Wednesday, October 29, 2014
Horror Stories from The Bible
Luke 16. The story of Lazarus and the rich man. Lazarus was a beggar who laid at the gate of a rich man wishing to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table. The beggar and the rich man died. Lazarus was carried to Abraham's bosom and the rich man was buried. The Bible says in verses 23-24 speaking of the rich man, In hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. The rich man begged Abraham to allow him to warn his brothers not to come to hell and Abraham said "They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them."
Matthew 7. The story of Rotten Fruit. Jesus explains we can identify his followers by their fruit or good deeds. Verse 21-23 says "Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in they name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then I will profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
SCARY! This is only two stories. There are more just as scary! There are more just as wonderful too; to the true believer. Biblical horror stories are true. They have already happened or will happen soon. Jason's victims were unknowing, unwilling participants in the movies. If you wake up in hell like the rich man, it will be because you willingly participated in unrepented sin. Don't become part of an eternal horror story. The pay is not good, it's extremely hot and there's no popcorn or Coke!
Happy Halloween ya'll,
Tammy
The Happy Handicap
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Is Jesus Worth Dying For?
Would you agree Jesus died for us? He thinks we're worth it!
Soldiers willingly fight and die for our freedom. Are we worth it? Soldiers
think so. Here's a question to consider. Is Jesus worth dying for? You might
think Jesus would never ask us to die for him. We don't need to die for him,
he's God! Why would we ever need to die for him? I'm glad you asked.
Paul states in Corinthians 15:31 "I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily." Paul is not talking about a physical death. He is referring to "dying to self". Becoming a new creature is not optional in Christian living, it is a requirement. Galatians 5:24 says "And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts." Romans 12:1 says it like this "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
That seems contradictory. How can we live and die too? Here is a simple example. Every day I have a choice. I can do what Tammy (my flesh) wants to do or I can choose to die and do what God wants me to. I can listen to Tammy or I can listen to God's spirit for direction. Choosing to die means being obedient and letting Jesus live anew through me. The Bible speaks of "lukewarm" followers in Revelation 3. "Lukewarm" is a symptom of unwillingness to die to self and live for Christ. You cannot accomplish newness of life or salvation without dying for Christ first.
Is Jesus worth dying for? Do you want eternal life in heaven? Yes? Then, you better believe it! Jesus is worth dying for! Death to self is not an option for Christians. It is a choice for eternal life.
Paul states in Corinthians 15:31 "I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily." Paul is not talking about a physical death. He is referring to "dying to self". Becoming a new creature is not optional in Christian living, it is a requirement. Galatians 5:24 says "And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts." Romans 12:1 says it like this "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
That seems contradictory. How can we live and die too? Here is a simple example. Every day I have a choice. I can do what Tammy (my flesh) wants to do or I can choose to die and do what God wants me to. I can listen to Tammy or I can listen to God's spirit for direction. Choosing to die means being obedient and letting Jesus live anew through me. The Bible speaks of "lukewarm" followers in Revelation 3. "Lukewarm" is a symptom of unwillingness to die to self and live for Christ. You cannot accomplish newness of life or salvation without dying for Christ first.
Is Jesus worth dying for? Do you want eternal life in heaven? Yes? Then, you better believe it! Jesus is worth dying for! Death to self is not an option for Christians. It is a choice for eternal life.
Please leave me a comment with your thoughts. Have you ever considered that not only did Jesus die for us but we must also die to receive him?
My best,
Tammy
The Happy Handicap
Wednesday, October 15, 2014
Do you feel like a disciple?
If David is a man after God's own heart then Peter is a man
after mine! Peter reminds me we all fail and make mistakes. I'm feel like a Peter most days. Are
you a Peter too?
In Matthew 22, here comes Jesus walking on the water. The disciples in the boat thought he was a spirit and were afraid. Peter pipes up "Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water." Jesus said "Come." Peter walked on the water toward Jesus. Peter paid more attention to the wind around him than the Savior in front of him! He began to sink and cried for Jesus to save him. Jesus caught him saying "O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?" When they were back in the boat, the winds ceased.
