Even Though It Is Not Enjoyable

“Then he said to them all: ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.'” – Luke 9:23 The Holy Bible, The New International Version.

When we become Christians that means we accept Christ as our King. Because Christ belongs in the spiritual realm and the world belongs to the physical world, because Christ dedicates Himself to others we must follow His lead and dedicate ourselves to serving Him by serving others where He directs us to.

That is contrary to the world which serves themselves.

This means we are in a constant battle with the world (including ourselves at times when we want to serve self instead of Christ . The cross was a place of torture and intended shame. That is what we can expect from those walking the Highway to Hell. They will daily mock us and try to shame us. They will do everything they can to make our lives miserable. This will be a daily experience.

Even though it is not enjoyable, we should thank them for this treatment. Because, the more they make us suffer, the more they drive us into Jesus’ loving arms.

Torture me as you may, you will not destroy me but make me an ever stronger servant of my loving King Jesus. Joseph a son of Jehovah

Prayer: Thank you Jehovah Immeka (Judges 6:12 The LORD Is with You ) for the tormentors in my life because they draw me ever closer to You which is the greatest blessing of all. I esteem You in the name of He with whom I love to commune with every day, Jesus Christ. Amen

May you be blessed with drawing from the spring of living waters of comfort, strength and encouragement to extinguish the fiery arrows of the wicked, Jesus Christ. Joseph a son of Jehovah

Please feel free to look up https://www.5minutediscipleship.com/ for a great daily podcast and https://www.lifeaudio.com/your-daily-prayer/ for great daily prayer

This article and photo @ 2021 Joseph a son of Jehovah. All rights reserved. Used only by permission of the author.

They Want Something From Him.

 And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to follow Me [as My disciple], he must deny himself [set aside selfish interests], and take up his cross daily[expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come] and follow Me [believing in Me, conforming to My example in living and, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in Me]. Luke 9:23 The Holy Bible Amplified Version

How many times have you seen children give a grandma a great big hug because she bought them something they wanted? They do not love grandma, they love the gift she has bought them.

How many folks only love Jesus because they want something from Him?

How many are willing to suffer for Him and because of Him?

Look around you and think of what is near and dear to your heart. Would you put it on the alter and sacrifice it to Christ (if it is someone or a pet, please do not physically sacrifice it)? By that, I mean would you give it up in order to become a servant of the most high King? So we will say you are living in a nice home in a nice neighborhood, if Christ called upon you to sell the house, give the money to a charity of His choosing and live in a ghetto, would you do it?

Yes, He has called upon servants to make such a sacrifice, including me.

Would you be obedient unto His commands?

If not, then you are not a true Christian but a marshmallow one. Think of the one you love the most.

If becoming a true Christian meant that they would hate you and disown you, would you sacrifice that relationship for Christ? That means you will never see them or speak to them for the rest of your life. Yes, He has called upon servants to make such a sacrifice, I have witnessed it numerous times in Asia.

“Jesus hath many lovers of His heavenly Kingdom, but few bearers of His Cross. He hath many desirous of consolation, but few of tribulation. Many love Jesus so long as no adversities befall them.” — Thomas à Kempis

Prayer: Thank you for the privilege of enduring numerous trials and tribulations in my relationship with You Jesus Pyyrand (Jesus my best friend). It has blessed me with coming into and ever deeper everlasting loving relationship with You my best friend because of these sufferings. I exalt You in Your wonderful name. Amen.

May the sunshine of Jesus’ sweet love fill your heart today and every day. Joseph a son of Jehovah

There Should be a Melting

My son, do not reject or take lightly the discipline of the Lord [learn from your mistakes and the testing that comes from His correction through discipline]. Proverbs 3:11 The Holy Bible Amplified Version 

It is in the fire of the burning off of the dross that my Heavenly Father completely destroyed destructive traits in my disposition. It was extremely painful but I am eternally grateful for Him for blessing me this necessary action.

We all have bad dispositions, both good and bad, we have inherited from our parents. That is natural.

Removing the destructive ones can only be accomplished super naturally. There is no one superior to Jehovahs super powers.

Now notice that I mentioned dispositions. We all have more than one. The more we more have the more we will be put into the fire. The more we resist the fire the longer we will be in it until we surrender to our Lords will and power in our lives.

Speaking personally, I have been put in that fire so many times and been in there so long I am surprised I do not have a permanent sun burn (I used to be a little stubborn).

