Happy Thanksgiving: No Greater Blessing

Give thanks to the LORD for He is good;

His faithful love endures forever.

- Psalm 107:1

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! I hope you are all having a wonderful day with your family and friends! Many of us have come to think that Thanksgiving has come to be a holiday to "get through" and really more about Black Friday than Thanksgiving. Most people, if they were honest, are more busy getting together their shopping lists for tomorrow than counting their blessings today and every day. (My family and I do not participate in Black Friday, just for the record.)

So you as you go about wishing everyone "Happy Thanksgiving" today, are you really giving thanks? Are you really thankful for all that God has blessed you with? Or are you so stressed by the storms of life that you just don't? Have you become so absorbed in your problems that you have forgotten to stop and truly have a grateful heart toward the love? To stop and pray every day? To read your Bible daily? To live according to what the Word of God commands? To thank the LORD for saving us, filling us with His Spirit, and paying the price to deliver us from every sickness and every disease (Matt. 8:17)?

While you're complaining about how you ate too much, there are people right here in this nation, in your state, in your city starving; people who would be grateful to have a stomach that was "too full" instead of aching from the emptiness. It truly pains me to thank of how people all across America are over eating today (HEY, I LOVE FOOD & CAN THROW DOWN WITH THE BEST OF THEM!), while there are people longing for just one good meal. That should bother you. If it doesn't, you need a heart check. It breaks my heart. It just doesn't seem right that the majority of people have spent hundreds of dollars making a feast, while there are people hungry. People with no family or friends to eat with. People without a home. People without a vehicle. People without clothing. It brings tears to my eyes. What a joy it would be to serve in a soup kitchen on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and just because (any day)! To feed the hungry, as the Bible commands us to do (My meme, Mom, & I would love to make this a family tradition ASAP!!)

While you're making your Christmas list, there are people who cannot buy for the immediate members of their families, much less anyone else. If you have food to eat daily, a home to live in, have met  & given your life to Jesus Christ (TOP PRIORITY), clothes to wear, heating and air conditioning in your home, you have a lot to be thankful for. If you have a car that you can depend on not to break down, you are blessed. If you have health insurance, you are blessed. If you have a job, you are blessed. If you have an education, you are blessed.

If you are able to speak, hear, and see, you are blessed. If you are healthy, you are blessed. Before the LORD healed me, I had 6 miserable Thanksgivings and Christmases. When you are as sick as I was, you cannot enjoy anything. I couldn't enjoy food due to the constant nausea, and later severe food allergies. I was so sick, my family had to beg me to even eat a few bites of food. I lost so much weight that at one point, doctors considered putting in a port for daily IV fluids (due to the constant dehydration) and IV nutrition daily. There were Thanksgivings & Christmases where I was confined to a wheelchair or a walker. Or in the hospital. It took so much effort those holidays to smile for pictures and sit up for the meal and to spend time with the family (I was often bedridden and even sitting up was a huge feat for me during those years. It was exhausting). I spent a couple holidays where I was in so much pain I was not even able to be touched or hugged (any touch intensified the pain x 1,000). The holidays and birthdays never really felt special (though my family did everything in their power to make them special), because I was just critically ill & had little to no quality of life. Six birthdays where I could plan nothing special because my life totally revolved around whatever I felt "up to" doing, which was never much. This is my 2nd Thanksgiving healed by the blood of Jesus Christ. I GIVE GOD ALL THE PRAISE, HONOR, and GLORY for HEALING ME! HE RESTORED ME TO HEALTH AND LET ME LIVE! OH, MY LIPS WILL PRAISE HIM FOREVER! HE HEALED ME and SET ME FREE FROM THAT LONG LIST OF MEDICATIONS, OF THOSE LIMITATIONS, THE PAIN, AGONY, & MISERY of having 2 debilitating diseases. GLORY TO HIS NAME! PRAISE THE LORD, O MY SOUL, AND FORGET NOT ALL HIS BENEFITS-- WHO FORGIVES ALL OUR SINS and HEALS ALL OUR DISEASES!!!

Don't forget about the soldiers who cannot be with their families! We are fre because of their sacrifice and the sacrifice of their families!!! God Bless our troops!!!