Yep, I'm definitely feeling like Peter. I get distracted by things Jesus has full control of, cry out to him when my faith should believe his promises and then, I wonder why I ever doubted when He calms my storm. Poor Peter. He told Jesus he would never forsake him and later denied he even knew who he was, not once but three times. Jesus knew all these things about Peter and still changed his name from Simon to Peter which means "rock". Peter made a lot of messes but he was still instrumental in starting the church of the living God.
Peter's life shows us God is faithful to forgive. He sees our potential more than our faults. Peter reminds us Jesus' disciples were humans, just like us, who put their trust in a Savior. Peter was a friend, follower and disciple of Jesus. Am I a Peter? Are you a Peter? I sure hope so!
In Matthew 22, here comes Jesus walking on the water. The disciples in the boat thought he was a spirit and were afraid. Peter pipes up "Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water." Jesus said "Come." Peter walked on the water toward Jesus. Peter paid more attention to the wind around him than the Savior in front of him! He began to sink and cried for Jesus to save him. Jesus caught him saying "O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?" When they were back in the boat, the winds ceased.
Yep, I'm definitely feeling like Peter. I get distracted by things Jesus has full control of, cry out to him when my faith should believe his promises and then, I wonder why I ever doubted when He calms my storm. Poor Peter. He told Jesus he would never forsake him and later denied he even knew who he was, not once but three times. Jesus knew all these things about Peter and still changed his name from Simon to Peter which means "rock". Peter made a lot of messes but he was still instrumental in starting the church of the living God.
Peter's life shows us God is faithful to forgive. He sees our potential more than our faults. Peter reminds us Jesus' disciples were humans, just like us, who put their trust in a Savior. Peter was a friend, follower and disciple of Jesus. Am I a Peter? Are you a Peter? I sure hope so!
Can't walk on water,
Tammy
The Happy Handicap
Tuesday, October 14, 2014
How to Decorate Cookies for Halloween
I digress. That had nothing to do with decorating cookies! Here's the info you're looking for...
CREEPY CRAWLY COOKIES
Get caught in a web of delicious decorating with a technique
that’s perfect to use on the All-Occasion
Cookie. Just frost the cookies with white icing then draw a swirl
pattern on top with black-tinted icing, starting in the center and working
outward. Using the tester end of the Cake Tester & ReleasingTool, start at the center point and drag it outward through the icing
to the edge of the cookie. Repeat this process around the entire cookie until
you weave your web.
The perfect cookie icing technique (this makes enough for
about 3 dozen cookies): Whisk ¾ cup milk, ½ cup plus 1 tbsp light corn
syrup and 1 tsp Double-StrengthVanilla in a large mixing bowl. Add 10 cups powdered sugar and
whisk until smooth. Add more milk or powdered sugar 1 tbsp at a time if icing
is too thick or too thin. Place ½ cup of icing in a separate bowl and mix in ½
tsp black food coloring. Transfer tinted icing to the Decorator Bottle with
writing tip.
Place cookies on a Stackable Cooling Rack with
waxed paper underneath to catch drippings. Dollop a Medium Scoop-sized
amount of white icing onto each cookie and allow it to spread. Immediately
create the web with black icing using the technique described above.
For more than a dozen more Halloween treat ideas, visit my Pinterest page "Pampered Chef Halloween Ideas".
Have fun my little pretties,
Tammy
The Happy Handicap
Have fun my little pretties,
Tammy
The Happy Handicap
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
How Disney's FROZEN Teaches Us to Love Each Other
We took four generations to see Disney's Frozen on Ice this
past weekend in Nashville, TN.
The show
was great! The music was awesome and an ice rink really sets the mood! Before
we left, we were frozen. The trip was well worth the minimal discomfort though.
The sweet ending just makes you feel good. Kudos to my mom for bringing a
fleece wrap.
If you've seen the movie, you'll understand that "Everyone is a bit of a fixer upper..." If you haven't seen the movie, watch this video. I missed the powerful message of the song "Fixer Upper" the first and second time I watched the movie. The song sank in this weekend.
Jesus sings this song to everyone of us. "You can fix this fixer upper with a little bit of love." It's so true. We all have flaws, shortcomings and imperfections; sinners. The only thing that can bring us together is love. We all make bad choices. We all need each other. Love brings out our best!
