Tag Archive: 2 Corinthians

Romans 5:1-5  “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.“

Dearly Beloved:  May God’s peace, grace, mercy and love be ever upon you and may you share it with one another.  Oh boy, what a month!  My dear friend, Erica, died and now my beautiful and precious Goddaughter and niece, Kyrah, is fighting for her life.  She has been med-flighted to Boston by helicopter and as I am writing this, she is on life support and in a coma.  Kyrah was born with a heart defect where only one side of her heart works.  She has been a miracle child since she was born.  She is only sixteen and she has had more than five open heart surgeries.  People with her condition usually don’t live past thirteen years old.  Ever the fighter, Kyrah has defied the odds.  Throughout her life, doctors have been stunned at the level of energy Kyrah has.  Most kids with her condition are weak and tired all the time.  Not Kyrah.  If you didn’t see her scars or heard her story, you would never know that she has a heart condition.  Her strength and energy are remarkable even for a healthy person.  Kyrah has always been an inspiration to all of us who know and love her.  I believe that that is exactly what God intended her to be. (more…)

II Corinthians 4:8-10  “We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.”

Dearly Beloved:  May the blessings of the Lord be upon you.  This post, I am sad to say, was inspired by a very tragic event – suicide.  A few days ago, a man killed himself in the next cell block over from mine.  I did not know him, but his death never-the-less has deeply affected me.  All life matters to God.  This man’s death has hit home for me as an incarcerated man.  You see, it was the despair over his circumstances and the gloominess of confinement which swallowed that man’s life.  He allowed it to consume him.  He succumbed to his suffering and the brutally unjust nature of this world.  It was satan who caused him to destroy himself.  He manipulated him into doing the unthinkable.  We (all of us) are in danger of succumbing to the despair and suffering we face in this world.   (more…)

Romans 8:18-21  For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.  For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.  For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.

Dear Readers,  We were created out of love.  We were made to love our Creator and each other.  We are meant to worship our Father, GOD, Who is the Creator of the entire universe.  We were meant to be one with God and each other, but our choice to sin created a schism that caused us to be separated from the Lord.  Some of you may be on the fence when it comes to God and Christianity.  In fact, some of you who are reading this may not believe at all.  Perhaps you are just curious and that curiosity brought you here.  Curiosity is good.  God gave it to us to inspire us to seek and find the truth.  Like any loving parent, He enjoys watching us discover.  You may be skeptical and think it quixotic to ponder God or His purpose for us. (more…)

II Corinthians 4:5-6  For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bond-servants for Jesus’ sake. For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Dear Readers,  It is not easy being a Christian, which is why it is such a narrow path to walk.  None of us are Jesus Christ, though some people expect us to be.  It’s like – all of a sudden, now that we’re saved, we’re expected to be perfect.  I am just a man.  I am not worthy of the Lord’s salvation, but He has given it to me never-the-less.  Praise You, Lord!  THANK YOU, JESUS!

Recently, I have had a couple of incidents where people have called the validity of my faith into question.  Boy, does it hurt when that happens.  It stings like vinegar on an open wound with salt on top.  Painful stuff.  Not long after my last post, “A Stress-Free Life“, I was put into a situation where I momentarily let stress get the best of me.  Now, I did employ the techniques that I wrote about and they did work like they almost always do.  None-the-less, I felt convicted.  The devil clouded my mind with doubt that night.  He made me feel like I let God and all the folks who look up to me down.  I tossed and turned on my pillow, feeling shame.  I wrote a letter of apology to the person I had a disagreement with that night.  My conscience would not rest until I did.  That person had made a comment to me stating, “I thought you were supposed to be a man of God.”  Man, that hurt.  When I was done with the letter, I fell to my knees and cried, “Lord, forgive me, for I have misrepresented You, my King.” and I prayed for His peace and strength.  The Lord spoke to my heart.   (more…)