The greatest blessing of all time is the opportunity to have a relationship with Christ. In God's abounding mercy, He sent His one and only Son to the cross to die and be raised again to pay the debt for our sins & sicknesses.... so that if we would only believe & live for Him, we could be free from sin & sickness! Glory! We are all infinitely blessed that Christ would do this, though not one of us is worthy. He did this BECAUSE HE LOVED US. HE WANTS US. Crazy amazing how God doesn't need us, but HE WANTS US. The Holy one.... wants us to be a part of His family. Did you know that once you get saved, Jesus calls you "Brother" and "Sister"? :) God calls you "Son" or "Daughter"! And there is no greater blessing than that.

Insanely Loved & Crazy Blessed,

Rachel Marie

WHEN NO ONE IS WATCHING

And so the Lord says, “These people say they are mine. They honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. And their worship of me is nothing but man-made rules learned by rote. 

- Isaiah 29:13 (NLT)

Note: If this applies to you, please remember that God wants all of you! He will forgive your sins when you ask and turn from those ways!

Could the LORD say this of you? Do you honor God with your lips, when in reality your heart is far away from the LORD? Do you boast about the goodness of God while continuing to indulge in sin? Maybe your think you're right with God because you abide by man-made rules. Maybe you post Scripture on Facebook for everyone to see, yet in the dark, you commit adultery. Maybe you go to church every Sunday, when you know you got rip roaring drunk Friday and Saturday night. Maybe you sing songs of worship to The Lord at church, yet as soon as you get in your car, you turn up the tunes of the world that rave about their sinful actions. Maybe you profess to live for God with your words, while denying Him with your actions. No matter how many people you have fooled, God is not fooled. He sees everything.

If this is you, God desperately wants you to serve Him with all your heart. God wants you to turn from the sinful ways of the world, and live for Him. You will find Him when you seek Him with all your heart! Not part of it. Not by giving Him some of your life. By giving it all to Him and earnestly seeking Him, you will Find Him. God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their evil ways and LIVE IN HIM (Ezekiel 33:11). 1 John 5:3 says, "This is love for God: to keep his commands". We show our love for Him not just by doing what looks like a godly life on the outside in front of others, but by living according to His Word in the light and in the dark... When everyone is watching and when no one is watching but God himself!

If God used this to convict you, please repent and turn from all the ways that do not please Him.

In His Amazing Love & Forgiveness,

Rachel Marie

Live Like Jesus

Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.

- 1 John 2:6

Live like Jesus. How did Jesus live? He stayed in communication with our Father, God. He lived according to God's commands. He lived in obedience to God, even unto death. He healed the sick, made the lame walk, the mute talk, the deaf hear, & set the captives free. He raised the dead. Think you can't do that? Think the age of miracles is past? No, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8, Malachi 3:6). If Jesus was moved with compassion for the sick in the Bible, He is just as moved with compassion for the sick now. He is just as ABLE & WILLING to heal the sick now. However, faith is required. In Nazareth, Jesus could do no miracles because of their lack of faith. If He required faith then, He certainly requires faith now. 

In John 14:12, Jesus said, "Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father." Jesus didn't say just the disciples or the apostles. He said WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM will not only do the same but GREATER works because He is with the Father!!! Glory! Release your faith for your miracle by believing in Jesus Christ who never changes! Many of you already know I can attest to this because Jesus healed me of 2 life-threatening, debilitating diseases! Praise Jesus for healing me and freeing me from that miserable life of limitations! Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits-- who forgives ALL your sins and HEALS ALL YOUR DISEASES (Psalm 103:2-3).

HOW SELFISH WOULD I BE TO KEEP HIM TO MYSELF?

But if I say, "I will not mention His Word or anymore in His Name," His Word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed; I cannot.

- Jeremiah 20:9

Oh, many times I feel like Jeremiah, with a fire shut up in my bones!!! I cannot hold in my love and passion  for the LORD, even if I tried. And WHY WOULD I WANT TO? Salvation comes from His Name alone: Jesus Christ. Only through HIM can all men be saved (who are willing to accept Jesus & live their lives for Him). Only through HIM can we get to Heaven. Oh, my God, with tears in my eyes, I declare with David, "I DELIGHT TO DO YOUR WILL, O MY GOD (Psalm 40:8)!!! 

JESUS is THE WAY, THE TRUTH, and THE LIFE. No one comes to the Father EXCEPT through Him (John 14:6).

