Joy In Mourning by Shalene

THE LORD is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name's sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever. Psalm 23 NKJV

Most of us have heard this Psalm, but I wonder how many of us really stop to consider what King David meant when he penned these words. All day yesterday, this Psalm was in my head. It comforted me, when I needed comfort.

"The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want."
Is the Lord your shepherd? Do you allow Him to lead you in everything you do? Do you allow Him to be Jehovah- Jireh in your life; providing for all your needs? He has a Divine plan for your life, and He will provide everything you need, if you will let Him.

"He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters."
The Lord knows when you need to rest, and when you need to know that "all is good" in the world. He will not let the world overcome you. Nor will He let the worries of the world get the best of you. The "still waters" are there to comfort you.

"He restores my soul. He leads me on the path of righteousness for His names sake."
God will restore your soul, if you trust in Him. His very name, is indicative of all that He can do in your life.

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me."
The valley of the shadow of death, does not mean just physical death, it also is any time of distress. We have no need to fear our stressors, if we trust in Him. The only One who knows our needs and knows what will come of His divine plan. His rod and staff is used to guide and protect us. Will you let Him protect you, during your distressing moments? Will you let Him comfort you? I do.

"You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over."
God makes you an esteemed guest at His table. He shows all that you are His favorite. All that believe in Him are His favorites. No one more, No one less. He provides all for us. He will always provide more than we can fathom. He will do so in His time.

"Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever." God is a merciful God, and He shows mercy to all who ask for it. Dwell in His house and you shall know only goodness. Dwell in His house forever, and know eternal happiness. Pray for His direction, and His provision, and you cannot go wrong. Blessings to you and yours today and everyday. Jesus Loves you and so do I.



There is no "MORE" to this post.

The Good News by Shalene Kearney

I am shocked that you are turning away so soon from God, who called you to himself through the loving mercy of Christ. You are following a different way that pretends to be the Good News but is not the Good News at all. You are being fooled by those who deliberately twist the truth concerning Christ. Galatians 1:6-7 (NLT)

Now this will be a controversial post for some, but I press on nonetheless. Those of us that believe the Bible to be the only infallible Word of God, know which groups, that call themselves Christian, do this. I won't name them. That's not my place. However I will say this: Paul was preaching to the church in Galatia because they were beginning to preach that salvation through acceptance of Christ as savior, was not in itself enough. That doctrine and practices of the Jews must also be accomplished in order for salvation to occur. This is just not correct.


In fact, Paul goes on to say in Galations 1:8-10 (NLT) "Let God's curse fall on anyone, including us or even an angel from heaven, who preaches a different kind of Good News than the one we preached to you. I say again what we have said before: If anyone preaches any other Good News that the one you welcomed, let that person be cursed. Obviously, I'm not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ's servant."

How is it then, that we can know whether or not what is being preached is truly the Good News that was given to us by Jesus? We must "test the spirits." We must read our bibles, study it, word by word, and line by line. Read other versions to be sure that what you're reading is consistent. Do whatever you must to know that you are not preaching a version of the Good News that is not true.

While reading the bible is not the only way to know that what you're preaching, or being preached, it is by far the best. Another way to know whether or not you are preaching the true Good News, is to ask yourself, is this "Good News" telling me that anything I can do will guarantee my salvation? If the answer is yes, then you are not speaking or hearing the true Good News.

Today, take the time to think about what it is you have learned from your bibles, and no other books or doctrine. Do you believe that your salvation is guaranteed solely because you have accepted Christ Jesus as your savior? If so, great! Hallelujah! If not, perhaps you should re-evaluate what it is that you think you can do to guarantee something that we all know not one of us can, or does, deserve. A gift is only a gift so long as nothing is required in return. Are you throwing Christ's "gift" back in his face?

--Lord, today I pray that my words may reach those that are hearing a "Good News" that is contrary to Yours, and that they might hear the truth in these words. I pray that they will seek out Your truth, and Your Good News. I pray this in Jesus' Holy Name. Amen.