I John 4:8 says "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." Jesus is our fixer upper. Psalm 57:7 says "My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise." If you're thinking about giving up on someone, DON'T! Simply love them more! Jesus doesn't give up on us. He understands we need a little fixing up. Because ......
The only fixer upper fixer
that can fix a fixer upper is
True
True
True
True
Love!
Everyone is worth melting for!
With a warm heart,
Tammy
The Happy Handicap
Wednesday, October 1, 2014
Diet or Lifestyle?
So many people in my hometown have been on a diet craze or a lifestyle" change with a certain program. I'll admit I'm a member of
the program too but haven't been a loyal follower. Does this sound familiar in
our walk with God too? I belong to Him but I'm not a faithful follower?
Here's some brief comparisons between a diet for the body and a diet for the soul/spirit:
Overweight is bad for the body. Overweight or weighted down with burden and care are also bad for the soul.
Excessive fat and sugar are bad for our bodies. They cause diabetes, weight gain, heart disease and high blood pressure. Eating unhealthy, sinful, spiritual food causes strife, envy, discord and separation from God.
Here's some brief comparisons between a diet for the body and a diet for the soul/spirit:
Overweight is bad for the body. Overweight or weighted down with burden and care are also bad for the soul.
Excessive fat and sugar are bad for our bodies. They cause diabetes, weight gain, heart disease and high blood pressure. Eating unhealthy, sinful, spiritual food causes strife, envy, discord and separation from God.
- Eating
bad food for the body adds weight and manifests in your
appearance. Do you get pimples when you eat chocolate or dark circles
under your eyes when you drink cola?
- Same
thing happens to our spirit when we continue to sin.
Smiles turn into frowns, politeness turns to rudeness
and your spirit dries up or dehydrates from the lack of
Living Water.
Body mass index (BMI) measures height and weight to
calculate an optimum state for our body. I think someone should create an
SMI or soul mass index which measures how our spirits measure up. We
could use Galatians 5:22-23 as our measuring stick.
22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
We can’t look in the mirror and see our health statistics. A doctor has to measure our blood pressure, glucose, iron levels, cholesterol and so on. But I'll guarantee a bad SMI is written all over our faces. People can see if Christ is living in us by our fruits. Do you display love, joy and peace? Do you offer longsuffering, gentleness and goodness?
We know when we should visit a doctor. Why do we put it off? We put it off doing because it will cost us something. It’s the same way with our Christian lives, it costs us some discomfort to live for Christ. It’s easier to say yes and eat the poison!
Doesn't It feel good to step on the scale and be rewarded for a job well done. "You lost 3 lbs" is sweet to the ear and encouraging to the organs. Your heart smiles, your liver says whew and your kidneys thank you for keeping them wet! All of a sudden, we are glad we didn't eat the Oreos or the ice cream. God pats us on the back too when we follow him and his ways. I love it when I get blessed by God. It’s better than weight loss!
Remember this: Christianity is not a diet! It is not something that is just followed when you need to see results. Christianity is a lifestyle. It must be lived every day because you are the result!
22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
We can’t look in the mirror and see our health statistics. A doctor has to measure our blood pressure, glucose, iron levels, cholesterol and so on. But I'll guarantee a bad SMI is written all over our faces. People can see if Christ is living in us by our fruits. Do you display love, joy and peace? Do you offer longsuffering, gentleness and goodness?
We know when we should visit a doctor. Why do we put it off? We put it off doing because it will cost us something. It’s the same way with our Christian lives, it costs us some discomfort to live for Christ. It’s easier to say yes and eat the poison!
Doesn't It feel good to step on the scale and be rewarded for a job well done. "You lost 3 lbs" is sweet to the ear and encouraging to the organs. Your heart smiles, your liver says whew and your kidneys thank you for keeping them wet! All of a sudden, we are glad we didn't eat the Oreos or the ice cream. God pats us on the back too when we follow him and his ways. I love it when I get blessed by God. It’s better than weight loss!
Remember this: Christianity is not a diet! It is not something that is just followed when you need to see results. Christianity is a lifestyle. It must be lived every day because you are the result!
Do you feel weighted down? Let Jesus lighten your load!
Overweight but not weighted down,
Tammy
The Happy Handicap
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