"Brothers and sisters, fill your minds with whatever is good and true, whatever is pure, whatever is noble and right, whatever is lovely, whatever is honorable and admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things. Put them into practice, and God -who gives us peace- will be with you." (Philippians 4:8)

"Thanks for the Gift: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:13)

We must train our minds to think upon these positive and peaceful things. We must keep our minds protected, because the devil could take advantage of those vulnerable ones.

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

"The Value of Our Family and The Power of Togetherness."



"The Value of Our Family and The Power of Togetherness."
United we stand as the whole family of God in union and in victory, along with the power of our faith as Christian believers. United together, we can do all things.
Our dreams would take wings and soar. Our family together will make the power to win.
God is our Father in Heaven, and we are His children in the family of God in the brotherhood of mankind.
What can parents do to promote love, compassion, respect, cooperation and understanding in their relationship with their children??...
By focusing in our children´s needs, we stay connected to them in a way that serves a good life and trust, and builds a great connection with them.
It´ll produce a strong desire in our children to want to run to us in their times of need, rather than running away from us.
Let´s all children of God gather and listen to our Father, God, our Lord and Savior!!
We are all safe and love under His loving arms after all.
The value of our family and the power of togetherness are the key for success.
The Gospel according to Luke presents Jesus as the promised Savior of the whole human race. Luke records that Jesus was called by the Spirit of the Lord to "bring good news to the poor."
Throughout the Gospel great emphasis is placed on prayer, the Holy Spirit, the role of women in the ministry of Jesus, and God´s forgiveness of sins.
(Luke 11: 17, 23, 27-28) But Jesus knew what the people were thinking, so he said to them, "Any country that divides itself into groups which fight each other will not last very long; a family divided against itself falls apart." "Anyone who is not for me is really against me."
True Happiness. When Jesus had said this, a woman spoke up from the crowd and said to him, "How happy is the woman who bore you and nursed you!!" But Jesus answered, "Rather, how happy are those who hear the word of God and obey it!!"
(Galatians 6: 10) So then, as often as we have the chance, we should do good to everyone, and especially to those who belong to "our family in the faith."
Once again, these words in the Scriptures speak volumes about the value of our family and the power of togetherness, which are the key for success.
Today´s messages focus in our family union, and the strong love to one another.
Let´s stay together -Christian believers- forevermore!!
(((((HAPPY EASTER TO ONE and ALL,
THE FAMILY OF CHRIST!!)))))
BEST REGARDS,

STARRY DAWN.

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

"GRATEFULNESS, A GIFT OF INNER VALUE."


"GRATEFULNESS, A GIFT OF INNER VALUE."
Gratitude -as a gift from the heart- is an inner value.
I tell you a tale...
According to a legend, a young man while roaming the desert came across a spring of delicious crystal-clear water. The water was so sweet he filled his leather canteen, so he could bring some water back to a tribal elder who had been his teacher. After a four-day journey, he presented the water to the old man who was thirsty and took a deep drink, smiled warmly and thanked his student lavishly for the sweet water. The young man returned to his village with a happy heart.
Later, the teacher let another student taste the water. He spat it out, saying it was awful. The water apparently had become stale because of staying too long in the old leather container. The student challenged his teacher: "Master, the water was foul. Why did you pretend to like it?"
The teacher replied, "You only tasted the water. I tasted the gift. The water was simply the container for an act of loving-kindness, and nothing could be sweeter than an act of kindness. And you should be grateful for this gift..."
I think, we understand this lesson best when we receive innocent gifts of love from young children. Whether it´s a single flower, a small thing, a ceramic tray or a gold bracelet, the natural and proper response is appreciation and expressed thankfulness, because we just love the idea within the gift itself.
GRATITUDE doesn´t always come naturally. Unfortunately, most children and many adults value only the thing given rather than the feeling embodied in it.
We should remind ourselves and teach our children about the beauty and purity of feelings and expressions of GRATITUDE.
After all, gifts from the heart are really gifts of the heart. The success of love is in the loving process. Of course, it is natural in love to want the best for the other person, but whether it turns out that way or not- will not determine the value of what we have loved.
As humans, we often forget the inner value of GRATEFULNESS.
To be GRATEFUL is one of the most precious gifts that comes from one´s heart. Our dear Lord, Jesus gave the most valuable and precious gift to the world, for He loved us so much.
He gave Himself as a living sacrifice to pay the penalty for our sins. Jesus showed no selfishness in doing that, but only His loving self-giving to the world.
We, His children -in return- should show the most sincere GRATITUDE to our dear Lord, Jesus for His precious gift of self to us.
EASTER IS SOON COMING UP, SO WE WOULD LIKE TO SAY THIS PRAYER...
Let us pray,
Dear Lord Jesus,
We love you so much!! Thank You for dying on the Cross for our sins, for Your many blessings that touch our lives on daily basis, and for Your Heavenly and healing energy of Your love!! God bless you all!!
In Jesus´most Holy Name, we pray. AMEN.

