The One Who Knows Us the Best

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations." (Jeremiah 1:5 NKJV) Your parents are usually the two people whom you trust the most to have your best interest at heart, and to wisely advise you. After all, usually, they are the two who love and care about you no matter what and know you better than anyone. However, there is one who knows you better than your parents and loves you more than them. That is God. Your parents have only known you since they conceived you, but God says before He even formed you He knew you and sanctified you. God says He even knows how many hairs are on your head. Can your earthly parents say that? AND, God says He loves us unconditionally. Parents sometimes have problems with this. So, my question is this, Why would we NOT listen to God's advice and follow His lead? Who better to guide us through life than the one who has known us the longest and love us unconditionally! Love, Beau

Remembering Your Heritage

"The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together." (Romans 8:16-17 NKJV) We are ALL children of God. And, as such we are all part of a royal family. We should therefore present ourselves as royalty and allow ourselves to be presented as such. God gives us His best, and in return expects us to do our best and live our best. This does not mean we are to act haughty, snobbish, or self-centered. We are to be giving, loving, and caring...and we are to hold others to this standard. By following God's example, we should expect the same of ourselves and of others. Often we make the mistake of compromising down when we shouldn't. This only cheats ourselves. Let us hold ourselves and others to the standard of a royal, because that is who we are. Love, Beau

Happiness

"Behold, happy is the man whom God corrects; Therefore do not despise the chastening of the Almighty." (Job 5:17 NKJV) A parent who loves their child will give it guidelines and rules to follow. When they break these they are disciplined and or restricted. Parents do this not to be mean, controlling bullies, but to teach children right from wrong, proper behavior, and to hopefully help them reach their full potentials. God is our Heavenly father, and as our Heavenly father He does the same thing. He gave us the Ten Commandments, our rules. When we break these rules there are consequences. But, just like with humans, God only deals with people He truly loves and cares about (which is ALL of us). It is a happy day knowing that God loves and cares about us so much that He takes the time to teach us, refine us, and discipline us when we lose our way... and God does it with the upmost love, care and concern. Love, Beau

Moving Mountains

"So Jesus said to them, "Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you." (Matthew 17:20 NKJV) God did not mean that people could physically move mountains. This was an illustration used in biblical times that people could understand. What God was saying was that if one has the tiniest bit of faith then one has the capability to do things that seem just as difficult and impossible. Taking this one step farther, back in biblical times they "moved mountains" by digging up areas, carrying the ground to another location and building up that area. When they made bricks to build their temples and buildings, they were made in one place, carried to another, then hoisted up to where they were needed. In both cases strength, and perseverance were also needed to move the mountains. This is still true today. No matter what your mountain is, not only does it take that tiniest bit of faith, which also includes belief, but it takes strength and perseverance to follow through for the long haul. But, like, Jesus said, you can move that mountain! Love, Beau

Love of the World

"Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." (1 John 2:15 NKJV) We are to love the world and take care of it. After all, God made it, and loves us and the things that He made. However, we are not to love it, and its ways, more than God. God tells us that we are not to be attached to it. God wants us to follow Him and only Him, and His way of doing things. The world's ways of doing things is often against the way God would do them and involves sinning. Satan also moves within the world and tries influencing us in ways that turn us against God, and alienate us from Him. When we love the world more we are saying that we are loving its ways more than God...in other words basically rejecting God and turning our backs on God. Also, if we are more in the world than with God, we are more anxious, worried, troubled, and have our mind on things other than pleasing God and doing His will. God loves us more than anything and anyone. Turning our backs on Him is the exact opposite of what He wants for us. God wants us to not be attached to the world, so that we can concentrate totally on His will for us...and the fact He loves us more than anyone or anything means that He will ALWAYS have our best interest at heart and everything will be done with the upmost love and affection...and isn't that what we all want for ourselves?? Love, Beau

Provisions

"And of every living thing of all flesh you shall bring two of every sort into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female." (Genesis 6:19 NKJV) God cannot keep everything bad from happening. That is a consequence of free will. However, for all the bad things happening, God makes provision for the faithful of His children. Before God started the flood, He had Noah build an ark and fill it with His family, and male and female animals of all kind. He made provision that they would survive. Even all the animals would reproduce and fill the earth once again! When Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, and they wandered in the desert for 40 years, he provided Manna for them to eat and therefore survive. And, God gave Lot and his family a chance to get out before he destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. Even today, when bad things happen God minimizes losses the best He can and provides a way out for His faithful children. The disclaimer is this: You are still responsible for your actions. Just about in every natural disaster I know, there are always those who choose to stay behind and consequently die. It reminds me of the story where a man is on the roof of his flooded house praying to God for help. Time goes by and the man refuses help from a person in a boat 3 different times. As the man drowns, he asks God where He was when he asked for help. God tells him he sent help 3 different times and He turned it down. Even Lot's wife chose to look back, when told not to, and consequently turned into a pilar of salt. God does provide, but also look for His anges and heed His warnings! Love, Beau

With ALL Your Heart

"I will praise You, O LORD, with my whole heart;" (Psalm 9:1a NKJV) God wants all your attention, and He wants you to praise Him with ALL your heart. When you pray He says to go into a closet and pray. That means God doesn't want you distracted by worldly things and be showy, but to give Him your total, sincere attention. The same is true with praise. God doesn't want you to be distracted or bothered when you praise Him. He also doesn't want half-hearted, lukewarm, ingenuine praise. When you praise God, He wants you to fully, and joyfully, praise Him with all your heart and soul. And, God wants it to be sincere and genuine. So, praise God...praise Him with your whole heart. It will make God smile! Love, Beau