THINGS WE SHOULD REMEMBER DURING THIS QUARANTINE FROM ACBC AND CCEF, ETC I don’t know about you but if you have been quarantined for the past month (almost), then you may be ready for this quarantine to end. We are being told daily that curve is flattening and as Americans we are use to our freedoms. But we must wait. We certainly do not want to go out too soon and have many die (or get sick ourselves). If we are too quick to resume normal life, this month of waiting would lead to another one or two months of waiting. We live in a microwave culture. We don’t like to wait, do we? We are used to getting things quickly. Apparently God felt we needed to slow down for a bit. Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that God caused this (I do not think He did), but He has allowed it and now we are all (most of us) forced to slow down and wait this out. I think we need to look at some of those who waited in Scripture (and these are just a few). 1. First, look at Abraham and Sarah. First, God told Abram to take his wife and leave his father’s house. Then God told Abraham that he would be the father of many people. Yet Sarah was getting old and they had no children. Sarah waited 25 years before she gave birth to Isaac. Gen. 17:16 tells us that Sarah was 90 years old before she gave birth. 2. Look at Joseph. He had a dream that his brothers would bow down to him. They sold him into slavery when he was 17 (Gen. 37:2). Joseph spent 13 years in slavery and in jail before he became second in command in Egypt at the age of 30 (Gen. 41:46). 3. David was anointed king many years before he became King. Samuel anointed David king (1 Samuel 16) after Jesse brought out his older 7 children. Scripture calls David ruddy. He was either a child or an adolescent. He actually became king when he was 30 years old (2 Samuel 5:4). 4. Anna was told that she would see the Messiah. Many bibles and older commentaries say that she was 84 years old when she finally saw Jesus. 5. Finally, Jesus waited. Jesus was 30 years old before he started His ministry (Luke 3:23). He only had about a three-year ministry. So as we wait to be able to return to normal daily life (as frustrating as it is), why not ask God to teach you something through this. We can wait and learn. God calls then we wait. That is just the way it is. The waiting time is preparatory. This virus did not surprise God. He knew it was coming and He knew what the results would be. So just be thankful that we serve a God who is in control. This virus did not sneak up on Him, so there must be a reason for it. Think prayerfully about that. Before I close this though, I do want to thank people who are still working. Grocery stores are still open, doctors and nurses are willingly exposing themselves to this virus daily, first responders are working. There are others that I am sure I will not think of but I know one of my sons delivers food to people, the other works in water filtration. They are both working. Doctors (like my husband) are being given the opportunity to come out of retirement for a while. Gas stations are open and restaurants with drive thrus. Even other restaurants are staying open for deliveries. While many of us are getting a forced rest, there are those who are working hard each and every day. Thank you to those people. Posted on April 16, 2020 by Annette Stinson Continue Reading
ABIDE John 15:7-9 – If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. As the Father loved me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. I have struggled with this word for about two weeks now. God clearly was speaking to me about abiding. I was thinking abiding in God and Him abiding in us is a good thing. Another word for abide is abode. One of the meanings is the word where we dwell. So here we are abiding in our home in Trussville, Alabama. None of the restaurants are open. The movie theater is closed. Today I sat on my back deck and enjoyed the warm weather and the sunshine. That did me a lot of good. But tonight I want to think about the many things that I have to thankful for. For instance, my husband is on disability so his income will not change. I know that isn’t true for many people. I have a nice warm home and a place to sleep tonight. I have a husband here and a son. Both are very agreeable people. So, tonight, look around you and see the many things you have to be thankful for. If you have a roof over your head and a place to sleep you are among the most blessed people in the world. Take this time to get re-acquainted with your family. Let them know how thankful you are for them. Also know that you are deeply loved by God. God in heaven loves you very much. Psalm 139:1 – He knows everything about us. He knows when we sit down and rise up (ps. 139:2). He has our hairs numbered. We are made in his image (Gen. 1:27). He knew us before we were conceived. (Jer. 1:4-5). Posted on March 19, 2020 by Annette Stinson Continue Reading
Romans 12:2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is –his good, pleasing and perfect will. Transformed means to change in form, appearance, or use. Renew is an activity after an interruption. This Scripture tells us that we need our mind changed and then after the interruption of being transformed, we can be renewed. Here the Apostle Paul is talking to the churches in Rome. He hopes to go and see them but eventually ends up in Rome as a prisoner. This Scripture tells us that when our minds are transformed, we are then able to know what God’s will is. Knowing what God’s will is important. However, the most important part is acting upon that knowing. Many say that knowledge is power, but acting on knowledge is power. Here, clearly the Apostle Paul is telling us that when our minds are renewed by the power of the Gospel, we can then understand God better. He loves us all so very much. Have you ever wondered why obedience is so important to God? I learned this in a bible study called Inner Healing. Obedience means that we are acting out of our “free will”. Our “free will” is the only God had not allowed Himself to control. When we are obedient to God we are using our own free will. We must however, have our minds and our hearts transformed by His Word in order to know and act on obediently with our free will. Posted on February 29, 2020February 29, 2020 by Annette Stinson Continue Reading
WHO OR WHAT IS OUR IDOL? Taken from Elyse Fitzpatrick, Idols of the Heart Proverbs 4:23 says, “Keep you heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life, (ESV).” Here Scripture says that we should keep our heart, some versions say guard your heart, because everything we do flows from it. Perhaps that is why God wants our entire heart. When Jesus was asked about the most important commandments, He said to love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind (Matthew 22:27). Obviously our “heart” is very important to our Creator. But also important is our soul and our mind. Biblically the heart applies to our inner being: our soul, spirit, will, and all that goes on internally in our “heart”. What does this mean? God loves us but he wants to be our only God. He is our Creator and because of that He knows us best. Included in what Scripture refers to as the “heart” is our mind, affections, and will. Our mind refers to our thoughts, understandings, beliefs, judgment, etc. Our affections include our desires, feelings, emotions, and longings, and our will includes our actions. God is very concerned with our heart. Why? Because it out of our hearts that we do everything. Look at Luke 6:43-45 – “43) For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44) For every tree is know by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush. 45) A good man out of the good treasure of his heart beings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks, (NKJV). When our hearts are seeking the Lord, the actions that we do will please Him. If our hearts are anywhere else other than focused on the Lord, the evil actions will flow. It is amazing how many things that come before serving our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We must always be mindful of that fact. Different things can creep in and become our focus. But with our Father’s help, we can focus on Jesus. We need the help of the Holy Spirit to remind us when we are following a bad path. He will gently remind us that we have strayed. Have you strayed? I know it is easy for me to be led astray. Life can get in the way. Raising children, our jobs, our home, our comfort. All of these things can easily become more important for us. Focus on Jesus. James reminds us in 4:2 says, “2) You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.” So if we ask the Holy Spirit to remind us to keep our focus on trusting in the Lord, He will do so. He will do so because when we ask that we know that we are asking His will. Posted on February 18, 2020February 18, 2020 by Annette Stinson Continue Reading