The Peace of God be with each of you in this Easter Season and forevermore.

HAPPY EASTER TO ONE AND ALL!!

STARRY DAWN.

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Tuesday, March 16, 2010

"LET THEM FLY!!"


"LET THEM FLY!!"

The Baptism of Jesus. (Matthew 3: 13-17)
"At that time Jesus arrived from Galilee and came to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. But John tried to make him change his mind. "I ought to be baptized by you," John said, "and yet you have come to me!"
But Jesus answered him, "Let it be so for now. For in this way we shall do all that God requires." So John agreed. As soon as Jesus was baptized, he came up out of the water. Then Heaven was opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God coming down like a dove and alighting on him. Then a voice said from Heaven, "This is my own dear Son, with whom I am pleased."
Although Jesus had not yet begun His ministry, we know that He was considered to be "The Teacher" to his His disciples. Throughout his subsequent ministry He became known as a healer, a lover of children, and even a Rabbi, which means "Master" to some. Jesus became everything to His followers, and when He was taken away from them, imprisoned, and then finally crucified, it was a crushing blow to their faith.
Throughout studies in the Parenting field, it has been found to learn how to allow or permit your children to "grow-up." I mean, we´re not Jesus. But there are many mothers that just do about everything for their children. Taking the lesson from those earlier days with the disciples being so crushed by the loss of someone so important in their lives,...don´t you think it behooves us -as parents- to take a step back and allow or permit our children to grow up a little while we´re still here??...
One of my favorite illustration with regards to allowing our children to grow up is a study I did of eagles. I tell you the story... When baby eagles get to a certain age, the parent eagles know that it is time to give their little ones a nudge straight down. You see, the eagle´s nest is usually lodged in an extremely high area, and when it comes time for Eagle Jr. to leave the nest, the mama eagle pushes her baby eagle out of the nest. It´s a natural instinct to do so. The eagle´s predatory hunting skills rely almost solely on their flying power. If they couldn´t fly, they couldn´t eat, and they would die. So mama eagle shoves them one by one out of the nest, and daddy eagle follows them as they fall. They don´t just take off flying, so daddy eagle gently flies beneath them and lifts them a bit higher, then letting them go again. The process repeats several times until the baby eagle can fly on his own.
As humans, we don´t have that natural instinct to push our children out of the nest, and let them fall. Often, we can lift them up and help them soar. So we tend to help and overprotect them, never letting them realize their full potential. In effect, we retard their natural given potential for growth by our Parenting nature.
Well, what does this have to do with today´s text? Everything! As much as God likes us to come to Him and tell Him how much we love Him, and how much we need Him in our lives.
Have you ever stopped thinking what He needs?...
Every day God tries to nudge us from the nest, our comfort zone, and teach us to fly. Every day we hold on for dear life to what we know is "safe" and what we know as "the way we think it should be". It is our opinion, and it´s not entirely our fault, since we have been spiritually parented in the same way that we were naturally parented, believing that we are to "let God do for us". He is our Provider, our Comforter, our Hope, but what are we to Him?
What does He need?...
I am sure that God never intended for us to be a collection of babies sitting somewhere on the shelf waiting to be auctioned off at the highest bid. He doesn´t want a group of people who "look pretty", but have never been tried or touched by the infirmities of the world around us. He is looking for some people who when nudged will say,
"Here am I Lord. Send me to fulfill Your plan for me."
John had been given a ministry to perform in the Name of Jesus Christ, the Messiah. The article of baptism is one of the greatest of all articles of faith. It is the symbolism of the death and resurrection of Christ and our association with it.
Here we have Jesus coming to John to be Baptized. He had no need of Baptism for He had nothing to repent of. Yet He associates Himself with what was to come by His submission to it. So He comes to him who was called to Baptize in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. He surrendered himself to the ministry for which John had been called; it might be fulfilled that Jesus, publicly would show in that moment, that He surrendered himself as a man to take on the element of death, submission into the water; the coming up out of the water, being his resurrection and ascension; and the dove ascending upon Him being the promise of the Comforter, God´s Holy Spirit.
Jesus has "called us all" to a brotherhood of mankind to help each other, to minister to one another. One of the greatest healing services I´ve had the fortune to be a part of, it was the body of the Church, meeting at the altar -praying for one another, just a group of believers ministering to one another in the Spirit of love and fellowship.
Now friend, that is what He needs, and that´s what He wants.
He is calling you today. Can you hear Him??...

