Category: Our Exceptional God

The Right Time To Praise God

The Right Time to Praise God: Here’s The Answer!

When is the right time to praise God?

Is it on Sunday?  

How about Wednesdays?

Final answer?

It’s always the right time to praise God.

For instance, if you’re thinking about Him during your lunch hour, make sure you have your pocket Bible on hand. You never know when someone may see you and ask questions about your faith. This isn’t an evangelism trick, it’s having your own time with God, but being open to opportunities to share your beliefs.

The dictionary describes “reverence” as meaning “honor or respect felt or shown: DEFERENCE especially: profound adoring awed respect. – Merriam-Webster dictionary definition.1

Let’s take the definition even further.

It means to:

Cherish

Esteem

Treasure

and

Love

Him.

For The Lord is Holy

Psalm 97 affirms our Father’s Majesty and the reason for our praise:

For You are Lord Most High over all the earth.

You are exalted afar above all gods.– Psalm 97:9, (NASB).2

He is our Sustainer and Provider.

The one and only God of Creation.

Someday, He will come to judge the earth and, praise the Lord, He will set things right.

The Right Time to Praise God

Lord of Lords, and King of Kings.

Most notably, while we reap the many blessings of His grace and cherish our personal relationship with our Savior, may we never lose sight of His holiness.

There is no one like Him.

To put it another way, no wooden statue is worthy of our praise.

Hebrews 12:28-29

Like the above verse says, let’s show gratitude and awe.

. . . that “awe” is due, in part, to the fact that our God is the same God who revealed Himself and His law to the Israelites at Mount Sinai. He is indeed a devouring fire, and we should be humbled by the fact that it was grace that brought about the sprinkling of our Lord’s blood so that we could draw near to God in worship. – Bob Deffinbaugh, pastor and bible study teacher.5

Our Refuge and Fortress

A long time ago an anonymous Christian poet sat down to write the following words of praise to our Heavenly Father.

God bless him or her for their faithfulness and recognition of His majesty.

I’m excited to share it here.

We Praise You, O God 

We praise you, O God, our Redeemer, Creator;
In grateful devotion our tribute we bring.
We lay it before you, we kneel and adore you;
We bless your holy name, glad praises we sing.

We worship you, God of our fathers, we bless you;
Through trial and tempest our guide you have been.
When perils over take us, you will not forsake us,
And with your help, O Lord, our struggles we win.

With voices united our praises we offer
And gladly our songs of thanksgiving we raise.
With you, Lord, beside us, your strong arm will guide us.
To you, our great Redeemer, forever be praise!

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1Reverence definition. Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, 2021.Web. 28 October 2021. Retrieved from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reverence.

2Scripture quotation is from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

3Scripture quotation is from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

4Scripture quotation is from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

5Bob Deffinbaugh quotation is courtesy of bible.org. from “An Unshakable Kingdom (Hebrews 12:18-29)” n.d. 2009. Web. Accessed October 25 19, 2021.  Retrieved from https://bible.org/seriespage/32-unshakable-kingdom-hebrews-1218-29

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Disrespect For Life

Disrespect For Life

Sometimes I think we’re living in bizarro world.

Are you a biological “machine?”

disrespect for life

Are your kids just simple “products,” or are they little boys or girls created by God?

“Products?”

No way.

“Biological machines?”

I didn’t think so. 

Are you outraged at this popular thinking? Because you should be.

Created by God

The fact that we are created by God offends many people. We must be compassionate and pray for them, but at the same time, never compromise our convictions.

God created the heavens and the earth

There are schools across the United States that teach evolution as THE explanation of how the world was created.

We might just as well have “evolved” from a rock.

But, Christians know better.

Jesus died for our sins.

His incomprehensible love is beyond our imaginations, it is that deep.

Don’t tell me His death on the Cross was for nothing.

The world doesn’t like our beliefs, but praise God, this world is not our final home.

If you reject God and His Word, then anything goes—there’s no absolute standard on which to base your thinking. In this view, children are just biological machines, the product of millions of years of evolution. They aren’t given to parents—they are just a “choice” parents made. – Ken Ham, Answers in Genesis,1

We are not products.

We are not biological machines.

It’s absurd thinking, but sadly people are buying into this.

In the Image of God

We live in a world where the majority of our nation’s leaders have no problem with women terminating pregnancies in the womb for convenience – a so-called “choice.”

With that destructive brand of thinking, how can we expect younger generations who are “lucky” enough that their parents let them be born, be expected to, in turn, “value” anything?

The ungodly have such a disrespect for life. We see the results of this on the news every night.

Is it too late to tear down the ideologies meant to degrade us, reduce us to simple “products”, and separate us?

