Good Morning to All!

I had to write a blog post this morning!  It is a beautiful, crisp and sunny morning, and I am just happy and blessed :).  It's hard to believe I'm 40, I mean when I was a kid, that seemed so OLD!  And now, I can't believe I'm already here, and it really isn't old at all.

I hope that you all have a wonderful and blessed day!

Music from Sunday, October 11, 2015

I can't post all the music this week.  We wrote a new version of Bad Moon Rising...well, we added to the original, and there is not a YouTube Video of that song yet.  I will post the rest of the songs, and the lyrics for that one. 

Playlist for Sunday, October 11, 2015

A Light in the Darkness

Time with God prepares us for battle against temptation.

A light is to show you the way in the darkness.  If you don't have the light, you're in the dark.

Psalm 119:105

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. 

 

Romans 10:17

¹⁷ So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

2 Timothy 3:16-17

¹⁶ All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
¹⁷ That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.

 

Hebrews 4:12

¹² For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

John 1:1 

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

Let's Talk Scripture

Jesus used scripture, God's Word, to combat Satan.  If you're not reading scripture ou will always struggle, with anger, with thoughts...we need to have that scripture in our hearts.

When I doubt who I am or that God loves me...

Jeremiah 29:11-14
¹¹ For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.
¹² Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.
¹³ And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
¹⁴ And I will be found of you, saith the Lord: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the Lord; and I will bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive.

Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

² He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
³ He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
⁴ Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
⁵ Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
⁶ Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

Romans 8:37-39
³⁷ Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
³⁸ For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
³⁹ Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Sunday, October 11, 2015

More Scriptures for Strength and Purpose

It's important to know God's word and make the scriptures a part of our hearts.  Satan also knows what is in the Bible.  He quotes Isaiah in Matthew 4:6, telling Jesus that it is written that God would not allow harm to come to Him and would send the angels to bear Him up.  But it is also important for us to rightly divide the Word, and know the meaning.  Jesus knew.

Matthew 4:7 7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

In verse 9, Satan told Jesus he had the power to give Jesus anything he wanted, and Jesus responded with God's Word once again.

Matthew 4:10 10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.

Lots of prosperity preachers tell us if you just believe, you will have everything you ever want and life will be hunky dory with no difficulties anywhere.  This is NOT what the Bible says!  God doesn't say if you walk through the waters or through fire, he said WHEN.

Isaiah 43:2  2 When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

Jesus is the only way.  The Bible convicts.  It is not entertaining (well some of it is entertaining reading, but it's not a fictional novel whose purpose is to entertain), it is not accepting, it is not tolerant, it is the truth.  

John 14:6  6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Jesus used scripture, God's word, to combat Satan.  If you're not reading scripture, you will always struggle.  With anger, with thoughts, ...

Tomorrow we'll talk some more about verses every Christian should know.

Praying and reading the Bible go hand in hand.  You can't do one without the other.  You need to have that line of communication open in order to have an open heart to listen and understand what God is saying to you as you read.  And if you're not reading His Word and staying near to Him, then you've compromised that communication link.

Several times throughout the Bible, we see Jesus go alone to pray.  And when Satan attacks, Jesus responds with the Word of God, every time.  He knew that He needed to have that open line of communication with His father, and that He needed to have God's Word hidden in His heart in order to face those temptations.

Psalm 119:11  Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.

Psalm 119:105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

I struggle with my flesh on a daily basis, even more than daily.  Each unique situation has an answer in the Bible, something to make Satan turn and run.

When I struggle with pride, I look to Proverbs - 

Proverbs 16:1818 Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.

When I struggle with anger, the answer is in Ephesians - 

Ephesians 4:26-27  26 Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:  27 Neither give place to the devil.

If I am going my own way and I think I can live independently and don't have to follow the plans he's laid out for me, then I can go straight to Proverbs, Chapter 3.

Proverbs 3:5-7

5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil.

Like many moms, I have the tendency to worry.  Worrying doesn't do any good, and it keeps me from what I should be doing, trusting in God.  There is a passage of scripture for that too (okay, a lot of these have more than one passage, but just for example).

Matthew 6:25-34

25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?

26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?

27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?

28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:

29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?

31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?

32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.

33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

Sometimes I just plain get too busy to spend the time that I should in my Father's Word.  And then, I hear His voice calling to me, telling me that it's time to lay it down, that I need to come back to Him.

Psalm 46:10a10 Be still, and know that I am God:

Are you spending time with God?  Have you stopped to be still and be fully present with Him today?  

The Word of God

Did you know that only 1/3 of Christians actually believe the Bible is God's Holy Word, that it's true, and infallible, and that you need it?  It is perfect, and it is true, and it is so vitally important.