This verse is not plural. IT DOES NOT SAY that Jesus is one of the ways, one of the truths, one way of life... It does not say that He is one of the ways to Heaven, contrary to popular belief. The Word of God says Jesus is THE WAY, THE TRUTH, and THE LIFE. NO ONE COMES TO THE FATHER EXCEPT THROUGH JESUS CHRIST. SCRIPTURE SAYS JESUS IS THE ONLY WAY. HE IS THE TRUTH. THE ONLY WAY TO HEAVEN IS THROUGH A RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS CHRIST. Not through religious traditions, but through having an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. 

********* Note: If you do not have a relationship with Jesus and would like to, it is so simple. Do not be ashamed to want this. It is the only way to Heaven. Right now, wherever you are, you can just say a simple prayer, like this: "Jesus Christ is Lord. God, I believe you sent your Son, Jesus Christ, to the earth to die for my sins & heal me from all sickness & disease & that you raised Jesus from the dead. Please forgive me for my sins. I dedicate my life to you."

That prayer of salvation is only the beginning. Now, get to know God. You can purchase a Bible or begin reading daily in the Bible app (it's free! or at Bible.com). A good place to start is in the Gospel of John (in the New Testament, the 4th book). You can also get involved in a good Bible-based church to learn more. Begin to learn what God asks of you and more about who He is through reading His Word & doing what it says. **************

I couldn't continue with this post without telling you all how to be saved.

WHY WOULD I WANT TO KEEP GOD & HIS WORD TO MYSELF? Through Christ, we can make it into the Beautiful Kingdom of Heaven & forever soak in the presence and majesty of God. In Heaven, there will be no more death, or sorrow, or crying, or pain (Revelation 21:4).. But in Hell, (if you die without a relationship with Jesus), there will be weeping and gnashing of the teeth (Luke 13:28) in a lake of fire forever. Through Jesus, we can be healed from every sickness and every disease (Matt. 4:23, Hebrews 13:8, Malachi 3:6). Through Jesus, the lame can walk, the blind can see, the deaf can hear, the mute can speak. Through Jesus, the captives are set free. Jesus sets us free from all sin, all sickness, all forms of evil bondage!!!! GLORY BE TO GOD!

Oh, God, I would be selfish to keep the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to myself. Oh, I would be selfish to keep the Name above all names locked up deep inside my heart: never to tell of your salvation, healing, forgiveness, mercy, grace, comfort, and love. Never to release the electrifying power that raised Jesus Christ from the grave. Oh, how selfish I would have to be to keep the commands of God to myself. How selfish would I be to not speak in the Name of Jesus & release the salvation, healing, and freedom that comes from Him?? OH, THERE IS POWER IN THE NAME OF JESUS TO BREAK EVERY CHAIN!!!!!!!!! How selfish would I be to remain silent & allow people to go to hell because I refused to speak about Jesus? How selfish would I be to not tell how Jesus saved me, changed me, and healed me & let others perish eternally, to let them be sick & in pain & suffer through this life, to rob them of the comfort that comes from the Holy Spirit? Oh, how selfish would I be not to share my testimony of how Jesus healed me when doctors couldn't? & tell of how Jesus is willing and eager to do the same for others, as well as save them & give the gift of the Holy Spirit & eternal life because GOD DOES NOT SHOW FAVORITISM (Acts 10:34). What He has done for me, He is able and willing to do for you!

Burning with a Passion to see people Saved, Changed, and Healed through my Savior,

Rachel Marie

I DELIGHT TO DO THE WILL OF MY GOD! :)

I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.

- Psalm 40:8 (ESV)

This is a screenshot from one of my YouTube mini-sermons. Oh, how I truly delight to do God's Will! What a joy it is to do the work of the LORD! What a privilege it is to spend time with HIM, to read/teach/preach His Word! Oh, His Word is alive and active, sharper than any two-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12). There is no end to what we can each accomplish for the Kingdom of God when we fall in love with Jesus & commit to spending time with Him daily & be DOERS of the WORD, not hearers only (James 1:22)! God is not impressed if you listen to what He has to say & fail to put it into practice. We must do more than just hear and read the Word, we have to actually do what the Word says! His commands are not burdensome (1 John 5:3)! Oh, when you delight yourself in The Lord & grow closer to Him & grow deeper with HIM: nothing makes you happier than He does!!!! Nothing makes you happier than doing what He asks you to do; living the way He wants us to!!! Living according to His Word is how we stay pure (Psalm 119:9). Living according to His commands is how we show our love and devotion to Him.

