pay the regretful consequences. Some choices that we try to reverse can only bring about another bitter entrapment.</b><br />
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<b>Christian or not, your choices have to be made, and hopefully with wisdom enough to see what the choice will mean to your future happiness.</b></div>
Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-69576760682206063642018-07-21T17:28:00.001-07:002018-07-21T17:28:09.054-07:00PARABLE OF THE SALTWhen Salt is Tastless<br />
by Mary Esther Wacaster<br />
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When cooking, I am a person that doesn’t exactly follow “the recipe” like I was taught to do. One good lesson I learned – to follow the rules, and also how salt can “lose its savor” – came one morning when I got up and went in to make breakfast before I was fully awake.<br />
I put water in the pot, and set it on the heat. I added salt and cinnamon. When the water was steaming, I added oatmeal. Oooops! too much! So I added water. Oh, no, now too much water! So I added just a little bit more oatmeal. Now!<br />
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When I brought it to the table, blessing said, we put in milk and butter, and began eating. My husband made the remark: “Did you salt this?” I replied – yes – but then realized if I added or detracted I had to be sure the salt was in its right proportions<br />
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Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-37809564734607249622018-07-21T17:24:00.000-07:002018-07-21T17:24:52.529-07:00Grace<div style="text-align: justify;">
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05 Jun 2010 <br />
<span style="font-family: "quot"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none;"> Grace was that unconditional part of God’s love that gives us the opportunity to return to Him and keep the conditional part of His love, by the debt that was paid by His Son since it is not in man to be capable of earning his own salvation.<br />
<br />I. God made man and gave him the command to choose to obey or die.
<br />II. Man chose to disobey.
<br />III. Man was barred from Eden and sent into the world.
<br />IV. God’s plan to bring man back into a working relationship.
<br />V. God’s mercy involved in bringing man back to Himself.<br />
a. God gave “The Law” to show man that he is not capable of keeping it perfectly (and thus cannot earn the right to God’s favor). God wanted obedience from man, and “The Law” was the “boy leader whose office it was to to take the children to school”, teaching what God wanted and expected of man in order to please Him.<br />
b. Once man understood his inability to save himself, then God finished His plan by sacrificing Jesus, so that all who joined themselves to Him would be saved vicariously through Him.<br />
His Grace was the unmerited gift of His Love for man; the gift of Christ for Forgiveness, and only through His blood.<br />
(1) To “earn” salvation would be to fulfill the law, not in “being a good person and doing good things that makes one feel good about himself”, even though the law requires just such action on the part of man as part of fulfilling the law. But the obedience must come from the heart since God wants man’s obedience to be done because he wants to please God. And to please God, man must keep His commandments.<br />
(2) The commandments Christ gave — He told the diciples to go into all the world, teaching them and baptizing them “into Christ”; He told them that the two greatest commandments were to “Love the Lord God with all you heart, all your might, and to love each other even as He loved us”. Everything we do hinges upon this, even being baptized!<br />
We are hard put by “the world” who wants to say that Grace was the gift of God to allow people to be saved unconditionally — that would even include the demons since they believe and tremble. The grace that God proffered (offered for acceptance) to us, was that, in spite of our sinful nature and inability to “earn” our salvation by our own merit, He allowed us the condition by which we could return to a working relationship in Him through His Son, Jesus.<br /><br />
Grace is not the “saving” element.<br />
Grace is extended to all men.<br />
The “actual saving” element is Christ’s blood.<br /><br />
Christ’s blood is limited to those who are “in Him”, and without it all the grace and all the faith in the world will not save mankind.<br />
Yet Christ’s blood cannot be except by the Grace of God through our faith in Christ as the son of God, and His enduring promises.<br />
Consider this then:<br /><br />
Grace is that effort of God to justify man and get him to return to a working relationship with Him in spite of man’s inability to earn salvation (fulfill the law) for himself. If man sinned in ONE POINT of the Law, he was guilty of the whole Law. It is still man’s choice to return, and the only way he can return is to be “in Christ” through obedience by baptism, and by observing all that He taught us in His teachings and by His exemplary life to the best of our ability and perseverence.
