Oh my goodness! I can't believe that I've been so forgetful to post to my blog for so long! So much has been going on in my life. We returned to Globe, Arizona, my hometown, on June 1st, 2013. So much has happened since then. I began a new job on June 6th and haven't had any internet at home, so I've just forgotten about posting on here for so long.
NOW THINGS ARE BEGINNING TO HAPPEN!
God is showing me more and more what it is HE wants me to do! I am still in the planning/goal-setting stages, but Heavenly Father has been giving me visions of what He wants me to do with my future.
I am currently in the process of working with the Head Pastor of the church we currently attend in Globe, Arizona....Living Waters Community Church....in preparation to launch Globe-Miami's FIRST Celebrate Recovery program! Hopefully our program will launch after the first of the year, 2014. This is a project I am assisting with, and hoping to be involved as a leader at. However, it is not where I will stay. I'm sure we will serve there for 6 months to a year, but our ultimate goal is to finish our education so that we can embark on completing the visions that God has given each of us.
WE PLAN TO GET INTO MINISTRY!
God takes everything in our lives and turns it around for good. (Romans 8:38)
As many of you know, I spent years living a life of drug addiction, homelessness, spiritually broken and in the depths of hell due to my own choices. I realize that much of what I went through was due to the choices I made for myself, but a lot of those choices were because I didn't know how to deal with the issues that I had within.
So God has given me a vision to get a degree in Christian Counseling. I plan to minor in Praise & Worship pastoring. My husband spent 9 years in prison (literally) due to a bad choice that he made. God has given him a heart for prison ministry and he hopes to be able to develop a jail/prison ministry and also get a degree in Sound Engineering. We together have a vision to develop our own Christian non-profit organization that will be geared toward the healing of souls through various ministry efforts. We are also hoping to form a Christian Contemporary band to work within our organization, which will allow us to praise and worship Him through music, and share the message of Jesus Christ through the talents God gave us!
So now we are in a season of preparation. As the holidays are upon us, we are working toward forming our goals for the coming year. We are working on getting back into school in January, to continue working toward our long-term goals.
I have embarked on an online journey, and am currently seeking certifications through Christian Leaders Institute online, which will help prepare me toward my education in ministry. I will be using this blog as a communication tool for my education, and I WILL be posting more often! I hope you will check back to see what I've posted! Thanks for following!
Monday, November 25, 2013
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Brother Jesse Duplantis Visits Faith Christian Family Church, First Service 1/27/2013
Once a year for about the past decade Reverend Jesse Duplantis from New Orleans, Louisiana has visited my church, Faith Christian Family Church in Clovis, New Mexico. Today I personally had my second chance to see this wonderful man of God speak. I will post two blog posts on this today, summarizing his sermons, because I believe it is worthy of repeating and sharing with others.
Jesse's first sermon today was about WHY ISN'T MY GIVING WORKING? The Four Types of Giving. All my life I have struggled with the Law of Tithing. I've always had questions about the tithe, first fruits and all the other ways of giving I've read about in the Scriptures. Today, all of those questions were answered and it all made sense to me. Starting next payday I plan to correct my ways of giving to line up with these biblical principles.
The Four Ways of Giving are:
1. The Tithe - Your 10% that which belongs to the Lord
2. First Fruits - Our first increase of the year
3. Alms - Compassionate giving
4. Seed - Investing and watching the Lord return your investment 30/60/100-fold
Number One - The Tithe
The Law of Tithing is outlined in Malachi 3:8-12. It is the only area where God ASKS us to put HIM to the test. He promises us that if we give 10% of our income to him faithfully, then he will open the windows of Heaven and pour out blessings so great to us that we have not room enough to receive it. He guarantees that HE will rebuke the devourer for OUR sake, but if we do not tithe he cannot rebuke Satan on our behalf. Those of us who do not pay tithing the way that we are commanded to cannot wonder why we can't make ends meet. (I am definitely included in this category of people. Sadly, I often make the excuse that I cannot afford to pay tithing, since my medical bills are so expensive out-of-pocket.) But all we need to do is OBEY, and watch God work miracles on our behalf. The blessing is already there. Are we motivated enough to OBEY Him so that He can keep his promise to us? God ALWAYS keeps His promises. The only reason WE are not able to claim those promises is because we don't keep the law that He has asked of us. Many people say, "You don't have to pay your 10% to the Church, you can use that 10% to donate to another worthy cause and it is still considered a tithe." WRONG. Many people make this mistake and then wonder why the windows of Heaven are not open to them. This type of giving is motivated by OBEDIENCE. God commanded us to give our tithe to the Church, so that the Church can further its ministries, and then we in turn will be blessed with food in our storehouses, and protection from times of recession and depression.
Number Two - First Fruits
The Scriptures says in Proverbs 3:9-10 to "Honor the Lord with thy substance, and with the first fruits of all of thine increase, so shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses burst forth with new wine." The way Brother Jesse explained the first fruits giving is that it is done once a year, with our first increase of the year. Back when the Scriptures were written, the economy was mainly agricultural, and people measured their first increase by the first fruits of their harvesting season. Therefore, they would take those first fruits and donate them to the Church or the Priest, and then the remainder of the harvest was theirs to do with as they would. This type of giving is motivated by GENEROSITY. It is a way of HONORING what the Lord has given to us. He promises us that our barns will be full and our vats will overflow with new wine, which, put plainly means that we will always have MORE than enough food in our storehouses. We will never go hungry. I have never done a first fruits offering, as I have never truly understood this. However, I am anticipating a raise in the near future, and I plan to give the first fruits of my increase (a whole $17.50) to the Church, and give it to an area of ministry. I will probably donate it to Celebrate Recovery, since that is an area of ministry I am actively involved in, or maybe Missions. Someday I hope to go on a humanitarian mission with my husband, to Latin America, where I can bless the lives of less fortunate people in cultures that I have a passion for.
Number Three - Alms
"Alms for the poor!" - We all know that saying. This is exactly what type of giving this is. This type of giving is motivated by COMPASSION. It is giving to the less fortunate, and in doing so, giving anonymously. In the Word it says, "Let not thy left hand know what thy right hand is doing". This type of giving is to BLESS the lives of others, and to do so without bragging. We should never brag about how much or to whom this type of giving is done. This is to preserve the dignity of those we give to, and just to show that we care about others, not for our own gain. The Lord promises us that the gifts we give in alms giving will be repaid back to us dollar for dollar, that we shall not PROFIT from this type of giving, but that how much we give to others, as long as we do it humbly, will come back to us in kind. This is the only type of giving that does not promise an increase, but equal favor for the favor we show to others.
Number Four - Seed
When we plant a seed, we wait for the crop to grow and reap ABUNDANCE in the harvest. This is exactly how Brother Jesse explained this type of giving. This type of giving is motivated by FAITH & REWARD. What this means is that when we plant a seed in fertile soil (or INVEST in a good and worthy cause), we will receive back 30, 60 or 100-fold what we sow, depending on our faith, and how much we believe in that reward. This is the most abundant blessing we receive back to us, and it blesses not only ourselves but future generations. Those who do not sow seed will not reap the abundance that is promised. So donate to a worthy ministry or invest in a worthy investment and watch your seed grow and enjoy the abundance that comes back to you according to your faith.
This month's Covenant Magazine, a monthly publication by Jesse Duplantis Ministries, outlines in detail the first two types of giving, and next month's edition will detail the last two. This was a lot of typing for this post, so I will blog about what he preached during our second service today another time. It was just as powerful and wonderful. If you don't want to wait for me to post about it though, just read the title article in this month's Covenant Magazine, Believe the Unbelievable and Receive the Impossible. You can find this publication at Jesse Duplantis Ministries. I hope you enjoyed my blog today! I look forward to blogging more often this year. I hope I don't let you down! May you have a blessed week my friends! Thanks for stopping by!
Jesse's first sermon today was about WHY ISN'T MY GIVING WORKING? The Four Types of Giving. All my life I have struggled with the Law of Tithing. I've always had questions about the tithe, first fruits and all the other ways of giving I've read about in the Scriptures. Today, all of those questions were answered and it all made sense to me. Starting next payday I plan to correct my ways of giving to line up with these biblical principles.
The Four Ways of Giving are:
1. The Tithe - Your 10% that which belongs to the Lord
2. First Fruits - Our first increase of the year
3. Alms - Compassionate giving
4. Seed - Investing and watching the Lord return your investment 30/60/100-fold
Number One - The Tithe
The Law of Tithing is outlined in Malachi 3:8-12. It is the only area where God ASKS us to put HIM to the test. He promises us that if we give 10% of our income to him faithfully, then he will open the windows of Heaven and pour out blessings so great to us that we have not room enough to receive it. He guarantees that HE will rebuke the devourer for OUR sake, but if we do not tithe he cannot rebuke Satan on our behalf. Those of us who do not pay tithing the way that we are commanded to cannot wonder why we can't make ends meet. (I am definitely included in this category of people. Sadly, I often make the excuse that I cannot afford to pay tithing, since my medical bills are so expensive out-of-pocket.) But all we need to do is OBEY, and watch God work miracles on our behalf. The blessing is already there. Are we motivated enough to OBEY Him so that He can keep his promise to us? God ALWAYS keeps His promises. The only reason WE are not able to claim those promises is because we don't keep the law that He has asked of us. Many people say, "You don't have to pay your 10% to the Church, you can use that 10% to donate to another worthy cause and it is still considered a tithe." WRONG. Many people make this mistake and then wonder why the windows of Heaven are not open to them. This type of giving is motivated by OBEDIENCE. God commanded us to give our tithe to the Church, so that the Church can further its ministries, and then we in turn will be blessed with food in our storehouses, and protection from times of recession and depression.
Number Two - First Fruits
The Scriptures says in Proverbs 3:9-10 to "Honor the Lord with thy substance, and with the first fruits of all of thine increase, so shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses burst forth with new wine." The way Brother Jesse explained the first fruits giving is that it is done once a year, with our first increase of the year. Back when the Scriptures were written, the economy was mainly agricultural, and people measured their first increase by the first fruits of their harvesting season. Therefore, they would take those first fruits and donate them to the Church or the Priest, and then the remainder of the harvest was theirs to do with as they would. This type of giving is motivated by GENEROSITY. It is a way of HONORING what the Lord has given to us. He promises us that our barns will be full and our vats will overflow with new wine, which, put plainly means that we will always have MORE than enough food in our storehouses. We will never go hungry. I have never done a first fruits offering, as I have never truly understood this. However, I am anticipating a raise in the near future, and I plan to give the first fruits of my increase (a whole $17.50) to the Church, and give it to an area of ministry. I will probably donate it to Celebrate Recovery, since that is an area of ministry I am actively involved in, or maybe Missions. Someday I hope to go on a humanitarian mission with my husband, to Latin America, where I can bless the lives of less fortunate people in cultures that I have a passion for.
Number Three - Alms
"Alms for the poor!" - We all know that saying. This is exactly what type of giving this is. This type of giving is motivated by COMPASSION. It is giving to the less fortunate, and in doing so, giving anonymously. In the Word it says, "Let not thy left hand know what thy right hand is doing". This type of giving is to BLESS the lives of others, and to do so without bragging. We should never brag about how much or to whom this type of giving is done. This is to preserve the dignity of those we give to, and just to show that we care about others, not for our own gain. The Lord promises us that the gifts we give in alms giving will be repaid back to us dollar for dollar, that we shall not PROFIT from this type of giving, but that how much we give to others, as long as we do it humbly, will come back to us in kind. This is the only type of giving that does not promise an increase, but equal favor for the favor we show to others.
Number Four - Seed
When we plant a seed, we wait for the crop to grow and reap ABUNDANCE in the harvest. This is exactly how Brother Jesse explained this type of giving. This type of giving is motivated by FAITH & REWARD. What this means is that when we plant a seed in fertile soil (or INVEST in a good and worthy cause), we will receive back 30, 60 or 100-fold what we sow, depending on our faith, and how much we believe in that reward. This is the most abundant blessing we receive back to us, and it blesses not only ourselves but future generations. Those who do not sow seed will not reap the abundance that is promised. So donate to a worthy ministry or invest in a worthy investment and watch your seed grow and enjoy the abundance that comes back to you according to your faith.
This month's Covenant Magazine, a monthly publication by Jesse Duplantis Ministries, outlines in detail the first two types of giving, and next month's edition will detail the last two. This was a lot of typing for this post, so I will blog about what he preached during our second service today another time. It was just as powerful and wonderful. If you don't want to wait for me to post about it though, just read the title article in this month's Covenant Magazine, Believe the Unbelievable and Receive the Impossible. You can find this publication at Jesse Duplantis Ministries. I hope you enjoyed my blog today! I look forward to blogging more often this year. I hope I don't let you down! May you have a blessed week my friends! Thanks for stopping by!
Saturday, January 5, 2013
Apology for Busyness
I apologize for becoming so busy in the latter part of 2012 that I neglected to keep up on my blogging. I was rehired at my old job and moved back to Clovis, New Mexico where life is blessed. I got so busy with work and church responsibilities that I forgot all about my blog. I have incredible goals for 2013 and getting back to my blogging is one of them! I got a blogger app for my smartphone so I plan to keep up regularly now, since that is my only internet access besides work. So plan to see much more activity from me in the future! 2013 will be a great year!
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