My Child…

You may not know me, but I know everything about you
…Psalm 139:1

I know when you sit down and when you rise up
…Psalm 139:2

I am familiar with all your ways
…Psalm 139:3

Even the very hairs on your head are numbered
…Matthew 10:29-31

For you were made in my image
…Genesis 1:27

In me you live and move and have your being
…Acts 17:28

For you are my offspring
…Acts 17:28

I knew you even before you were conceived
…Jeremiah 1:4-5

I chose you when I planned creation
…Ephesians 1:11-12

You were not a mistake, for all your days are written in my book
…Psalm 139:15-16

I determined the exact time of your birth and where you would live
…Acts 17:26

You are fearfully and wonderfully made
…Psalm 139:14

I knit you together in your mother's womb
…Psalm 139:13

And brought you forth on the day you were born
…Psalm 71:6

I have been misrepresented by those who don't know me
…John 8:41-44

I am not distant and angry, but am the complete expression of love
…1 John 4:16

And it is my desire to lavish my love on you
…1 John 3:1

Simply because you are my child and I am your Father
…1 John 3:1

I offer you more than your earthly father ever could
…Matthew 7:11

For I am the perfect father
…Matthew 5:48

Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand
…James 1:17

For I am your provider and I meet all your needs
…Matthew 6:31-33

My plan for your future has always been filled with hope
…Jeremiah 29:11

Because I love you with an everlasting love
…Jeremiah 31:3

My thoughts toward you are countless as the sand on the seashore
...Psalms 139:17-18

And I rejoice over you with singing
…Zephaniah 3:17

I will never stop doing good to you
…Jeremiah 32:40

For you are my treasured possession
…Exodus 19:5

I desire to establish you with all my heart and all my soul
…Jeremiah 32:41

And I want to show you great and marvelous things
…Jeremiah 33:3

If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me
…Deuteronomy 4:29

Delight in me and I will give you the desires of your heart
…Psalm 37:4

For it is I who gave you those desires
…Philippians 2:13

I am able to do more for you than you could possibly imagine
…Ephesians 3:20

For I am your greatest encourager
…2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

I am also the Father who comforts you in all your troubles
…2 Corinthians 1:3-4

When you are brokenhearted, I am close to you
…Psalm 34:18

As a shepherd carries a lamb, I have carried you close to my heart
…Isaiah 40:11

One day I will wipe away every tear from your eyes
…Revelation 21:3-4

And I'll take away all the pain you have suffered on this earth
…Revelation 21:3-4

I am your Father, and I love you even as I love my son, Jesus
…John 17:23

For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed
…John 17:26

He is the exact representation of my being
…Hebrews 1:3

He came to demonstrate that I am for you, not against you
…Romans 8:31

And to tell you that I am not counting your sins
…2 Corinthians 5:18-19

Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled
…2 Corinthians 5:18-19

His death was the ultimate expression of my love for you
…1 John 4:10

I gave up everything I loved that I might gain your love
…Romans 8:31-32

If you receive the gift of my son Jesus, you receive me
…1 John 2:23

And nothing will ever separate you from my love again
…Romans 8:38-39

Come home and I'll throw the biggest party heaven has ever seen
…Luke 15:7

I have always been Father, and will always be Father
…Ephesians 3:14-15

My question is…Will you be my child?
…John 1:12-13

I am waiting for you
…Luke 15:11-32

Love, Your Dad. Almighty God

 I few weeks ago a fellow brother in Christ shared his thoughts with us. All us christians know how important it is to pray. Everyting can be done in prayer. God wants nothing more than for you to cast your cares on Him, so that He can take them away. But then why do we so often come up to Him, show Him all our cares and problems, and instead of leaving them there at His feet, we take them right back with us. We are then not only making it hard on ourselves, but also on Him. He can't take away our cares if we want to keep them with us.

If we truly want God to take care of us, then we must let Him, totally. It is easier said than done, but it's the only way. Let Him take over! Do not doubt. 

James 1:5, 6
If any of you need wisdom, you should ask God, and it will be given to you. God is generous and won't correct you for asking. 6 But when you ask for something, you must have faith and not doubt. Anyone who doubts is like an ocean wave tossed around in a storm.