”For a Christian to defy adversities is to “despise” chastisement. Instead of hardening himself to endure stoically, there should be a melting of the heart.” — Arthur W. Pink

Prayer: Thank you Jehovah Naheh (the Lord who Smites) with smiting me Your rod of adversity whenever I am a disobedient child of Yours or when it is necessary to purge me of harmful dispositions with in my character. It is necessary so that I may become more pure in Your eyes and for my interaction with those around me. I praise You in the name of He whose anger at wickedness caused Him to strike the unrepentant money changers in Your temple Jesus Christ. Amen

Wishing you a house full of sunshine, hearts full of cheer and love that grows deeper each day of the year. Welsh blessing

Cannot be Perfected Without Adversity.

 I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace. In the world you have tribulation and distress and suffering, but be courageous [be confident, be undaunted, be filled with joy]; I have overcome the world.” [My conquest is accomplished, My victory abiding.] John 16:33 Holy Bible Amplified Version

We all suffer through trials and tribulations, sorrows and snares.

The difference is that those of us in Jehovahs family is there to comfort us, encourage us, heal us and guide us through them.

Those of the world depend upon their own faulty understanding, power and logic and or that of so called professionals to no avail. They suffer far greater.

The closer we get to Christ, the more we are going to suffer. The more we suffer, the closer we get to Christ. Joseph a son of Jehovah

Many times when we are enduring hard times and we call out to Jehovah it seems as if there is no answer. Do not be discouraged. He loves you and will not ever desert you.

When you reflect back on it you will see Jehovah burning off the dross (the bad dispositions in you) and teaching you.

This fills me with awe and amazing joy, love and respect that I have such an amazing God, it will you as well.

Of course there is going to be a battle between you and satan.

He sees you getting close to Christ and he is infuriated. He will show no mercy in his attacks to destroy this incredible loving relationship.

Sometimes Jehovah will allow you to fight your own battles and each time you do your warrior skills against this filth will be enlarged. You will sing for joy unto Jehovah in your victory. Think of Job at the end of his suffering. This will bring you closer to our Warrior King.

Other times the battle is too strong for you and the Holy Spirit will come  to rescue  you. Again your relationship with Christ will be closer than before.

“A gem cannot be polished without friction; the child of God cannot be perfected without adversity.” — Author Unknown

Prayer: Thank you Jehovah Bara (The Lord Creator) for using adversity to polish off the dross in my life so that I am a beautiful jewel in Your eyes and in Your heart. I extol Thee in the name of the most precious jewel of all Jesus Christ. Amen.

May the gentle assurance of Jesus’ sweet love encompass you today and every day.

We All Fall Down.

  For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again Proverbs 24:16 Holy Bible Amplified Version

I do not care how long you have been a member of the Family of Jehovah, I do not care how strong your trust in Jehovah is we all fall down.

That is when the wicked one will come and mock you and tell you Jehovah is angry with you and you are not fit to be a member of His divine family. Do not believe him.

When we sincerely repent ( which means we admit what we did, admit it was wrong, apologize for it and stop doing it ) then we are forgiven.

I think an important note about repentance is for parents to set the example and repent to their young children ( and old ones of course) when we mess up. It teaches them integrity which will carry them through life and they will respect you for it.

This process is carried through out our life here on this planet until Jehovah takes us to our Heavenly home.

We will stumble and crawl our way to Heaven, not strut Joseph son of Jehovah

Do not be arrogant and foolishly believe yourself above this because that is when you are easy prey for satan.

Therefore let the one who thinks he stands firm [immune to temptation, being overconfident and self-righteous], take care that he does not fall [into sin and condemnation]. 1 Corinthians 10:12 Holy Bible Amplified Version

I know in my early walk with Christ there were times when I was absurd and believed I was strong and oh how hard was the fall and how deep them shame. Thankfully there was repentance on my behalf.

Prayer: Thank you Jehovah Hoshe’ah – ( The Lord Saves ) for graciously saving me and lifting me out of the dung pit we all fall into on occasion in our walk to our Heavenly home. I praise You in the name of He who lifted Peter out of the waves that were enveloping Him Jesus Christ. Amen

May the gentle assurance of Jesus’ sweet love encompass you today and every day.

He is Always There.