I believe there is still time to change some minds, but not much time.

We have to face the facts.

The Enemy wants to capture the hearts and minds of your children . . . of all ages.

Taking A Stand

Defending the faith (apologetics) is vital teaching as your children get ready to face a hostile world.

This will mean a dedicated commitment of your time to invest in the Christian education of your loved ones while they’re at home.

It’s what God wants us to do.  

Think about your sons and daughters right now.

Do they recognize that God created the heavens and the earth?

Can your children (or teens) defend their faith (respectfully) to an authority figure? 

They desperately need your guidance.

Do you talk about Jesus with them?

Once or twice isn’t enough.

If you don’t teach them about Jesus, worldly agendas being forced on every aspect of our society will lead them astray. If you’re not sure how serious this is, research the growing attacks on Christians all over the world.

When the family is strong, the church is strong. And when the church is strong, the nation is strong. But when the family breaks down, the nation breaks down with it. I believe there’s a full-throated, all-out attack on the family in our nation today. It’s time for moms and dads to be the spiritual leaders in the home. And it’s time for grandparents to be spiritual leaders too. – Pastor Greg Laurie, Bible teacher and author.2

Disrespect For Life Culture

How can parents and grandparents protect their kids in this spiritual fight for their minds and hearts?

Besides prayer, it’s important to establish a foundation of faith early on in your home.

Read the Bible to your children.

Let them see YOU reading it.

You can even take something like a child’s favorite hobby and bring even that back to God’s wonderful provision.

child hobbies brought back to God

I like the way Pastor James Kaddis puts it . . .

That father says you know God gave you the talent to put that thing together kiddo. You want another one. Let’s pray to God. Let’s ask God to provide it for us.  And every single time father and son get together to do that very thing, it’s used as a lesson for the goodness of God in that kid’s life.
Let me tell you something. The next time that that kid goes and runs towards that hobby that he’s learned to do as a kid, he’s always going to bring the Lord into it.  And when he’s raising his generation up, he’s raising his children up, you know what he’s going to do? He’s going to teach his (own) children to associate the wonders and the goodness of God with the things that they love the most in life.  And thus, God is associated with that which is wonderful. – Senior Pastor James Kaddis, Calvary Chapel, Signal Hill.3

Christians – there’s still time until Jesus calls us home.

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1 Ken Ham quotation, courtesy of Answers in Genesis.org, “Who ‘Owns’ Children.” August 26, 2021. Retrieved from https://answersingenesis.org/family/who-owns-children/

2 Pastor Greg Laurie Daily Devotions, courtesy of oneplace.com., “It’s Time To Step Up”. August 23, 2021. para. 4. Retrieved from https://www.oneplace.com/devotionals/greg-laurie-daily-devotions/its-time-to-step-up-greg-laurie-devotion-august-23-2021-11848809.html

3 From Kaddis, Pastor James, “Which Way Will You Go, Part 2.” Courtesy of oneplace.com. Podcast, [18:31-19:12]. August 18, 2021. Web. Retrieved from: https://www.oneplace.com/ministries/light-on-the-hill/listen/which-way-will-you-go-part-2-899676.html

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The Right Stuff

The Right Stuff – How Can I Get It?

The Right Stuff

The Right Stuff – The Mercury Seven1

Do you have “what it takes?”

In other words, do you have “The Right Stuff?”

I know, I know . . . there’s a movie by that name, but that’s not what I’m talking about.

Even better, to get “it” we don’t have to be astronauts venturing into space!

Specifically, I’m talking about what it takes to be a courageous Christian.

Navigating today’s troublesome world takes Courage, with a capital “C.”

We live in a dying, lost world.

We need Courage because, going forward, we’ll be persecuted for our faith.

As a former news reporter and longtime researcher, some of the disturbing things I hear about that are coming our way (or being proposed for the future) are so demonic that I continue to pray for a spiritual revival.

But, only God knows “if” another spiritual revival is in our future. 

The alternative, Christians already know about.

This may be the time in our history that this Church Age will continue to progress to a fever pitch of evil coming from the wicked.

Since the Rapture hasn’t happened yet, (Come Lord Jesus!), we need to spend our remaining time on this planet telling the world about Him and teaching the younger generation about salvation through Jesus Christ.

Additionally, whatever your spiritual gifts or talents are – make sure you give glory to God in all things and let that be known.

It’s important to realize that the time for staying quiet about your belief in Jesus Christ is over.

God Loves us, but Judgment is Coming for the Wicked

God is sovereign so He allows sad things to happen in our world.

On the other hand, because He is a good God, this is a time of “great harvest.”

With that in mind, here’s some good news.