Matthew 21:21,22
But Jesus said to them, “If you have faith and don't doubt, I promise that you can do what I did to this tree. And you will be able to do even more. You can tell this mountain to get up and jump into the sea, and it will. 22 If you have faith when you pray, you will be given. whatever you ask for.”

Last week I heard a story that I really must share with you. If you have seen all my blogs, then you will also have seen my last entry, the death of a really dear friend, and fellow sister in Christ. She, I can say, is a truly special person who touched a lot of lives.

Let me start at the beginning. Joyce, that's her name, was a 25 year old who had been struggling with a very serious disease for more than two years now. Last year she was hospitalized for over 4 months, and almost died. But God gave her the strenght to heal, slow but steady. She was having a hard time with pains, medicines and the disease restraining her to live her life, but I never heard her complain at all. Instead, she was growing closer and closer to God. In church she gave us several testimonies and always asked questions that made us think deeper about God and His intentions.

But three weeks ago, the disease starting taking over again, and once again she was hospitalized. Only this time, she grew weak much faster. In spite of that, she managed to keep giving a testimony of God's love. A girl, whom she was in the same room with, was in search of God. And after hearing Joyce's testimony about the goodness and the unconditional love the Lord has to give, the girl decided to give her life to God. After a week she was struck by two hemorrhages in the brain, and went into a deep coma. The doctors told her husband it would be a matter of minutes before she died. But God proved them wrong and worked a miracle.....

The next day, He brought her out of the deep coma, and as she was gaining consciousness, she sang two songs praising the Lord. Even in her last minutes she was full of His love, and eager to express it. The doctors and other caretakers were all there in the room to witness it. They were stunned and had absolutely no explanation. One last time she was able to give a testimony, by showing a true miracle of God. For the last time she was able to tell her husband how much she loved him, and he was able to do the same. After that she slipped back into her coma, and three days later she gave her last breath...
 
Her family and friends read this psalm to her right before God performed His miracle: 

Psalm 121:

1 I look to the hills!
Where will I find help?
2 It will come from the Lord,
who created the heavens
and the earth.

3 The Lord is your protector,
and he won't go to sleep
or let you stumble.
4 The protector of Israel
doesn't doze
or ever get drowsy.

5 The Lord is your protector,
there at your right side
to shade you from the sun.
6 You won't be harmed
by the sun during the day
or by the moon at night 

On the day of the 20th of may our dear friend Joyce gave her last breath. She was a loved, cherished and special person to many of us, and we are going to miss her deeply. But we have the consoling knowledge that it doesn't end here, and that soon we shall meet again in a much better place, close to our Father.

Rest in peace dear Joyce

Oh, how good and how peaceful it is to be silent about others, 

not to believe without discrimination all that is said,

not easily to report it further,

to reveal oneself to few, always to seek You as the discerner of hearts,

and not to be blown away by every wind of words,

but to wish that all things, within and beyond us,

be done according to the pleasure of Thy will.

DIOS, NO PUEDE SER DIFICIL

DARLE A MI AMIGO UN CONSEJO,

O AL DOLIDO TU CONSUELO.

I just want to thank God for bringing such a beautiful new life into this world! Her name is Maria Susana, and she's the daughter of very dear friends of mine. She was born april 21, in the morning. I wish her a very warm welcome to this world!!

Look at this picture for 30 seconds, and then look at the wall, or something white. You'll be surprised at what you see......!!

Jewels from Heaven

I took a walk down a woodland trail,
without really expecting anything new.
A rustling in the leaves made me pause,
and wonder what was hidden from view.
I kneeled down and spotted a tiny, white flower,
so perfectly formed to bloom for just an hour.
Thank you, Lord, for showing it to me alone,
such a secret I would never have known.

God sends jewels from heaven,
when I stop long enough to see.
Rare and precious treasures,
to show how much He loves me.
Once, I ran to the edge of some trees,
with a heavy burden in my heart.
The scent of a warm, summer rain,
wafted by on a gentle breeze.
A brilliant, red cardinal came to call,
and sang a cheerful song just for me;
and to think, I could have missed it all.

God send jewels from heaven,
when I stop long enough to see.
Rare and precious treasures,
to show how much He loves me.

