Living Angels

Some idiot wrote these words; I’d rather reign in Hell than serve in Heaven,”.  He knew nothing about Heaven or Hell.  A movie I saw was another idiot’s version of Hell.  It was about four men who were friends, and they all four died and went to Hell.   They sat around a table, played poker, drank beer, and had a merry ‘ol time.  Well, folks, it isn’t going to be that way.  Friends will not be playing games with you, and there is no a/c in Hell.  People have tried to explain Hell.  One lady said, “It would be welcome after living in the cold and snow of Alaska.” NO.  Hell is unbelievably hot, and eternity is incredibly long.

People make plans for a day, a week, or a month but neglect plans for eternity.  How very stupid.  God is real, my dears, and eternity is long.  If you haven’t thought about eternity, now is a good time.  Unbeknown to you, maybe,  Satan has been dictating to you.  God has tried, but it’s like that joke about good and bad.  The man says sometimes I do right, and sometimes I don’t.  It is like two dogs living in me.  Well, who wins?  The one I say sic em to the most.  Well, my friend, who wins with you, God or Satan?  Who do you say sic em to the most?  God or Satan?  Don’t let Satan control your life. 

He will lie to you, distort reality, and send you to Hell.   Ask  God for boldness as you witness to friends and family.   Some will reject you or ridicule you, but most won’t.  In my many years of witnessing for Christ, I have been ridiculed only once, and that was in high school.  I was talking to a cute, popular, rich boy.  He asked me if I believed something, and I said, “Yes, I do.” He said, Why?” And I said, “Because the Bible says so.” Well, he laughed and laughed.  We then went out to the hall where his friends were waiting.  He proceeded to tell them what I  said and they all laughed, I was embarrassed.  That is the only time in 80 years I have been embarrassed of my faith.

Something happened to me that day.  I became bolder in my faith.  I knew those kids weren’t saved, and they would be embarrassed for their lack of faith someday.  Heaven or not?  They chose not.  That boy’s name was John, and I stopped thinking of him as cute or popular, and  I became convicted about praying for him.  Praying that God would be merciful and give John another chance.  I don’t know what happened that day, but I know I grew up a bit.  I know that Satan lost a battle with me that day.

I learned that he didn’t hurt me; he only embarrassed me, and that isn’t too painful.  I know that I haven’t been laughed at for my faith again.  You see, once I was challenged if I was going to Heaven or not.  I chose Heaven.  One day at school I fell and hurt my knee really bad.  My girlfriends laughed at me,  But they were kids, and they didn’t hurt me.  I still loved them.  It’s all relative; God saw me through it all, and I am saved, wiser, and a little more forgiving.  I don’t know what happened to John, and I hope God gave him another chance.   Heaven or not, I pray that you have chosen well.

Today I am going to challenge you with that which you hold most dear – your children.  I asked a boy about his faith, but he couldn’t tell me about it.  He actually said, “I  forget what they told me to say.  When I told his parents, they were mad at me for doubting his faith. It is far better to doubt and work with him until he understands than to assume he understands and doesn’t.  He could go through his whole life thinking he is saved, and he isn’t.  

Don’t ever be afraid to make sure your kids are saved.  You must question children.  They tend to say what they think you want them to say.  You can ask them to say “I love Jesus,” and they will say it freely.   They must understand that Jesus did it all for them. It is not what the child says that gets them saved, but what Jesus did.  They must get saved like everyone gets saved.  If they don’t understand, then they wait until they do understand, 

I knew a lady in college who had a 3-year-old daughter.  One day, the lady came to me all excited.  She said that her daughter got saved last night.  No matter how badly you want her saved,  a 3-year-old cannot understand substitution thought.  Now, try not to be anxious, be patient, and trust God.  He loves your kids more than you do.

As Christmas approaches, we all tend to reflect on the Christmas story and reflect on the Christmas story, and reflect we should.  No greater story was ever told.  We read of the 3 wise men who followed the star to where the baby Jesus lay. The 3 wise men are rightly labeled “wise”. They were called wise because they believed truth.

Did someone once lead you to the Lord Jesus? They can only lead you. You must accept and be wise…wise enough to accept the truth. I was only 11 years old when my Sunday School teacher approached me and asked how wise did I want to be? Actually, my mom began the process. Both my mom and my Sunday School teacher were my stars. My mom had me in church since I was 2 or 3.

Was someone your star? Did someone lead you to Jesus? If so, then you are blessed.

Now it is our job to lead someone else to Jesus. If you don’t know how then LEARN. That’s not so hard to do. Ask your pastor or staff, for starters. Ask your pastor to recommend a good book that is accurate and that will steer you straight. Not all books preach the truth. Many books out there will steer you wrong. Trust your pastor. There is no greater blessing in the world than to lead someone to Jesus. Just see their eyes light up as they see the truth. Usually, they are so thankful as they grasp your love for them. Not many people ever care for their soul.

This Christmas, give someone the gift of life. Eternal life. You can make a difference.

Angel Janet and the staff of Living Angels pray you will have a merry Christmas, and if you haven’t done so already, we pray you will be wise and accept the truth of Jesus as Lord and Savior.

God bless you until next time.

God gives every believer a gift. There’s the gift of teaching, giving or exhortation, and many more (ICor 12:8-11). A gift I don’t see working much anymore is the gift of hospitality. We don’t tend to have people in our homes but go out to restaurants instead. Why is that? I used to think I didn’t want people over unless my house was super clean.  

So, it stops you from asking others. We miss blessings when we don’t use our gifts.  

Many people in the church need a friend. Maybe a neighbor. Perhaps a family member. Pray about it. Ask God who needs an invitation. Older people often don’t get asked. It would be a huge blessing if you got to know them. Pray about who to invite.

When I was a pastor’s wife,  I decided to invite everyone over, one at a time, to share a meal. I asked them to get to know us better, one family at a time. I invited them after church. I prepared dinner on Saturday and put it in the slow cooker, and our meal was all done when we came home on Sunday afternoon.

The table was set. All was ready. I made it as easy as I could. I lit a candle. I wanted people to feel at home and special at our house.

You don’t have to be a pastor’s wife to be hospitable. God has told us, “whatsoever your hand findeth to do, do it with all of your might” (Eccl 9:10).

If hospitality Is your gift then you are blessed. To be used by God to minister to others is indeed a blessing.