 Your way [of escape for Your people] was through the sea, And Your paths through the great waters, And Your footprints were not traceable. Psalm 77:19 Holy Bible Amplified Version

There have been many times during my trials and tribulation, sorrows and snares in life that I cried out unto Jehovah to come and rescue me but believed He had deserted me. In reflection it was revealed that He is always there.

Do you think it is just a coincidence that that man or woman came into your life at just the right moment when you needed help but there was none forth coming?

When it seems as of you are walking through the desert with no job prospect do you think it is coincidence that that employment offer came along?

For me many times it was tiny ads in the newspaper that jumped out at me and would not let go until I took action on them. It always resulted in amazing accomplishments in my life. It helped me find employment, it helped me find good Christian councilors, it guided me to schools that Jehovah wanted me to attend to learn a skill that would be used in service unto Him later on. This is just but one example of Him being there without me even knowing it at the time.

There is no such thing as coincidence in the Christian walk. Joseph son of Jehovah

So, no matter what ordeal you are experiencing now and it seems as if Jehovah has deserted you take comfort child of Jehovah He is always there.

Prayer: Thank you Jehovah Immanuel (God is with us) for the blessing of always being with me through the numerous trials and tribulations, sorrows and snare, victories and love You graciously bless me with each and every day. I thank you in the name of He who walked amongst us Jesus Christ. Amen.

May the gentle assurance of Jesus’ sweet love encompass you today and every day.

His Name is Jehovah.

 “When my soul was fainting within me, I remembered the Lord, And my prayer came to You, Into Your holy temple. Jonah 2:7 The Holy Bible Amplified Version

The older we get the more our soul faints with in, except, for those of us who belong to Christ.

You know why our soul does not grow weak?

Because we have the greatest strengthener there can ever be. His name is Jehovah.

I cannot count the number of times my finances were exhausted and I had no job because of a recession. Yes money was put away for this inevitability but it was put into investments that a naive one like me did not realize that the investment firm would charge exorbitant charges for cashing in the investment and the blood sucker government would take a huge chunk as well leaving me with a pittance to hold me over. That is what happens when you trust in corporations in my opinion, they are out to make money off of you and do not want to pay out. It took many years to walk away from these scoundrels and depend upon the best investment councilor there is. His name is Jehovah. Since listening to His wise advice and obeying His guidance there has never been a shortage of fiances ( mind you part of that is learning to live frugally and not to be a part of the foolish materialistic world).

In my younger days I used to read a lot of self help books to improve myself. Some were good and are still referenced to today ( especially because they confirm what the Bible says) but most were complete rubbish (especially the ones written by the “ new agers” ).

Self help is no where near as effective as Jehovahs help. Joseph- Anthony: Green

Today I depend upon the wisest Guidance Councilor there is.

His name is Jehovah.

Through His guidance book ( the Holy Bible), good Christian councilors and preachers He has remolded me in so many incredible ways so that there is no semblance of the old creature but only a new and much improved child of His.

The same is said in dealing with interpersonal relationships. Yes there are still times when my soul becomes weak within me but when those times come ( and they always do ) the proper course of action is taken and the soul is strengthened. The proper course of course is taking it to my loving, wise Councilor.

His name is Jehovah.

Prayer: Thank you Jehovah Chatsahi (The Lord is my Strength) for blessing me with Your ultimate strength in my times of weaknesses. I would have never made it without You my love. I extol Thee in the name of my strong Savior Jesus Christ. Amen

May the gentle assurance of Jesus’ sweet love encompass you today and every day.

In Your Midst.

                         

“The Lord your God is in your midst, A Warrior who saves. He will rejoice over you with joy; He will be quiet in His love [making no mention of your past sins], He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy. Zephaniah 3:17 Holy Bible Amplified Version.

Are you battling an addiction ( we all have them, it is part of our fallen lives ) ?

Jesus is our Warrior King. Surrender it completely to Him and He will conquer it with you ( notice I said with you, do not believe that when you place anything at Christs feet He will do all the work. Sometimes He will but most times it is team work between you and Him ).

Is there conflict in your life either personal or at work or school?

Surrender it to our Warrior King and the two of you will conquer the conflict together ( That does not mean Jesus will cause the other sides defeat but rather He will guide you to the proper resolution, which may mean you change your attitude and disposition not the other way around ).

Have you just had a success at something like getting that job or a successful operation or any other achievement in life?

Jesus is there rejoicing with you ( be polite and thank Him for blessing you with success ).