As the Church, we are the bride of Christ (2 Corinthians 11:2). To be HIS BRIDE, we have to be committed to Him. We have to love Him with all of our hearts (Deuteronomy 6:5). We have to seek Him every day, for His Word says we will ONLY find Him when we seek Him with all of our hearts (Jeremiah 29:13). We have to really want Him with all of our hearts & search for Him, then we will find Him! :) GLORY!! 

We have to continue falling deeper and deeper in love with Him with each passing day. We have to be DOERS of the Word and not hearers only. You are not really serving God if you only hear the Word (at church) or merely read it...you are really serving God if you actually do what the Word of God says.. If you actually do the will of our Father in Heaven. In Matthew 7:21, Jesus says, "Not everyone who calls out to me, 'Lord! Lord!' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter".

Attending church is wonderful. Reading the Word of God & spending time in prayer are vital to your nutrition for a healthy relationship with Jesus.... but unless you put into practice what it says, you are merely going through the motions. Going through the motions will NOT get you into Heaven. A relationship with Jesus Christ will get you into Heaven. Keeping God's commands is the way we show our love for Him.

For demonstrational purposes, let's look at an earthly marriage. Let's say the bride constantly talks about how amazing her husband is and the way she loves him more than anything. She says she is in this marriage for life, no matter what. She says she couldn't be any happier. Let's say she's been having an affair with another man & continues to cheat on her husband, all the while professing her undying love and devotion to her husband. Doesn't sound like she's too devoted to her husband, does it? She's only in this marriage as long as she still gets to do what she wants, disregarding her vows & disrespecting God & her husband, sinning against them. Doesn't sound like she actually loves her husband the way she claims she does, otherwise, she wouldn't betray him like that. ...but how many of you do this to JESUS? How many of you go through all the motions and speak of the beauty, wonder, and majesty of our Lord & how dedicated you are to Him.... All the while not actually living the way He has asked you to? Not living in obedience to HIS WORD?

I challenge you all today to dare to live in full obedience to God & His Word. I challenge you to not merely go through "religious motions", which profit you not BUT to actually seek The Lord with all your hearts & demonstrate your love for Him, not only with your lips but in your everyday life: by reading His Word & putting into practice what it says. Jesus came to the earth, not to do His Will, but the will of our Father, God. Our job is the same: to do God's Will, not our own; to fulfill HIS WILL for our lives, not what we think His Will should be.

In the Love of Christ,

 Rachel Marie

THIS RIVER NEVERS RUNS DRY

On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.

- John 7:37-39 (NIV)

I wouldn't trade the Baptism of the Holy Ghost for anything in this world!!!!!!! There is absolutely nothing like it! I cannot get enough of being filled with His Spirit! Thankfully, the river of Jesus' Living Water NEVER runs dry!!! I love getting filled up by HIM continually, day by day! Glory be to God!!!!! Praise the LORD! You never find true contentment, joy, peace, love, and happiness until you find Jesus Christ. Don't mistake: I'm not saying everything will be perfect, but you can find peace, joy, love, and comfort in every circumstance through Jesus Christ!! I'm so thankful to be filled with the Holy Spirit!!! Though I have been a Christian for quite some time, I didn't receive the Baptism of the Holy Ghost until about a year and a half ago & my life has never been the same since. I don't want anyone to miss out on this phenomenal gift from Jesus. My life is forever changed to a million times (PLUS!) better because of this wonderful filling of the Holy Spirit that the LORD God Almighty has given unto me! One of the greatest gifts God has ever given was pouring out His Spirit upon His people. To find out more about being filled with the Holy Ghost, check out the book of Acts in the Bible. Also, you can learn more about the spiritual gifts He gives in 1 Corinthians chapters 12, 13, 14. In 1 Corinthians 12:1, the Holy Spirits tells us He does not want us to be uninformed concerning spiritual gifts. So, I would like to greatly encourage & urge you to please start learning about them through reading what God's Word says about it through reading the Scriptural references listed above. 