Let us pray,
Father, we thank You for those men and women around the world who rise up amidst the political injustices worldwide. Oh that we would find more Christians who would be nudged from their "nesting in the pew, and step forward and become a true believer." One who loves and gives of themselves to their own fellowship of believers. Lord, we will never flow in the Spirit and soar like an eagle until we put faith to work. Lord, nudge us loose from our perches of complacency today and teach us how to not just fly, but soar above the clouds of despondency and despair that seems to plague every corner of our planet Earth.
We ask these things in the Name of Jesus. AMEN.

Monday, March 15, 2010

"SPIRITUAL FOOD."


"SPIRITUAL FOOD."

Accelerate your spiritual growth!!...
The Scripture says, "Human beings cannot live on bread alone, but need every word that God speaks." (Matthew 4: 4)
Spiritual food is as necessary for the soul as material food is for the body.
People may live within their material shell in the outside. But, they could be spiritually dead in the inside. I believe that the fruits of the spirit keep us alive in our hearts!!
We all need the boost of love; true love that is the burning fuel which keeps us going and functioning well as a whole being. Love is the spiritual supporter, the booster rocket that propels and ignites the energy of our whole lives.
Love God above all, and love one another in peace. Peace and the superpower of love are two essential virtues that the world desperately need for the energy of surviving. Then, it will be sunrise again.
What it saves you is your submission to the belief that Jesus is the son of God who died, and was buried, and rose again that sets you free. Paul puts it this way in Philippians 3...
"The True Righteousness."
"In conclusion, my brothers and sisters, be joyful in your union with the Lord. Watch out for those who do evil things.
I reckon everything as complete loss for the sake of what is so much more valuable, the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord.
I now have the righteousness that is given through faith in Christ, the righteousness that comes from God and is based on faith. All I want is to know Christ and to experience the power of His resurrection, to share in His sufferings and become like Him in His death, in the hope that I myself will be raised from death to life."
Let us pray,
Thank you, dear Lord for giving me the opportunity to find You as my Lord and Savior, for giving me food for my body and food for my spirit, for loving me as Your child and for raising me from death into life. In Jesus´Name, I pray. AMEN.

Monday, March 8, 2010

"Marriage and Friendship."



"Marriage and Friendship."

Successful marriage is the most effective form of social support. It relieves the effects of stress, and leads to better mental and physical health.
While many studies have shown the great importance of "social support", it is still not clear exactly what this means. Most likely it consists of being a sympathetic listener or offering helpful advice; providing emotional support and social acceptance; giving actual help or financial help; and simply doing ordinary things together, like eating, drinking, watching TV and so on.
Husbands seem to benefit much more from marriage than wives do. Married women are in better physical and mental health, and are happier than single women, but these effects are nearly twice as great for men. Various explanations have been considered, but the most plausible is that wives provide more social support than husbands. Perhaps men need it more? They are more exposed to stresses at work, and have worse health, and die earlier than women.
In addition, when women get married, their way of life is subject to much greater change and this often leads to boring and isolated work in the home for which they are ill-prepared. Despite the benefits of marriage, women find it stressful, and are in better shape if they also have jobs; their earnings and status increase their power in the home, and they may also get social support at work.
More women than men emphasized confidentiality and trust; more men than women emphasized pleasure in a friend´s company, going out with a friend and having a friend in one´s home. This is not surprising. Given the traditional differences in sex roles, women are supposed to be more expressive than men, and working class men, in particular, have often been described as spending their leisure time outside the home, in the company of other men. And since an Englishman´s home is supposed to be his castle, it is natural that, apart from relatives, only close friends are allowed or welcomed into it.
More surprising is that as many men as women defined a close friend as someone they can call on for help. It may be that with a nuclear family structure and quite a high level of physical and social mobility, friends are now substitutes for relatives of both sexes. Among the middle-aged men and women in this study, the lack of contact with relatives, even those who lived nearby, was notable, suggesting that friends and relatives are indeed interchangeable.
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