2 Timothy 3:16  16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

Life is going to be tough, it will be hard.  Accepting Christ into your heart isn't some magic pill that makes the bad stuff all go away and grants prosperity.  Christians have hard times, just like anyone else.

Christians fall into sin over and over and over. Do you know when that is?  When they are out of God's word.  When we decide we are above God, we are smart enough, we are good enough to make it on our own.

But we can't.  We cannot do it on our own.  We are not above God, and we cannot face the challenges of life successfully without Him.  

2 Timothy 2:15 15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

What did Jesus do when He faced trials and temptations?  When he was tempted, every time, He quoted the Word of God.

Matthew 4:1-11

4 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.

2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.

3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.

4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,

6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;

9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.

11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

Every Christian should be able to quote scripture, should be able to defend at the very least John 3:16.

John 3:16  16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

We'll continue this discussion tomorrow, with some more scriptures about prayer, the Word of God, and battling temptation and trial.

The Word of God is Quick and Powerful...

Hebrews 4:12King James Version (KJV)

12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

To reiterate what I mentioned the other day, I did not spend enough time in my Bible last week.  I know, because I was snappy, impatient, irritable, and generally down.  I put off the PowerPoint, I didn't want to look at music.  When I finally sat down to do it, I was depressed and grouchy and didn't want to do anything, to participate in any activity, to even go to church.

I began to look through the songs, and even though I didn't want to listen, the Word of God poured through me.  It washed me and lifted me up to carry my through and encourage me.

The songs this week reflected that.  They are all filled iwth the power of God, Souls on Fire, Light, God being with me all the time...You can check out the playlist and a recap of this in an earlier post, God of Angel Armies.

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Then, it was time for the sermon.  And that's where it got really convictional.  No, I don't think that's really a word, but it suits my purpose for the moment.    

Our first scripture, the one we read and talk about together, well before the sermon and in between songs, was Hebrews 4:12.  Yes, that one above.  "The word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword..."  The Word of God is alive, and it makes us alive, quickens us.  Ephesians 2:1 says " And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;".  The Word of God cuts all the way through the garbage, right down to the soul, and knows what is in our hearts. 

The God of Angel Armies

I can tell you right now that I have not been spending enough time in my Bible lately.  I know this, because I've been restless, grouchy, out of sorts, snappy with my family, and generally flat.

I had a hard time forcing myself to sit down and choose music for the week, and that's a sign right there, because when I'm in touch with God, He guides me right to them.  When I finally sat down to pick out the music, it was all about having a Soul on Fire, Sending the Light, and how the God of angel armies is always by my side.  Not only that, but the message was about spending time in God's word, so it all combined to convict me!

I've decided that from now on, I'm going to spend my devotional time in my physical, plain old paper Bible.  The internet gives me too many distractions, provides too many ways to stray from where my time and attention needs to be.  Online Bibles and Bibles apps can be very valuable and useful tools, but if you're prone to distraction, multi-tasking, or scrolling windows, they can also be a stumbling block or hindrance.

For the next couple of days, I am going to share pieces of the message from this Sunday, and reflections of what I learned.  Today, you get the music.

Sunday, October 4, 2015 Playlist

Define Yourself as a Writer: Day 1 of the 2015 October Platform Challenge

By: Robert Lee Brewer | October 1, 2015

 Define Yourself as a Writer

For the first day of this challenge, I want everyone to take a step back and define yourself as a writer. Don’t worry about where you want to be. Instead, focus on who you are, what you’ve done, what you’re currently doing, etc.

Name (as used in byline): Sonja M. Brow
Position(s): Assistant Librarian; Homeschool Mom
Skill(s): teaching, computer skills, creative writing, reading
Social media platforms (active): Facebook; LinkedIn; Google+; Twitter
URL(s): http://freshwateracademy.blogspot.com/
Accomplishments:
In one sentence, who am I? Sonja Marie Brow is a pastor's wife, mother of six, and avid reader who loves Wyoming and her library.
*****


These are some starter questions/prompts for defining yourself as a writer. If you have others, I’d love for you to share them in the comments below. The main thing is to start defining who you are as a writer, because it’s hard for you to communicate something you haven’t yet defined.
A few more things:

• If you haven’t already, pick one–and only one–name for your byline. As you’ll see throughout the month, consistency is an important factor in building a writer platform–starting with your consistent byline. For instance, I’m always Robert Lee Brewer, not Robert Brewer, not Bob Brewer, or whatever else people try to invent.
• Interests and accomplishments may lead you down an unexpected road with your writing. Be open to what you discover about yourself.
• In one sentence, who am I? If you can define yourself and your writing in one sentence, then it will be that much easier for you to build your writer platform using that mission statement.