More and more people are coming to Christ all over the world as they take off their media-driven blinders and see the differences between Good and Evil.

As an illustration, think about some of the movies you’ve seen where a coach gives an inspiring speech to his battle-weary football team.

This is a good analogy because it describes what we’re facing now.

As Christians, we are on a team: Team Jesus.

We are coming up against powerful adversaries, but none are more powerful than our Sovereign God.

Decide Which Team You’re On

Satan will pull out all of the stops in order to distract you, alarm you, cause you doubts, get you to sin, beat you up with feelings of insecurity and loneliness, and much much more.

Be ready.

To illustrate, I really like what Christian author Susie Larson said about Courage, so will share it here.

I hope this is helpful to you going forward.

Daily Blessing
Courage means you get back up again after you’ve been knocked down. Courage means you face your fears and move past them. Courage means you stand up and remain confident in the face of your bullies. Jesus was the King of Courage, and He lives inside of you! Refuse to let your enemy kick dirt in your eyes or spew lies in your ears. Do you remember who you are? YOU are a child of the Most High God. You are someone heaven knows. YOU are profoundly important to the greater Kingdom story. So rise up and engage your faith. Face your day with fierce confidence and courageous strength. God is with you! 
1 Corinthians 16:13 NLT ~ Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong. – Susie Larson, Christian Author.3

The Right Stuff

Above all, have Courage, Christian friends.

We are on the winning team against Evil!    

The Apostle Paul’s teaching about God’s grace is for all of us.

Romans 5:8-11

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1 “The Right Stuff, photo courtesy of NASA on The Commons, no restrictions, public domain, 17 March, 1960, via Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository. Accessed and retrieved October 9, 2021.

2Susie Larson devotional, courtesy of susielarson.com., “Take Courage”. Daily Blessing. October 7, 2021. Retrieved from https://www.susielarson.com/daily-blessing/2021/10/7/take-courage 

3Scripture quotation is from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

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The Long Goodbye

The Long Goodbye

the long goodbye

Sweet Jazz in his prime

This is a sad time for us as we are grieving the loss of one of our best friends, so please bear with me.

After months and many efforts to try and preserve his quality of life, we had to say goodbye to our sweet 12-year-old Siberian Husky, “Jazz.”

Goodbyes are always difficult, and these past few days have been especially emotional.

Jazzy was diagnosed with an aggressive liver cancer. We tried everything we could possibly do to help him through it, but nothing would ease his discomfort.

When our longtime vet said our boy is at “the end” – it was one of the worst conversations of our lives.

At the end of a cherished pet’s life, they say “the hardest thing to do” is also “the most loving thing” to do.

We love Jazz so much . . . but now we grieve.

I’m sitting here in my office this morning waiting for Jazz to walk in to get the dog treat that he knows is always waiting for him.

But he’s not coming. (Tears falling.)

People often ask if their beloved dogs will be there to greet them in Heaven.

There are a lot of guesses about this, but no one really knows, except God.

And of course, nothing will compare to meeting Jesus face-to-face.

Speaking from my heart, I would like to add that through many tears, if you ask my husband and me whether our fur babies will be there also, we say “Yes.”

We know that at this very moment our beloved Jazz is already across the Rainbow Bridge, happy as he always was and waiting to greet us some day in our heavenly home.

Till then, sweet boy.

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Lean on Him

Lean on Him

Lean on Him

One of the many great gifts that God has given us, in my opinion, is the blessing of music – yet another reason I delight in God.

You could say I’m especially partial to church choirs since I’ve been singing in one since the 1990’s.

I’m a big fan of children’s choirs, so you can imagine my excitement when I heard that Kirk Franklin and Compassion International were teaming up to release a new song.

The single dropped Friday and it’s nothing short of wonderful.

It’s the kind of song that brings tears of joy to my eyes.

Here is Kirk Franklin with Lean on Me (Worldwide Mix) featuring the Compassion Youth Choir . . .

Sponsoring needy children thru Compassion International has been a rewarding experience for us.

We have a boy and a girl both under 12 years old.

It’s been such an enriching experience to be able to communicate our love for them across the globe.

We get to learn about their culture and they learn about ours, but even more importantly,  we share the love of Jesus with each other.

These two precious ones are understandably scared of the virus – the origins of which are disturbing and that has so quickly spread throughout the world.

Like the song says, we try to reassure them not to worry and not to fear.

It breaks my heart that, along with growing up in poverty, they are now having to deal with this.

We must lean on Him always.

Praise God that Jesus is coming back and He will deliver us in the Rapture from the worst that’s yet to come.

Naysayers will always be naysayers.

B e l i e v e.

T RU S T.

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