Are you beating yourself up over stumbling , welcome to life.

Sincerely repent and believe He has forgiven you.

We will stumble and crawl our way to Heaven, not strut Joseph- Anthony: Green

Unlike Santa Claus who is a marketing ploy to con you into departing with your money foolishly, Jesus Christ is real and He walks with you every day through your trial and tribulations, sorrows and snares, joys, and triumphs. Joseph- Anthony: Green

Question is, are you walking with Him?

Prayer: Thank you Jehovah Shammah ( The Lord is Present ) for always being present in my daily walk. Thank you for walking with me through the difficult times and for being there to share the joy of our triumphs. I extol Thee in the name of He who walks with me and talks with me Jesus Christ. Amen.

May the gentle assurance of Jesus’ sweet love encompass you today and every day.

Jesus Promised His Disciples Three Things.

I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace. In the world you have tribulation and distress and suffering, but be courageous [be confident, be undaunted, be filled with joy]; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 Holy Bible Amplified Version

I find with each passing day Satan is controlling and enlarging his dominion over the world, it is called politically correct or liberalism.

They are becoming more brave with their filthy lies and demanding that everyone conform to their perverted way of thinking. If you disagree you will be branded as intolerant, racist, sexist or whatever ist.

We who are of Christ are to be fearless and stand up to their wicked filth and expose them for their hideous creatures they are. We are to be bold for Christ. If we do not speak up for the truth then how many gullible will fall for their lies and be dammed to Hell because of it.

You cannot be politically correct and Christ correct at the same time. Joseph- Anthony; Green.

This of course will mean you are in constant trouble with the “authorities” but that is to be expected. I am not afraid of them because the Holy Spirit blesses me with power and wisdom, which every child of satan is terrified of and hates.

“We’re in spiritual combat – cosmic combat for the heart and soul of humankind.” — Chuck Colson

The other thing I have observed is that there is an increase in mental illness and depression. The reason for this is because there can be and will be no peace and joy except that of those blessed with a Divine relationship with Christ. Yes we experience the same troubles as the world if not more. The difference is that we have Christ to comfort, encourage and guide us through our storms, the world does not.

“Jesus promised his disciples three things – that they would be completely fearless, absurdly happy and in constant trouble.” — G. K. Chesterton

Prayer: Thank you Jehovah ‘Uzam (The Lord is our Strength in Trouble) for blessing me with Your wisdom, strength, fortitude and boldness in the unceasing battle between the wicked ones and Your soldier of Christ. I praise You in the name of my Warrior King Jesus Christ. Amen.

May the gentle assurance of Jesus’ sweet love encompass you today and every day.

Prayer Helps Us to Respond.

 When I am afraid,I will put my trust and faith in You. In God, whose word I praise;In God I have put my trust; I shall not fear. Psalms 56: 3-4 Holy Bible Amplified Version

We all encounter trials and tribulations, sorrows and snares.

I have experienced such intense tribulation it was difficult sleeping, eating and functioning in society. Nothing helped me, not words from friends or councilors, nor self help books. It was only when I got down on my knees and in deep anguish cried out to Jehovah that He blessed me with an all encompassing love which strengthened me and stilled my heart with peace. The fear slowly ebbed away like darkness with the rising sun. There was no fear just peace and assurance of Jehovahs firm but gentle hand upon my life. I trusted Him and had faith in Him. He did not let me down, He never does. He filled me with confidence and an eagerness to attack and destroy the troubles. This process has been repeated every time trial and tribulation, sorrow and snares come my way.

When trouble comes my way I get down on my knees and pray. Joseph- Anthony; Green

Christian, no matter what you are enduring now get down on your knees and pray with all your heart. Jehovah loves you, He cares about you and longs to comfort you, fill you with peace, love, strength and confidence. But, first, you must ask for His divine intervention and then be obedient unto His counsel if you are to experience assured victory.

Prayer helps us to respond to misfortune with courage, to react with confidence and to rebound with enthusiasm. –William Arthur Ward

Prayer: Thank you Jehovah Immanuel (God is with us) that You are always there, that You always care, that You bless me with strength, wisdom, peace, assurance and love whenever trouble great and small come crushing down upon me. I exalt The in the name of He who calmed the violent storm for His loved disciples Jesus Christ. Amen.

May the gentle assurance of Jesus’ sweet love encompass you today and every day.