Tag Archives: Liberty

Like Kids Playing in the Street

icy street 2

The road in front of our house was nothing but ice, so of course Charlotte wanted to go ice skating on it. We were crossing the street & she stopped to play around. I let her do that for a little while, but then I told her to come in. Like any other kid, I had to tell her multiple times before it got through that I was actually serious. Eventually, I had to go get her. For some reason this was all a great surprise to her & she appropriately made a big fuss.

Here’s what WAS going through my head:

  • She’s going to fall on that ice & get hurt.
  • She’s little, so any car coming might not see her.
  • Its icy, so any car coming may have a hard time stopping.
  • It’s cold out here & warm in the house.
  • I have hot chocolate inside ready for her.

Here’s what was NOT going through my head:

  • I don’t want her to have fun.

Someone who has not accepted Jesus, is like that kid playing in the street. There are cars coming. There is ice everywhere. The sun is going down & it is getting dark.

Love isn’t sitting complicit as they are play. Love is warning them to get out!

Of course, we can’t physically go get people out of the street like I did with Charlotte. We lovingly tell them the truth (Eph. 4:15). We tell them how warm the house is & what a wonderful feast there is inside (Isa. 25:6). We tell them how we also used to play in the street until our Father beckoned us safely away (Luke 15:32). We pray that message pierces their hearts as it did ours (Acts 2:37). But then, it is up to them to turn away from the street & to the Father (Deut. 30:19).

You know what? I did go over there & ice skate with Lovey. Sorta. I held her hands as she scooted across the ice. I walked along beside her & held her up. She slipped a few times, but I never let her fall. I just reassured her, “I got you. I got you. Don’t worry.”

Then after a bit, I carried her inside & we had hot chocolate. God will meet you where you are & if you let Him, He will walk along beside you & hold you up. When you slip, He will never let you fall.

He has you (Isa. 49:16). He has you (Heb. 13:5). Don’t worry (Phil. 4:6).

– If this blessed you, please like & share!

Endless Love Given To All

blackwater falls, mrpatvincent, Holy Spirit, patrick vincent
Blackwater Falls, Davis, WV

Did you know one of the Holy Spirit’s roles is to show you how much God loves you?

the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. – Romans 5:5

First, I like that it is 5:5, that’s easy to remember for people like me who are number-aversive (an ailment I just made up but I think is pretty legit).

God has endless love and He desires to pour it into our lives.

That sounds obvious because we take it for granted. Just think, the opposite could equally be true:

  • God has endless hate & He desires to pour hate into our lives.
  • God has endless love yet He is stingy & hoards it.
  • God has limited love & has to be careful to whom He gives it.

No, here’s the reality: ENDLESS LOVE GIVEN TO ALL.

All who come to Him.

The foolish heart that doesn’t come to him obviously cannot receive. God will not force-feed His love to anyone. It is a sign of tremendous love that God allows some hearts to close their mouths tight.

I’ve seen this technique firsthand by Mary with peas. It is very effective.

If she doesn’t want those peas, her lips clamp shut like a steel trap & ain’t nothing prying them open! I want her to have the peas. They are good & good for her. But she has made up her mind. So, no peas!

Is your heart open or closed?

Love is poured into our hearts. Poured like a magnificent waterfall. Why is it that we love to watch waterfalls? Every year we go to Blackwater Falls in Davis, WV. We drive down there just to look at it. The falls are mesmerizing. They are soothing. Even the roaring of the water is pleasant… loud! but, pleasant.

The pouring of God’s love is like that waterfall. It will never run out. It will never be withheld.

The more room in your heart, the more room for God’s love. Is your heart crowded by the cares of this world? How much room is there for God’s love?

The widow’s oil stopped when she ran out of jars (2 Kings 4). If she would have had more jars, she would have received more oil. It’s up to us how much of God’s love gets poured into our hearts. You’ll only get as much as there is room.

It doesn’t end with our heart. We receive to overflowing. We share that overflow with others. At first the Holy Spirit is the Divine Dispenser, but we get to redistribute God’s love too.

Get out there and do it!

How Islam Treats Women

Please take a minute to educate yourself on how Islam treats women.*
Using specific verses from the Qur’an:
• Sura 4:34 – Men can beat their wife.
• Sura 3:4 – Men can marry up to 4 wives… except Muhammad, he can marry as many as he likes (Sura 3:50). He married 12 by the way – one of whom was 6 years old when married and 9 years old when consummated (he was 53).
• Sura: 4:11 – Men get twice as much as women in inheritance
• Sura 4:31 – Women must “lower their gaze” as to not look directly at men.
• Sura 3:14 – Women are “a thing” akin to property.
• Sura 2:223 – Women are “a field to be plowed.”
• Hadith Bukhar 1:6:301  (a secondary source to the Qur’an)- Hell is filled 2/3 with women.
• Sura 19:27 – Muhammad thought that Mary was the “sister of Aaron” (mistaking her for Miriam… close; only off by 1,500 years or so)
Compare this with ANY teaching from Jesus about women:
 Ref: http://www.oneplace.com/ministries/ankerberg-show/listen/trapped-behind-the-veil-of-islam-part-1-558342.html?ref=sm