Armour of God - April 1, 2020

Armour of God 

Ephesians 6:10-20 King James Version (KJV)

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

11 Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the Sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,

20 For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

Don't Forget - Original Post Monday, July 23, 2012

Don't Forget

The alarm didn’t go off, I got up late,
My feet hit the floor on the run.
Wouldn’t you know that’d be my fate?
Today was a terrible date,
A big shindig at the store.
No time for quiet or to pray;
That’d have to wait for later today.

“Get up children we have to run,”
Still sleepy they want to debate,
“Just five more minutes to snore”
“No,” I said, “We should be out the door.”

Not really liking what life had dealt.
With unbent knee and hasty breath,
I quickly mumble to myself,
“Help me Lord - they worry me to death,”
I still remember when they were born and how my heart did melt.
It’s not been that long since they were first held.

At the end of a long stressful day, I finally knelt.
God where were you today?
It was a really rotten day.

The thought entered my over strained brain;
I knew why I felt so drained.
I had not done my part,
This whole long day I had forgotten to pray.

Like sunshine after a sudden rain,
His love filled my wounded heart.
All I had to do was do my part;
So He could take away the pain.

When you are having a really hard time and nothing seems to go right; pause a moment and see if you have forgotten one of the most important things in life - Don't let your day start without communication with Our Lord. No matter how things are rushing at you, the day will go better if you pause for prayer. God Bless you.

Remember

9/2002 Remember by Alberta Anne Thomas

Remember it is not a game;
When the demon, drink, calls your name.
This demon wants you to fall and fail,
He wants your soul to go to hell.

Remember this, when all have gone,
You never, ever walk alone!
Even in your loneliest hour,
God is near, He is always there.

He will always hold your hand,
He will always help you to stand.
Call upon His name, and pray,
With Him, you can survive another day.

Comparing Fathers

Just like most children, I always thought that my father, Harold Lee Thomas, was a wise man.

He was not a tall man. He stood about five feet eight inches tall and weighed one hundred sixty five pounds. He was a soft spoken person, always kind to animals and people.

When I did something wrong I would rather have gotten a “switching” from Ms Alberta than a “talking to” from my father.

The switching from Ms Alberta was over and done with fast. The wrong doing paid for and a few sore spots from the switch for a reminder not to be bad again.

But that talking to from Dad tended to stay with me and make me think and keep on thinking about what had been done wrong.

For example, Dad heard someone saying something unkind to another person. Not me! Not that time! But the words that he told that person have stayed with me for more than sixty years!

Dad told that person, “Words are just like bullets. Once you let them go, there is no recalling them. They enter your target and do damage; sometimes unseen damage. So, we should always think twice before we speak, and think what words we are “shooting". We should walk a mile inside that persons shoes and try to understand just where they are coming from”.

Those were wise words sixty years ago. They are even wiser now than they were then.

We are all brothers and sisters. The color of our skin does not, should not, matter.

We were formed and shaped with the breath of life, by a loving God; who sent His only Son to hang and die on a cross for all of our sins. That Son stretched out His arms, with love and understanding, to die for us. After three days He arose from the tomb where He was laid.

Jesus still has open arms. He wants to give eternal life to those who will only believe, then follow the guidelines that were given by the Heavenly Father.

Believe in Jesus! He is the way, the truth, and the life. He is the only way to be able to stand in the presence of the living God.

Answer anger with kindness and soft spoken words. Love one another!

John 14:6       King James Version

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

John 13:34     King James Version

³⁴ A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

Illness is caused by the devil

When God created us, He intended us to never age, never to be ill and to always walk with Him.

I recently took a Bible course about healing.

As I took this course and looked up Bible scriptures, I was convinced that illness in the world is caused by sin.

Eve was tempted in the Garden of Eden by the devil, thereby giving up our guardianship of the earth to the devil.

Under the devil's guidance people of the earth started to sin and started to become ill and age.

God sent His Son, Jesus, to be the last sacrificial lamb to die for sin. My sin, your sin, the sins of all born on the earth.

I gave my heart and life to Jesus when I was very young; age eight. I can not say that I have always walked and been as the Redeemer would have me be. But I can say that I know that Jesus died for sin; lay in the grave for three days and rose on the third day.

I recently returned to follow Him. My life is not perfect. Many of the decisions and paths that I followed as a young adult were not good.

But I can now say that I have a joy in my heart that makes my life easier. I have peace about what is going on around me.

Follow Jesus, Son of God, to the Father; be filled with the Holy Spirit and you will find peace and joy filling your heart and life.

Philippians 4:7
King James Version
7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Admitting Mortality

May 26, 2020

Got up Monday morning, May 26, with a slight headache and nausea. When I stood up the world did a slow turn! Double vision, which finally went away but left behind the headache and blurred vision!

I know the signs of a stroke; but I ignored them! I finished the rest of the week with blurred vision and a mild headache that would not go away. Along with those two symptoms I felt, not dizzy nor disoriented; but as if I was out of step with the rest of the world.

I volunteer for Dare to Care through my church, First Nazarene Church - Shepherds Pantry. On Tuesday June 2, the day that I normally help distribute food to my community, I was sent home because I started getting dizzy and sick. I went right to sleep and slept through to the next morning.

On June 3, 2020, eight days after the original symptoms started; I went to the emergency room.

Test after test was ran. Diagnosis was a mini stroke! I was transferred to the stroke unit in Louisville, Kentucky.

Each and every test came back negative! But I still had blurred vision, a headache and was light headed - my definition for feeling out of synchronization with the rest of the world.

On Friday morning, June 5th, I awoke with no headache, no blurred vision and I was once again in synchronization with the rest of the world. The doctors decided to let be go home!

The doctors final conclusion was that I had a transitional stroke. That is what the doctors call having all of the symptoms of a stroke but nothing shows up in the testing.

Conclusion? Don't ignore what is happening to your own body! We will all be called to go home some day. Don't rush your trip home by ignoring what you know is happening.

What happened could have been so much worse. I am one of those people who go through live trying to get as much done each day as is humanly possible. I have decided that I will slow down a little and enjoy the live that God, the Father has given me.

Take care everyone - God bless and keep you all.

Anne

2020 Graduates

Dear 2020 Senior,

Congratulations for all of your hard work! You have completed your high school education and you are now ready for the next step!

I don’t know if your future is supposed to include college, a trade school or the search for a job. But whatever your next step is, I wish you the best as you step forward into your future.

I am sure that you are disappointed that you have had to be in quarantine because of the Coronavirus.

But please don’t let this disappointment shape your life. Be joyous that you have accomplished a major goal in life, despite the limitations put on you by the Coronavirus.

1 Chronicles 4:10. But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded.

I do not know what your beliefs are; I can only know what my beliefs are.

That belief is in a risen Savior, Jesus Christ! I would like to give you the blessings of God.

Numbers 6:24-26

24 "The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; 26 The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace."

May you go into your future with the same perseverance that you have shown this year as you faced the Coronavirus quarantine.

Thinking about and praying for you,

Anne Thomas