HEAVENLY INCLINED...: THINGS COME, THEY GO, BUT THE LORD IS EVERLASTING...

Thanksgiving for the LORD's Favor

Psalms 138 (A Psalm of David)
1/ I will praise thee with my whole heart: before the gods will I sing praise unto thee.
2/ I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy loving-kindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.
3/ In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul.
4/ All the kings of the earth shall praise thee, O LORD, when they hear the words of thy mouth.
5/ Yea, they shall sing in the ways of the LORD: for great is the glory of the LORD.
6/ Though the LORD be high, yet hath he respect unto the lowly: but the proud he knoweth afar off.
7/ Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me: thou shalt stretch forth thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and thy right hand shall save me.
8/ The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me:
thy mercy, O LORD, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of thine own hands... AMEN!!!

One CANNOT earn GRACE, it is HIS own ESSENCE; a gift, still, IF one claims to be IN HIS GRACE, we ARE to, or, OUGHT to, be reflections of that GRACE! 2 CORINTHIANS 6:1, tells us not to take HIS GRACE in vain! This means, living in LOVE, morality, ethics, virtue, righteousness, and, spiritual improvement, TOWARDS, spiritual maturity, WHILE, visibly BEING as LIGHTS, beaming OF *GOD*, beckoning the world, TO THE LIGHT! Righteousness MEANS, conduct in conformity with *GOD'S* WILL, and, "Be HOLY because I AM HOLY!", therefore, indicating that knowledge, wisdom, and, effort, DO, apply TO the righteous!!! NEVER forget, we were grafted in, and, if we do not bear fruit, as a dead branch, we will be pruned out, just as were, the natural branches!!!

We are not saved by works, instead, works PROVE HIM in us: they identify HIS own...

IF I claim ONENESS with *GOD*, through CHRIST JESUS, I am DEAD TO THE WORLD, THUS, LIVING as HIM, which is, hopefully, witnessed IN, and, THROUGH, my every thought, action, and, reaction; MEANING, I am, THROUGH CONSCIOUS application OF THE WORD, HIS COMMANDS, HIS WILL, REFLECTING righteousness, not, merely, FAITH! I become, the TRULY FRUITFUL branch, of THE VINE, the TRUE member of THE BODY/THE CHURCH, CHRIST JESUS, and, TESTIFY, then, GLORIFY, BOLDLY, BY my thoughts, actions, and, reactions, HIS name, because, HE IS WORTHY, and, IN HIS LOVE, has SHOWN me, how I OUGHT to exist, to which, I eagerly, adapt, and, comply!!!

MATTHEW 5:48...
So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect

1 PETER 1:14-16...
14/ Like obedient children, do not act in compliance with the desires of your former ignorance
15/ but, as he who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in every aspect of your conduct,
16/ for it is written, "Be holy because I (am) holy."

ROMANS 12:2...
Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.

Conduct, in conformity to *GOD'S* WILL, marks the righteous; it is NOT because of guilt, or, ancient Laws, but, because of LOVE; LOVE for *GOD*, self, then, others! CHRIST JESUS gave us Commandments to live by, of which, the first is to LOVE *GOD*, with all of your mind, heart, and, soul; the second is, to LOVE one another!

LOVE COMPELS us to LIVE IN HIM, through conduct which conforms to *GOD*; in other words, morality, ethics, doing good, and, being good, and, ever striving to improve the spirit! It is about REFLECTING THE TRUTH, for ALL to bear witness to, FOR, and, TO HIS GLORY, RADIANTLY SHINING OF HIS POWER, GRACE, and, MERCIES!!!

It IS ALL ABOUT LOVE, baby, all about LOVE!!!

MATTHEW 4: 17...From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

JOHN 14:15..."If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

NOTE: I do not intend to preach, rather to reach; to stir up, awaken, to inspire, and, bring forth, in discussion, that which is, perhaps, dormantly existing in the heart of hearts, thus, little, or, no, sugar coatings, just THE WORD of *GOD*, the TRUTH, along with some of my thoughts. And truth is, I am reminding myself always, as I practice these reminders, in the best of my abilities, and capacities, while RELYING on THE LORD to lead me on that narrow PATH---> MATTHEW 7: 14: "For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it... TO *GOD* BE ALL GLORY...

THINGS COME, THEY GO, BUT THE LORD IS EVERLASTING...

THINGS come, and they go; they are perishable; they disappear from us, much faster than they came to us!
I have lost everything I own, several times in my life, and have had to start over from scratch, so, I KNOW what it is like to lose what we hold near, and dear. There remains the memories of those things, and we ARE able to live without them, while rebuilding. At the onset, it seems unlikely that we will ever recover, yet, we DO...

THE LORD *GOD* ALMIGHTY IS FOREVER, EVERLASTING, and ALWAYS IS! Thus, it is HIM we should turn to, cling to, and rely upon; not only in bad times, but in ALL times! Those who do so, have ALREADY laid a foundation on which to build, and ARE going to be BLESSED as they do so...

THINGS bring us happiness, yet, some of this happiness is for the wrong reasons! We seek comfort in many ways that don't really bring comfort; we take things for granted, even though they might be gone in an instant, and we rely on the status, and other externals that our things bring...

IF we could channel SOME of the energy we place in things, into *GOD*, our lives would take on new meaning, and we would be happier for longer...

Quite often, even unaware, people place SO much significance on the things in their lives, that those things rival THE LORD, and this is NOT favourable with HIM! We ought to be knowledgeable enough to know that when things take on more significance than HE does, what that is...

We NEED things, there is NO denying this fact; the difference lies in the significance we place on things! Needing something is way different than attaching to it/them! Many people are nearly ruined when their things are gone, suffering as if a LOVED one had perished! YES, it IS difficult to be without what we are used to, but, in many instances, we should be grateful TO THE LORD, for our lives, and for HIS PRESENCE; RELYING on HIM to restore our lives, and BLESS us in various ways, including more things! It is IN these times of loss that we LEARN WHO HE IS, and HIS SIGNIFICANCE TO OUR LIVES!!!

Life sees famine, and feast, seasons of plenty, seasons of nought, highs, and lows, ups, and downs; life is unpredictable, as is our own time in this journey; therefore, we are TAUGHT through circumstances, of THE ONE CERTAINTY, THE ONE CONSTANT, THE LORD *GOD* ALMIGHTY!!!

Yep, things come, and they go, but *GOD* IS ALWAYS NEAR! To RELY ON HIM, OVER ALL else is like tapping into a storehouse of more, for HE IS FAITHFUL TO THE FAITHFUL!!!

REV. LWINSOR © 2013