His Grace was the unmerited gift of His Love for man; the gift of Christ for Forgiveness, and only through His blood.<br /><br />
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Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-43445312988543411082018-05-05T10:52:00.000-07:002018-05-05T10:52:02.673-07:00The Struggle<div style="text-align: justify;">
The Pride of life and the Lust of the flesh. Both are very strong emotions. Both feed off of the "like" suporters; flatery/demeaning; gathering the mob for the kill.<br />
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So, we are once again in the love/hate battle of the pride of a nation. Friend against friend; family against family. But moreover, man against God. The haters strike with the venom of the serpent; the lovers strike with indignation against violence with the same strike of venom.<br />
If this is a concern of man, it will not prevail; for who can fight against God?<br />
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2Ch_13:12 And, behold, God is with us at our head, and his priests with the trumpets of alarm to sound an alarm against you. O children of Israel, fight ye not against Jehovah, the God of your fathers; for ye shall not prosper.</div>
Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-44612222342808550262018-04-20T15:52:00.000-07:002020-07-25T06:25:37.949-07:00Reason For Baptism<div style="text-align: justify;">
Abraham walked with God because he "believed" that God existed, believed that God would keep the promises for a son, and went where God led him. When Isaac was a young lad, God reckoned Abraham's faith as righteousness, and He requested that Abraham offer his son as a sacrifice to prove his faith. Abraham proved that he would do anything that God requested of him, and God spared the life of Isaac. After his testing, God entered into a covenant with Abraham. God made several promises as His part of the covenant, and Abraham was to circumcise all males in his houshold and all male children on the eighth day born in his household. All who were circumcised, were under the covenant promises, but those not circumcised would be excluded from the covenant.<br />
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Now, we who are of the "faith", as the faith of Abraham, under the royal law of Christ's blood (He is the one we are to "hear" and "answer to") enter into a covenant relationship with God when we "believe" that God is, and that He is a rewarder of all those who "seek" Him, and that Jesus is the Son of God; God gives us, by His grace which is His good will toward man, promise of everlasting life with Him and we are to enter into that covenant relationship by baptism in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, which is representative of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection, and then to rise from the waters to walk circumspectly, worthy to be called a son of God in His righteousness through the blood of His Son, our redeemer. All those who are baptized are under the covenant relationship, and those who are not baptized are excluded from that covenant.</div>
Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-9238550338819918442018-04-20T15:44:00.000-07:002018-04-20T15:44:06.897-07:00This Wild WorldIf we sow the wind, we will surely reap a whirlwind<br />
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If you sow anger, you will reap violence. If you sow discord you will reap hate. Whatever you sow, you will reap the consequences of that which follows. <br />
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If you speak with "forked tongue" you will fall into a pit you cannot get out of. If you speak of love with only flattery of tongue, you will someday find yourself treated with disdain. <br />
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<br />Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-72529977751530575152018-03-25T06:55:00.001-07:002018-03-25T06:55:23.151-07:00Walk The TalkWhat you say<br />
1. You say "I wouldn't " or "I won't" do that---<br />
then you do just that.... It becomes .......... Shame<br />
2. You say "I will"<br />
then you don't ...... it becomes ....... Guilt<br />
3. You say "I'll try, because it should be"<br />
then if you do it , it is success without pride;<br />
then if you can't do it, it is failure without guilt.<br />
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Love and Service<br />
1. If you love God with all your heart then you do not vilify His love by disregarding His desires.<br />
2. If you love someone you would do everything you could to please them or make them comfortable. If I say I love someone, it is the same thing.<br />
3. If you serve someone, you go in and do what they want done, the way they want it done, and not what you want to do or to do it your way.<br />
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The temptation is always there to just study and learn and discuss rather than learn and do. We also have adopted a “classroom mentality” in the church, (ie), knowledge for knowledge’s sake rather than a “disciple mentality,” learn to live it out in daily life.<br />
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Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7900249589351677149.post-70050828542622764552018-03-25T06:39:00.000-07:002018-03-25T06:39:45.486-07:00Steps Upward<div style="text-align: justify;">
What does it take to make an "ahah" experience?</div>
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Some think it is the "turning on of that light bulb in the brain", which is a good explanation. When we are enlightened with sudden insight to understanding, we feel that light come on! Even the man of wisdom that discerns spiritual things (or thinks he does) can have that sudden insight enlightenment sometimes.<br />
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To understand something, we must have knowledge of that thing, at least to a degree of discerning. The more we know about it, the better that understanding. We must give our attention fully to the matter with an open mind to learn. One cannot be biased, or prideful and puffed up, if one expects to reach a total understanding. And if we can achieve that total understanding of the matter, we can feel that "light bulb go on" with a twinge of joy!<br />
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Now, if one would wish to have "ahha" experiences in their spiritual understandings, then one must have an open, inquisitive and searching mind-set to allow truth to flow in. But before starting that searching, one must have wisdom and understanding of their FAITH, and confidence in what they believe. Their faith must be strong enough to be able to discern right from wrong, and truth from falsehood, and study of the scriptures and Christian principles set down therein is the path to be taken.... earnestly and diligently. To know the absolutes that cannot be ignored as well as those things that must be ignored when they are what must be kept between you and your God concerning your relationship with your fellowman. It is the ROAD WE WALK!</div>
Mary Esther Smith Wacasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13798111080915395618noreply@blogger.com