In His Loving Kindness,

Rachel Marie

OUR GOD IS A GOD OF RESTORATION

If you are a child of God whom has been robbed of something: whether time, finances, innocence, etc.: GOD WANTS YOU TO KNOW HE WILL RESTORE ALL THAT WAS LOST. Be faithful to God & He will do it! MAY HE BE TO YOU A RESTORER OF LIFE (Ruth 4:15)! I declare restoration over God's Faithful Servants all today! If you've been used and abused, let the wonderful Shadow of the Almighty God cover you, heal you and restore you. May He rejoice over you with shouts of joy (Zephaniah 3:17) as He heals you from all your hurts! Remember, what the devil meant for evil, God can bring good out of it (Genesis 50:20). He can make you victorious and use you as a living testimony of His wonderful love, mercy, grace, forgiveness, restoration, & healing (physically, mentally, emotionally, & spiritually). He can use your story of what HE brought you through, delivered & healed you from to be that Light that someone else in the same or situation needs! Let Him heal you and free you. It's freely offered through Jesus Christ alone. Then, go out and be a blessing to others! There are so many people that would be impacted, saved, healed, by you being obedient to the LORD & sharing YOUR STORY!! 

And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. 

- Joel 2:25-26 (KJV)

LAUGHING WITHOUT FEAR OF THE FUTURE

SHE is CLOTHED with STRENGTH and DIGNITY and LAUGHS WITHOUT FEAR of HER FUTURE.

- Proverbs 31:25

This is difficult when stress, worry, anxiety kick in. I often struggle with putting this into practice: "laughing without fear of my future". But as Women of God, clothed with STRENGTH and DIGNITY, we should be lighthearted. We should not be like a tea kettle, screaming on the inside with constant worry. We have to cast ALL our anxieties on HIM, because He cares for us (1 Peter 5:7). His yoke is easy and His burden is light (Matthew 11:30). Philippians 4:6 says, "BE ANXIOUS FOR NOTHING". When the devil tempts me with worry, I sometimes have to remind myself that God didn't say "Be anxious for nothing EXCEPT.. This, that, or the other [insert your personal situation here]. He said to be anxious for NOTHING. HE HOLDS EVERYTHING IN HIS HANDS. HE cares for our every need. He cares about everything we are going through. Yet He says to His children: BE ANXIOUS FOR NOTHING... because He wants us to give it all to Him. And if we do, we don't have to worry.

Sometimes, we get so caught up in hoping and praying certain things will or will not happen that it becomes our focus. The devil can trick us into yielding to our fears. We get caught up into that state of panic, where we are paralyzed, terror-stricken, unable to entertain any thoughts except the "what-ifs". But instead of giving in, we have to LET GOD BE GOD & DELIVER US FROM ALL OUR FEARS (Psalm 34:4). 

Think of it like passing a basketball to and fro. Your mind is the gym. Let the basketball hoop signify Jesus.  The devil keeps bouncing the basketballs labeled, "fear", "panic", and "anxiety" your way. You've got to see past the devil's evil schemes and look up, toward the Light [the basketball goal: Jesus]. When Satan keeps bombarding you by bouncing all the basketballs to you, you may forget to look up to the place where all the basketballs go: in the hoop [Jesus]. So, no matter how many basketballs almost knock you over, you can only solve the problem by tossing each one into the hoop. All you have to do is keep throwing the balls in the hoop.. Keep bouncing them to JESUS. And DON'T pick them back up.

Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

- James 4:8

God never wants us to live in fear. "God has NOT given us a spirit of fear but of POWER and of LOVE and of a SOUND MIND (2 Timothy 1:7)." He wants us to live in his safety, protection, and perfect peace. "YOU WILL KEEP IN PERFECT PEACE, all who trust in You, whose THOUGHTS ARE FIXED ON YOU" (Isaiah 26:3). We need to read and pray Psalm 91 daily for protection over our families, loved ones, and ourselves. We have to remember that as we dwell in the secret place of the Most High, we abide in the shadow of the Almighty. He protects us & covers us with His feathers. Because we have made the LORD our refuge, NO EVIL WILL BEFALL US; NO PLAGUE WILL COME NEAR OUR DWELLING.

Thank You, Jesus, for pointing all this out to me today, not just for me, but for my fellow Brothers and Sisters in Christ who also need this message.

Too often, we make the negative emotions seem bigger than God by zoning in on them instead of zoning in on HIM.

May we all work to enter that REST IN JESUS.

May we all work to throw all our anxieties to Jesus.

May we all work to take His yoke upon us, for His yoke is easy and His burden is light.

May we be able to laugh easily, without fear of the future.

In the Love of Christ,

Rachel Marie