I stepped outside late one night,
for just a moment of peace and quiet.
The wind softly whispered to me.
The black, velvet sky held a crescent moon,
and a million silver stars gave their light.
I threw up my hands and praised you, Lord,
for this glimpse of beauty I might have ignored.

God send jewels from heaven,
when I stop long enough to see.
Rare and precious treasures,
to show how much He loves me.

Let your gentleness be evident to all.

Een man ging naar de kapper om zijn haar en baard bij
te laten knippen. Ze begonnen te discussiëren en
spraken over vele zaken. 
Al gauw kwamen ze bij de bekende vraag of God wel
bestaat.
De kapper zei: "Kijk, ik geloof niet dat God bestaat." 
"Waarom zeg je zoiets ?" - Vroeg de man. 
"Nou, iemand hoeft alleen maar naar de wereld te
kijken en hij zal zien dat God niet bestaat. Als God
echt bestaat, zouden daar dan zoveel zieke mensen
zijn? Zouden daar zoveel gehandicapte kinderen zijn? 
Nee, Als Hij echt bestond, zou er geen ellende zijn op 
de aarde. Ik kan me niet voorstellen dat een God dit
allemaal kan toestaan." 
De man was even stil maar zei verder niets. 
De kapper was inmiddels klaar en de man verliet de
zaak. Onderweg naar huis zag hij een oude man op
straat met heel lang haar en ongetrimde baard. 
De man ging onmiddellijk weer terug naar de
kapperszaak en zei tegen de kapper: "KAPPERS BESTAAN
NIET !" 
"Maar ik ben toch een kapper en ik sta hier vlak voor
je. " antwoordde de kapper. 
"NEE!" - schreeuwde de cliënt. "Kappers bestaan gewoon 
niet. Als zij echt bestonden, zouden er geen mensen
meer rond lopen met lang haar en ongetrimde baarden op 
de wereld." 
De kapper antwoordde: "Ach, wij kappers bestaan zeer
zeker wel. Het zijn gewoon de mensen die niet naar ons 
komen. " 
"Exact!" - ging de man verder. "Dat is het hem nou
juist. God bestaat ook zeer zeker wel. Het zijn juist
de mensen die niet naar hem gaan en Hem niet opzoeken
en daarom is er zoveel ellende op de wereld.

Just think for a minute, how the lawsystem works. All kinds of rules for everything. Rules for what you can and can't do, but also laws that can make people rule over others, or even can make people 'owners' over somebody else. I don't mean than in the sense of slavery, but in the sense of guardians, or parents. They make the decisions for the children and are in charge of what happens in the life of these children. Many of them think: this is my child, so I have the to act as I wish. But luckily the lawsystem prevents that from going too far, by setting rules.
 I think there is something really important that we should keep in mind. Children are not ours, we are not our parents'. Children are a gift from God, the Almighty One who rules over us, living and dead. We have been given to our parents, and every parent has the privilege to take care of a child until they are capable to take care of themselves. But in the end, God is the One who rules over us, Who owns us. Therefore we should not live our lives to ourselves, but unto the Lord. As should parents, bringing up their children.
  Knowing that we live unto Him, we can be sure that we shall never be apart from our loved ones, living or dead, because in Him we as close as can be. It's an unbreakable connection.
 

Child of my kingdom,
There is someone very near you today who needs to know what you know. Someone who needs a word of comfort or compassion or encouragement.
  When you were low, did someone lift you? When you were lost, did someone help you find the way? I have allowed these difficult times in your life so that you could experience my mercy. And now someone else is going through a difficult time. Will you be the one to bring my mercy, to share my comfort and guidance and encouragement? Will you spread the light of my truth as one small candle spreads its light to another?
  In this world, you are either part of the problem or part of the solution, part of the darkness or part of the light. When you were engulfed in problems, someone answered your questions with my healing and life-changing truth. Now it is time for you to share what you have been given with someone in need. Will you reach out to that someone today...for me?

Share the love,
God

2 Corinthians 1:3-5
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is the Father who is full of mercy and all comfort. he comforts us every time we have trouble, so when others have trouble, we can comfort them with the same comfort God gives us. We share in the many sufferings of Christ. In the same way, much comfort comes to us through Christ."

Christ's sacrifice: