In The Eyesights

Mentally we encounter a lot of issue that can steer us away from God. The people we associate with, the society we live in, family, all sorts of dealings we have in life can steer up emotions. I love reading the Bible because the inspired writings teach me what God see’s in mankind. Although the principalities we encounter are known of, we learn how to overcome them through reading inspired writings. Ephesians 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Principalities or “evil spirits” are things we can’t see with our eyes but are things that influence our way of thinking.

First thing we need to understand is that all of us, male and female, are created in the image of God. The word image means, a physical likeness or representation of a person, animal, or thing, photographed, painted, sculptured, or otherwise made visible. The image we are to portray would reflect the likeness of God. The way we think, the way we react should reflect God in existence. I’m not saying this is easy but it is what we are made to do. Upon our creation, it was the freedom to will, in other words “free will” we possess. Meaning God did not create robots but individual people. We all have a particular purpose in life and what we do with it should manifest the Glory of God. Matthew 7:21 "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Although we all want to enter the kingdom of heaven, most people don’t understand that God’s kingdom can be lived on this earth. Remember I say’ God’s kingdom, not the kingdom of heaven. Daniel 2:44 "In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. God knows that people united for one cause can be destructive in nature. God has separated these types of events due to the nature of mankind.

The title of my sermon is “The Eyesight’s of God”, I ask the question, what is our eyes connected to? It’s our brains, receptors from our eyes transmit signal directly to our brain, or thoughts. What we see with our eyes are transmitted to our thoughts and we develop an image. If we portray evil then what we see will be evil, in our own sight. If we portray good, then what we see will be good, in our sight. But here is the doosey, if I balance my thoughts with good and evil I can then get a prospective of what I see. Example, if I see a woman with a short skirt come to church with an evil thought I may portray her as trying to come a catch a man. If I utilize good thoughts then I may portray her as only having that outfit to wear. If I combine the two thoughts I will portray see has decided to come to the house of the Lord as she is. How I see things has to be balanced with good and evil in order to interpret something correctly. God has the capability to see a person heart but we have to get to know a person before we can even have an assumption of the person’s heart. Believe it or not, we may think we know someone by how that person portrays self; but if the person show the true color of self, we will be surprised. But once we see that side of the person, does it chance the person we thought we knew. It shouldn’t, it should now portray a full description of who this person is so we know how to associate with that person. Where did I get this from, Jesus. Daniel foretold of how Jesus would be in Chapter 7 verse 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed. The portrayal of our Savior will be unmatched by any other being. Our Savior gave us an example to follow to rid the world of the satanic following. Daniel 7 continues to say in verse 27 Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be handed over to the saints, the people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him. Through the eyesight’s of God we can see clearly now the rain is gone, we can see all obstacles in our way. Christ came and allow our vision to be clearer, He gave us the glasses needed so the vision we use to have can be more focal, sort to speak. The song said “What you see is what you get”, but with Christ “what you see is what you must understand”. In Christ judgment is not an option but wisdom becomes our forte. Colossians 2: 2 My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Our vision has to be viewed in Christ so we will have to see things from Gods prospective. We must learn to engage in an everlasting relationship with God so the instructions we receive are clearly understood in order for us to complete our own individual missions. We are all created in the image of so learn to be the reflection of the Most High. When I began my sermon I spoke of principalities in heavenly place and how our mind is connected through our eyes. God has an answer to the statement I spoke in Ephesians 1: 3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will-- 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment--to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ. 11 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession--to the praise of his glory. In Christ we fulfill the Glory of God, in Christ we are fulfilling the image we are created in.

Family Values

Family Values

Galatians 6:1 Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.  2 Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.  3 If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.  4 Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, 5 for each one should carry his own load.  6 Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor.  7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.  8 The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.  9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.  10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers

I’ve recently studied the tribes of Abraham which took me back further to Noah’s children. In Judges 1, I read about the battles that took place between Judah and Canaan. This brought up some issues to mind, why are these people fighting when they are blood relatives. Judah had children by a Canaanite woman and prior to that Noah’s son Ham is the father of the Canaanite clan. So I went all the way to the beginning and read about Cain and Abel, in Genesis 4:1 Adam lay with his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, "With the help of the LORD I have brought forth a man." 2 Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. 3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. 4 But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast. 6 Then the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it." 8 Now Cain said to his brother Abel, "Let's go out to the field." And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. 9 Then the LORD said to Cain, "Where is your brother Abel?" "I don't know," he replied. "Am I my brother's keeper?" 10 The LORD said, "What have you done? Listen! Your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground.

With every action there is a reaction, with every cause there is an affect. In all of the Old Testament reading we find disagreements that lead to battles. We find misunderstandings that lead to war, why? Why do we feel that war is the answer to a disagreement? Most people feel that war is what God issued upon mankind when instruction was given the ancestors of that time. I personally do not believe God gave the okay for war because of the example God gave to us in Genesis and the Four Gospels. When Adam sinned, God did not destroy him and start all over. God gave him punishment with instruction on how to live a more “righteous lifestyle”. When opposition came up against Jesus Christ, he met it head on with knowledge and wisdom, and produced loving words to extinguish the flame of opposition. So why do we feel today that war is the answer to opposition.

When we conversate with someone and an issue comes up that causes disagreement, the average person becomes angry within, this is the action. Today the reaction is to verbally discredit the other person’s view or views. If it escalates it causes the two to fight; which then in turn becomes the effective nature of someone winning the battle by some means. But is this the right way to do things? If I have a disagreement with someone else and it escalates, and I have a gun, should I just pop him to win the argument? In fashions, once I extinguish his mouth, I have no one to argue the issue with, and at that moment I have won the argument. But you see it is not an argument that I have won because we all have differences of views and opinions. If I maintain this state of mind then I may extinguish a third of the population and eventually someone will out smart me and pull the trigger on me and pop me before I can pop them.

If we study properly, we will find that In God we are to utilize our thought process to analyze situations. Disagreements will always happen, it the action that takes precedence; in better words, “emotions”. For men, we must learn how to control our emotional being. Once we become successful at this “self-control” our actions will yield more positive reactions, or “outcomes”.

Case in point, if I disagree with someone about an issue and argue the facts with an open mind, an actual discussion takes place. Keeping my emotions out of the argument and debating facts can only lead to one outcome; an agreement. Either we agree to the outcome or agree to disagree. These are the things a man must learn to do and if we are successful at this in will manifest itself within our family. Our son’s will learn techniques that will allow them the ability to maintain self-control. Our wives will see that an argument is not necessary and we collectively find solutions to problems. The husband and wife demonstrate techniques in the eyesight’s of the children and they therefore obtain strategies to settle disagreements amongst themselves. We begin to have positive outcomes in the action/reaction scenario. The cause and effect become ways to inspire the inner being. I thoughts become more on the area of “enlightening” instead of “degrading”. Once we develop family values within our own household, the world can actually become a better place to live; but it has to start in my home, your home, his home, her home, their home. This has to be a worldwide reaction in order for it to effect the world as a whole.

Call On God

I have heard in my life people talk about God in some peculiar ways. People get mad with Gods because we feel he is not with us, that He is not there for us. We ask other people to pray for us and just form an opinion about what God will do for self. I have gotten into situations in the past and asked God, where are you? I need you God.”

But it is the fault of me that I can’t hear nor see God. When I’m out there doing wrong, God is right there, I just didn’t acknowledge Him. God is like, “I’m right here Kevin”. But I’d continue my mission of doing what I wanted to do. God would still be right there with me. When we live our lives according to how we want but, yet and still, God is right there with us. A woman once told me a joke, she said “If you want to hear God laugh, tell him what your plans are in your life”. When things get out of hand in our sinful life, we begin to question God, “where you at God? Why have you left me God?’ God’s answer is “I’m still here but are you listening to Me?”

Genesis 3:8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden.  9 But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?"  10 He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid."  11 And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?" 

Which leads me to my topic, “Call on God”. Normally what happens in our lives is that we get ourselves into situations and try to get ourself out of it. But doing this is just like being in quick-sand, the more we try to get out of it the more we sink deeper in. The biggest problem I have found in my life is that I honor material and worldly things. My car, my house, my clothes, etc; all these things I would either kill someone for if they tried to bother these items, or get real upset whenever I felt these things were threatened. But you see, what I was doing was, pretty much, selling my soul for material items. You may say, what do you Kevin? If I cherish items higher than life itself, I’m Losing. Let’s clarify this, I eventually will take my stress level to a level of healthiness cherishing these items, when they’re just items. I am actually putting these things before God. I’m focusing my life on what I have instead of what I need to be doing in life.

Leviticus 26:1 "'Do not make idols or set up an image or a sacred stone for yourselves, and do not place a carved stone in your land to bow down before it. I am the LORD your God.  Sometimes we don’t read the writing on the walls, God not only told Israel not to worship idols but the people of today, us, we idolize the items we have and we are instructed not to perform idol worship. We in the church today worship religion, buildings, paintings on the wall, and leaders; just to name a few, and that is all wrong. All of these things and people would not exist if it were not for God. Let’s continue reading. 2 " 'Observe my Sabbaths and have reverence for my sanctuary. I am the LORD. 

Observes: 1.notice or perceive (something) and register it as being significant, 2.fulfill or comply with (a social, legal, ethical, or religious obligation). Sabbath: a weekly day of rest or time of worship. In this passage of scripture God says “observe His Sabbaths”. Defined “fulfill and comply with a weekly day of worship”

3 " 'If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands,  4 I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield its crops and the trees of the field their fruit.  5 Your threshing will continue until grape harvest and the grape harvest will continue until planting, and you will eat all the food you want and live in safety in your land.  6 " 'I will grant peace in the land, and you will lie down and no one will make you afraid. I will remove savage beasts from the land, and the sword will not pass through your country.  7 You will pursue your enemies, and they will fall by the sword before you.  8 Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand, and your enemies will fall by the sword before you.  9 " 'I will look on you with favor and make you fruitful and increase your numbers, and I will keep my covenant with you.  10 You will still be eating last year's harvest when you will have to move it out to make room for the new.  11 I will put my dwelling place among you, and I will not abhor you.  12 I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people.  13 I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians; I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high.

What these people saw and experienced in those days was the Lord. The Lord walked with them all the days of their lives. The Lord existed and spoke with them in the times of good and bad. The same Lord from then saw that there was a need for existing in the flesh. So the Lord waited for a loyal and obedient woman that was meet for birth of the Lord. Once this woman came into existence and matured in her obedience, the seed was fertilized. That seed, that the Lord existed in was born into the world and became living flesh. When people saw this man, most looked him up and down and talked about him. He didn’t commit any sins to elevate himself nor his statues. He remained humble and obedient to the order of the Almighty God. When people bad mouthed him and spat on him, he remained obedient to Gods Ordinance. This Man stood before the world and exemplified what it is to be a man. This Man did this all the way to His last breath. This Man I’m talking about is Jesus the Christ. We are to exemplify this Man’s qualities to the fullest. When someone is talking about you, in your Christian life, don’t get mad at them. What you and I should be doing is listening to what they say and then look at self and see if it is true because sometimes, it may be true. We need to analyze self and stop thinking we are Jesus in the flesh. None of us can pull the match from the match book he holds. All of us need to analyze ourselves constantly to fulfill our lives in accordance with Gods Provisions. If you think I’m talking to you, don’t trip, because I’m talking to me too. So lace the shoe up and wear it because our walk has to be down the path God has provided for us, not the one we want to make. When we feel like we are losing the battle on life, just call on God for assistance and He’ll be right there. Just think of God as a basketball game and we play for the Lakers. We all have talents but we the right Point Guard in the game to help us win. When we utilize the 1^st round Draft Pick in the game and we all play in the rhythm of His game. We become the ShowTime Lakers and just like Byron Scott and James Worthy got hit in the head at times because they were not ready for the ball. We just have to learn to practice more so we can be ready for the ball when it’s dished to us. With good practice when God throws us the ball once we are set at the three point line, or cutting to the basket, all we have to do is remain in a good form and follow through and make the shot. We don’t have to call on God when we are playing His game because He’ll maintain His Presence in our lives as long as we maintain a rhythm in Him.

Keep ya head up

We all want to live our lives to when other see self (me) there is a sense of respect. At times it becomes so difficult and burdens we bear begin to weigh us down that we become depressed. There is a song called “Smile” that I love to listen to. The beginning lyrics to Tupac’s and Scarface’s song, Smile:

Our lifestyles be close captioned
addicted to fatal attractions
Pictures of actions be played back
in the midst of mashin'
No fairy tales for this young black male
Some see me stranded in this land of hell, jail, and crack sales
Hustlin' at heart be a nigga's culture
or the repercussions while bustin' on backstabbin' vultures
Sellin' my soul for material wishes, fast cars and bitches
Wishin' I live my life a legend, immortalized in pictures
Why shed tears? Save your sympathy
My childhood years were spent buryin' my peers in the cemetary
Here's a message to the newborns, waitin' to breathe
If you believe then you can achieve
Just look at me
Against all odds, though life is hard we carry on
Livin' in the projects, broke with no lights on
To all the seeds that follow me
protect your essence
Born with less, but you still precious
Just smile for me now

There is another part of this song that stay’s in my mind when Pac says, “Will I be smothered by my own pain?” I sometimes wonder, are the things that I bring upon myself going to be the death of my soul? Will the decisions I have made be the destruction of me? In the lives we live today, the struggle is hard at times. We walk around in such a dismay that we tend to walk with our heads down, watching our feet move in the pattern we walk. Being in this posture, our shoulders begin to shrug and our whole demeanor becomes a sense of worthlessness. An attitude can be manifested into not caring about anyone else because, let’s be real, I don’t care about self so bump everyone else. This is in some sense a form of feeling sorry for myself. What do I do to allow me to lift my head up and feel worthy to live this life? The attitude is generated to have material things to make me feel like something, to give me “self-worth”. One thing I have come to the conclusion of is that when I gain these material possessions, what do I really have. Things I can enjoy, but also things somebody else may want also. To add to it, depending on what I have, things that are going to need repairing in the near future. Things I’m going to have to spend money on to maintain in my possession. Where am I going with all this? I’ll tell you, just in this portion of my sermon, I see the things that God did not design us ti be or do. First, physically if I have the posture of looking down all the time, I get the “Egor Effect”. This hunched over posture just let’s see the ground in front of my feet but if I lify my head up I now have broaden my horizons. The vision I now have is not limited to just what’s in front of my feet but now what am I walking to. Who and what is around me. I can turn my head more freely and gain a better prospective of what I’m present in. All this things I have the ability to do along with having the ability to improve my vision on life. God designed our bodies to have a posture that gives us abilities to do, not to hunch over, but to utilize this brain and utilize his creation to open our minds to a broader horizon.

If we spend our life doing the things needed to possess these material items, it becomes our life. Yes we can feel good at our accomplishment but what do I really have. Truthfully speaking, Stuff. If I lose all this stuff, where will I be? A lot of these artist, like Tupac, told story of fame and glory through their achievements. They also told stories of the prices we may have to pay too achieving these goals toward, so called, success. Plus to fact, if I am exalted at being this individual everyone looks up to, who am I really. What am I on the INSIDE? I have found only One Individual Who can answer these questions for me, JESUS.

Luke 6:20-26 - The Beatitudes

20 And turning His gaze toward His disciples, He began to say, "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. 21 "Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh. 22 "Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. 23 "Be glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets. 24 "But woe to you who are rich, for you are receiving your comfort in full. 25 "Woe to you who are well-fed now, for you shall be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep. 26 "Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way

Jesus teaches me that it is about the possession of worldly things but about what I possess in my soul. I shouldn’t be focusing on this man made wealth but the wealth I receive In Christ. Philippians 1:51-23 says……For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose. But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better. Paul understood the desires of the flesh, the wanting of luxuries in life, and the feeling it brings upon. But he says here that “having the desire to depart and be with Christ is very much better”. In verses 27, of Philippians 1, Paul says…Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ…. Here we go, definition time, to conduct means to “do or run something: to carry out, manage, or control something, behave: to behave in a particular way, to guide somebody along: to lead a person or group of people somewhere by going along with them. With this definition I understand that I am to behave in a manner that is in harmony with the Gospel of Christ. To carry out my life in truth and in order of what Christ has taught me to be’ a true reflection of God.

I don’t want anyone to take me wrong when I push away these material things we want in life. I not that we are not going to receive these things we desire in life, its just that we are not to focus our energy on obtaining these things. Our focus is to gain the complete existence of Christ so we can deal with and live within this life of today. If we value a Christ-like life, it gives us self-discipline to maintain order within ourselves. This gives us the abilities to maintain self-worth and value the life we live and other’s as well. When Christ was manifested in the flesh, he became the physical teacher of many things, one in which is self-discipline. People will always feed you with negative values and if we are not in our Christ-like manner, we can fall into the “pit” others are mentally in.

When the crying tale disciple were arguing about who is the greatest in Luke 9:46-48, Jesus said to them, after taking a child and stood the child beside Him saying, “Whoever welcomes this child in my name, welcomes me; whoever welcomes me, also welcomes the one who sent me. For the one who is least among you all is the greatest”.

Galatians 2: 20 "I have been crucified with Christ ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

I ain’t gotta walk around depressed, because all of my burdens I can take to the Father and leave it there because God can make a way out of no way. But I have to believe after I repent my sins, and live in a manner that brings God the glory.

Romans 1: 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that often I have planned to come to you (and have been prevented so far ) so that I may obtain some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles.

It is our duties to walk with our head up in Christ and walk a life accordingly, so when we come in contact with other, the seed we plant in them, God can water it, and the fruits their bear will manifest the Glory of God.

Yall may see a sinful man standing here, but I have to change my prospective on life. I’ve been redeemed by the Blood of Christ and I have to walk with my head up in honor of receiving The New Covenant. I can’t live on this earth now in shame, God has revealed to me, you, all of us what sin is and can do, but to live in Christ is Glory.

The Status of a Deacon

The term deacon comes from the Greek word diákonos meaning servant or minister, one who executes the commands of another, esp. of a master, attendant, the servant of a king, one who, by virtue of the office assigned to him by the church, cares for the poor and has charge of and distributes the money collected for their use, a waiter, one who serves food and drink.

The role or office of deacon was developed in the early church primarily to minister to the physical needs of the members of the body of Christ. In Acts 6:1-6 we see the initial stage of development.

After the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, the church began to grow so fast that some believers, particularly widows, were being neglected in the daily distribution of food and alms. Also, as the church expanded, logistical challenges arose at meetings simply because of the size of the fellowship. The apostles, who had their hands full caring for the spiritual needs of the church, decided to appoint seven leaders who could tend to the physical and administrative needs within the body.

Acts 6:2–4, NLT,…So the Twelve called a meeting of all the believers. They said, "We apostles should spend our time teaching the word of God, not running a food program. And so, brothers, select seven men who are well respected and are full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will give them this responsibility. Then we apostles can spend our time in prayer and teaching the word." …..

Verse 5 (KJV) ….And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of (a convert from) Antioch:

Verse 6 (KJV) …Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them.

Two of the seven deacons appointed here in Acts were Stephen, who later became the first Christian martyr, and Philip the Evangelist.

Stephen performed great wonders and miracles among the people of Jerusalem. Jews of the outer provinces began to argue with him, but they could not win against his spirit-filled wisdom. So in secret, they convinced false witnesses to lie, accusing Stephen of blasphemy against Moses and God. In ancient Judaism, blasphemy was a crime punishable by death. The accusers brought Stephen before the Sanhedrin, the great council, where the false witnesses said they heard Stephen say Jesus would destroy the Temple. Stephen launched into a powerful defense, detailing the history of the Jews from Abraham through the prophets. He concluded that the Sanhedrin had murdered the prophesied Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth. The crowd became furious at him, but Stephen looked up to heaven:

"Look," he said, "I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God." (Acts 7:56, NIV)

At that, the mob dragged Stephen out of the city and began to stone him. They laid their coats in front of a young man named Saul of Tarsus. As he was dying, Stephen prayed to God to receive his spirit, and further asked God not to hold the sin against his killers. Stephen "fell asleep," or died. Other believers buried Stephen and mourned his death.

Philip the Apostle was one of the earliest followers of Jesus Christ. Some scholars speculate that Philip was first a disciple of John the Baptist, because he lived in the region where John preached. Like Peter and Peter's brother Andrew, Philip was a Galilean, from the village of Bethsaida. It's probable they knew one another and were friends. Jesus issued a personal call to Philip: "Follow me." (John 1:43, NIV). Leaving his old life behind, Philip answered the call. Philip learned the truth about the kingdom of God at the feet of Jesus, then preached the gospel after Jesus' resurrection and ascension. Philip fervently sought the Messiah and recognized that Jesus was the promised Savior, even though he did not fully understand until after Jesus' resurrection.

Now these are two tuff acts to follow, but they demonstrated the first acts of deaconship.

The first reference to an official position of deacon in the local congregation is found in Philippians 1:1, where the Apostle Paul says, "I am writing to all of God's holy people in Philippi who belong to Christ Jesus, including the elders and deacons." (NLT) While the New Testament never specifically defines the responsibilities or duties of this office, Paul explains the qualities of a deacon in 1 Timothy 3:8-13.

1 Timothy 3: 8 Deacons, likewise, are to be men worthy of respect, sincere, not indulging in much wine, and not pursuing dishonest gain. 9 They must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience. 10They must first be tested; and then if there is nothing against them, let them serve as deacons. 11In the same way, their wives are to be women worthy of respect, not malicious talkers but temperate and trustworthy in everything. 12 A deacon must be the husband of but one wife and must manage his children and his household well. 13 Those who have served well gain an excellent standing and great assurance in their faith in Christ Jesus.

Vs. 8…not indulging in much wine….. 1 Timothy 5: 23 Stop drinking only water, and use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses. This passage of scripture is not to celebrate that believers can go out and just drink. This gives understanding to being "disciplined”, in other words, “only drink wine to assist with illnesses we encounter”. Titus 1: 7 Since an overseer is entrusted with God's work, he must be blameless--not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. Verse 8 of Timothy also speaks of “dishonest gain”. This can be looked at as saying, “not being a crooked individual”, or “not beating people out of their money”, etc. This word dishonest, is an adjective meaning not honest; disposed to lie, cheat, or steal; not worthy of trust or belief.

Vs. 9….must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith….. Here’s where I have to stop for a minute, keeping hold of the deep truths of the faith. What are the “deep truths of the faith”? First let’s define the word “faith”. Faith - belief that is not based on proof; confidence or trust in a person (as in their ability), thing, deity, in the doctrines or teachings of a religion, or view. In other words, faith is belief with strong conviction; firm belief in something for which there may be no tangible proof; complete trust in or devotion to. So a deacon is to keep hold of the deep truths of the belief with strong conviction, having complete trust in and devotion to “what”? Truth, faith has some significance to how a deacon is to have a “clear conscience” of truth.

Faith is possibly the single-most important element of the Christian life. Hebrews 11:6 states, "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." The Bible gives this description of faith in Hebrews 11:1: "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." Scripture explains that the source of faith is God: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9) Faith exist in having a deep confession within oneself that El Shaddai, God, Elohim, The Creator of all that Exist is real. Now before we go any further, I don’t want to confuse anyone by the names I just spoke:

El Shaddai is conventionally translated as God Almighty is one of the Judaic names of God.

Elohim is simply a name for God in the Hebrew Scriptures.

Now, the more I begin to look at this position of a deacon and various positions of leadership in the church, one something stands out, qualities of Jesus Christ. No matter what position of leadership one holds in the church, Jesus Christ is the foundation of the example. In today’s society people will write books on how to be a deacon. Individuals will stand a say they are the example of a deacon but nobody can do it like Jesus. To hold the title of deacon is to perform a portion of the services that God Himself performed in the human existence. What better way to hold the example of than being Christ-like in our duties. All these positions of leadership in the church hold reference to the complete body of Christ. Being a pastor, deacon, elder, evangelist; all has to be done individual in the body of the church organization but Christ did all this in is Existence as The First Church. One man can’t be like Christ because we come in this world knowing nothing, innocent to all that exist. Christ came into a world that he, himself created, so he knew from birth why the sun revolves around the earth. Christ knew from birth how the birds are able to fly. Christ knew from birth how each part of our bodies operate and function. Christ came into the earth knowing how and why we sin. We only know from exiting our mother’s womb that something bright is in my face and something just hit me. Then we see some people looking at us making a bunch of noise that I don’t understand. Our lives begin in innocence and we have to look to the One and Only Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ to gain insight on how to live this life effectively. We are all in this state and that’s why God assembles us all together, in one body, to complete the mission he has established for all of us, here on earth. The deacons of the church work under the direction of the pastor, who is led by Christ. John 6:51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

The biblical requirements of deacons are similar to that of elders, but there is a clear distinction in office. Elders are spiritual leaders or shepherds of the church. They serve as pastors and teachers and also provide general oversight on financial, organizational, and spiritual matters. The practical ministry of deacons in the church is vital, freeing elders to focus on prayer, studying God's Word, and pastoral care. Nowadays, as in the early church, the role of a deacon may encompass a variety of services and differs from denomination to denomination. In general, however, deacons function as servants, ministering to the body in practical ways. They may assist as ushers, tend to benevolence, or count tithes and offerings. No matter how they serve, Scripture makes it clear that ministering as a deacon is a rewarding and honorable calling in the church:

Those who have served well gain an excellent standing and great assurance in their faith in Christ Jesus. (NIV). Most people believe that as a leader, they do not have to follow. This is where they are wrong, the greatest of all leaders are great followers. The Greatest of all leadership, Jesus, followed the teaching and instructions of God our Creator. Matthew 16:15-19 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Romans 15:7-12 Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God. For I tell you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised to show God's truthfulness, in order to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, “Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles, and sing to your name.” And again it is said, “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people.” And again, “Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples extol him.

To be in leadership in the Body of Christ is to first follow the Instructions of God. Ephesians 4:11-13 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,

Following God’s Word of Instruction in leadership allows the congregation inspiration to abide in God. 2 Corinthians 3:2-18…You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on our hearts, to be known and read by all. And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. Romans 15:4-5 For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus,

Why Me

Why Me

There was this song I love by the group “Naughty by Nature” and the lyrics went like this.

Some get a little and some get none 
Some catch a bad one and some leave the job half done 
I was one who never had and always mad 
Never knew my dad, mother fuck the fag 
Where anywhere I did pick up, flipped the clip up 
Too many stick-ups, 'cause niggas had the trigger hic-ups 
I couldn't get a job, nappy hair was not allowed 
My mother couldn't afford us all, she had to throw me out 
I walked the strip, which is a clip, who wanna hit? 
They got 'em quick, I had to eat, this money's good as spent 
I threw in graves, I wasn't paid enough 
I kept 'em long 'cause I couldn't afford a haircut 
I got laughed at, I got chumped, I got dissed 
I got upset, I got a tech in the banana clip 
Was down to throw the led to any tellin' crackhead 
I'm still livin' broke, so a lot of good it would've did 
Or done, if not for bad luck, I would have none 
Why did I have to live a life of such a bad one 
Why when I was a kid and played out was a sad one 
And always wanted to live like just a fat one 

The chorus had these words,

Everything's gonna be alright (alright) 
Everything's gonna be alright (alright) 
Everything's gonna be alright now (alright) 
Everything's gonna be alright (alright) 

The whole song gave meaning to the life most of us live, but Trech spoke mostly of a life in the ghetto. A life that I grew up experiencing through the people I associated with. These same people live in this neighborhood and abroad today. It’s a stuggle living this life, trying to balance between doing whats right and doing whats wrong. Selling drugs is a lucrative job in which you can make a lot of money. But two things come into prospective, the clients you gain, never stay the same, and at times, depending on what you are selling, they die off. Another aspect is there is no retirement and, or someone else may want to move in on your business and utilize the gun to move you out of the way. This makes the mortuary a good business because they know people are dying to get in there to keep their business thriving.

With all this in mind we still have to deal with poverty in our neighborhoods and the governmental officials, we put in office, not being concerned about the welfare of us. They say all these glamorous speeches and make it seem like they really care, but in the end, we still suffer. I for one struggle with some of the decisions I made in life and have to deal with the outcomes. My money being funny and not being able to enjoy the finer things in life. I sometimes ask the question, “why me”.

In scripture I have found one person who took this question on a whole different perspective. When God looked upon the sins of the Earth, he needed a leader to come and show the world how to live a life we were created to live. One Anointed Individual stood and said, I’ll go. This Person left the luxury of Heaven to come and dwell amongst us.

Now, let’s understand something first, Adam started all of this off by being disobedient. The reaction in which he made towards the fruit is now dictating how we all react to the fruits of the world. I had a conversation with an artist this past week and talked about the Willie Lynch letter. He has a rhyme that’s cold and it is about the letter, in his letter he speaks about economics and the destruction the letter enforces. Now check this out, the letter makes everyone believe that the colors he is speaking of in this letter, black and white, represent a skin color. But you see in economy in order to be poor, in the black, money is not being made. To be white means that you are making money. This letter creates confusion if we allow our natural instincts to kick in and react to the letter. If we actually look at the letter it has economic value, which means the colors black and white are talking about the economic value of the people, not the color of their skin. Slaves, when the letter was written were either indentured or forced into slavery. So to be a slave meant you work for someone who had the financial backing to support your labor. The nationality of the people spanned from European to African. We all see the effect of slavery from the descendants of Africa. This can also become an additional argument because history shows that the people with dark skin were already here in the manifest of early Spanish explorers, which were called “Moors”. But to stay on point, all of this is involved with the Willie Lynch letter when it comes to confusion. If the people are confused then control can be manifested. So the outcome of this letter continues to keep confusion amongst the masses, while the rich get richer and the poor stay poor.

There is another point to the white and black color, white means to be enlightened, and black means to be the unknown, or in the negative since, a nigga. When God created the Earth it began in the black, Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. 3 And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning--the first day. From the beginning of time God, Yahweh, El Shaddai, Allah, Jehovah, whatever name we call our Creator, created the Earth in an “enlightened form”. So we are to maintain an enlightened state of mind as we live in the dark world. The Earth was created by The Almighty and through Adam the world is what it is today, dysfunctional.

2 Corinthians 4:6 For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.

1 John 1: 5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

Jesus is the Anointed One who left the luxuries of Heaven and came down to Enlighten us. His direction is so Anointed that people flocked to him just to witness His Existence. If we look at today, we don’t want to see the face of Christ because it’s disguised with a racial aspect. We fight over the color of his skin, if he was a Jew or not, if he is God or not. But what about taking into consideration Jesus Christ. When I run into people that knew me when I was younger, especially women, I get greeted with open arms. This is not to say I was a player but to say I was remember for being the shy and kind kid in the hood. I wasn’t always that way but for the most part a lot of people in my past remember me that way. What is in our heart should reflect our outward appearance. I grew up in the Baptist church atmosphere and the biblical principles were instilled in me early. Believe it or not, it has helped me grow through my transitioning’s in life. When it comes to Jesus Christ, I’ve always known of the existence of Christ, I just didn’t understand it. I got caught up in all the hoopla, just like everyone else. When life got so pathetic were I wanted to give up, the existence of Christ began to become clearer. I began to say “why me” and Christ said, “why not you”? How else will I be able to appreciate the blessings of God if I don’t go through something and appreciate how He brought me out of it. It becomes a disciplinary factor, my faith has to become stronger so I won’t veer away from the path God is leading me down. I begin to see things clearer if my faith remains in tune with what God wants me to do.

Psalms 104:31 May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in his works

Psalms 119:68 You are good, and what you do is good; teach me your decrees.

Jeremiah 31:35 This is what the LORD says, he who appoints the sun to shine by day, who decrees the moon and stars to shine by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar-- the LORD Almighty is his name:

We all have to go through something and that is only because of what we are doing. Let’s face the facts and be real with self, I try to every day, don’t mean I’m successful at doing this but I try. I have to look at me and say, hey bruh, it’s you that is the reason why you going through this. I look back upon how I got to this situation and realize what I did and didn’t do. Majority of the time, I was not following God, left him were I wouldn’t hear him, and continued doing it my way. But God made a promise to us, “He will never leave us nor forsake us”. I have to understand that in order for me to prosper in life I have to be Christ like. Then my directions in life will always be clear.

Exodus 10: The Plague of Darkness

21 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that darkness will spread over Egypt--darkness that can be felt." 22 So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and total darkness covered all Egypt for three days. 23 No one could see anyone else or leave his place for three days. Yet all the Israelites had light in the places where they lived.

Job 26:10 He marks out the horizon on the face of the waters for a boundary between light and darkness.

I wanna explain this one a little in detail. The Old Testament had a lot of codes written to detour the ones who were out to kill the prophets of that time. Waters is defined in meaning as a large group of people so this gives reference to us. When we correct ourselves in the presence of God this becomes a reflection on our individual faces.

19 "What is the way to the abode of light? And where does darkness reside?

·         Job 28:3 Man puts an end to the darkness; he searches the farthest recesses for ore in the blackest darkness.

·         Psalms 139:11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me," 12 even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.

This is the example we receive on a daily basis, once the sun goes down its light still reflects off the moon and/or the stars. As with the moon, the only time we don’t see the reflection is when it is either eclipsed by the earth or the sun. The moon is eclipsed every lunar month because it goes through phases, or cycles, as it travels around this rotating Earth. Just as this happens with the moon we go through phases in our life. We have to remember that the light will always shine even in our darkest moments, if we allow it.

40 Days

Ezekiel 4:6 "After you have finished this, lie down again, this time on your right side, and bear the sin of the house of Judah. I have assigned you 40 days, a day for each year.

Genesis 7:12 And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights

Genesis 50: 3 taking a full forty days, for that was the time required for embalming. And the Egyptians mourned for him seventy days.

Exodus 24: 18 Then Moses entered the cloud as he went on up the mountain. And he stayed on the mountain forty days and forty nights.

Numbers 13: 25 At the end of forty days they returned from exploring the land.

Matthews 4:1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.

Exodus 34: 28 Moses was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights without eating bread or drinking water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant--the Ten Commandments.

1 Kings 19:8 So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.

·         Horeb is thought to mean glowing/heat, which seems to be a reference to the sun, while Sinai may have derived from the name of Sin, the Sumerian deity of the moon, and thus Sinai and Horeb would be the mountain of the moon and sun, respectively.

·         Horeb (a.k.a. Sinai, and the Mountain of God) is the mountain where Moses fasts for two times forty days back to back, as he receives the Law (Exodus 3:1). Later the prophet Elijah also spends forty days fasting on Horeb (1 Kings 19:8), after which he has his famous conversation with God in the cave (19:9-18).

·         The name Horeb comes from Horeb (hareb) meaning to dry up, be in ruins, lay waste.

Jonah 3: 4 On the first day, Jonah started into the city. He proclaimed: "Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned."

·         Nineveh is the capital of Assyria, built by Nimrod (Genesis 10:10). It's also the city to which Jonah was sent (Jonah 1:2)

·         In cognate languages the city of Nineveh was known as Nina, Ninua or Ninu, so the Hebrew rendering of Nineveh should be expected to be a meaningless transliteration more than a deliberate name. However, the form Nineveh may have reminded a Hebrew audience of a combination of nin (nin) and nawa (naweh):

·         nin (nin) means offspring, from the root nun (nun) meaning propagate, increase. nun (nun).

·         nawa (naweh) means dwelling, from the root nawa (nawa) meaning keep at home.

Forty is the only number which, when spelled out in full, has its letters in alphabetical order. Forty is a composite number, an octagonal number, and as the sum of the first four pentagonal numbers, it is a pentagonal pyramidal number. Adding up some subsets of its divisors (e.g., 1, 4, 5, 10 and 20) gives 40, hence 40 is a semiperfect number.

·         A composite number is a positive integer that has at least one positive divisor other than one or itself.

·         An octagonal number is a figurate number that represents an octagon.

·         A pentagonal number is a figurate number that extends the concept of triangular and square numbers to the pentagon (Having “5” sides).

·         In number theory, a semiperfect number or pseudoperfect number is a natural number n that is equal to the sum of all or some of its proper divisors.

·         In science it is the atomic number of zirconium. (Zirconium is a lustrous, greyish-white, soft, ductile and malleable metal which is solid at room temperature.)

·         In astronomy, the planet Venus forms a pentagram in the night sky every eight years with it returning to its original point every 40 years with a 40 day regression.

·         In religion, the number 40 is used in Jewish, Christian, Islamic, and other Middle Eastern traditions to represent a large, approximate number: "umpteen".

·         a number equal to four times 10

Four: Genesis 1: 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. 3 And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning--the first day. 6 And God said, "Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water." 7 So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. 8 God called the expanse "sky." And there was evening, and there was morning--the second day. 9 And God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear." And it was so. 10 God called the dry ground "land," and the gathered waters he called "seas." And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so. 12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening, and there was morning--the third day. 14 And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth." And it was so. 16 God made two great lights--the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. 17 God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, 18 to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening, and there was morning--the fourth day.

Before God put any kind of creature on the Earth, it was prepared. God planted “seeds” that bore more “seeds”. He supplied water and light, which this light is mention in two parts of Genesis. Verses 3 and 4, the light is separated from the darkness. Verse 14 thru 18, the light was given to govern the day and night, in the expanse of the sky. It is also utilized to give signs of seasons, days, and years.

Ten: “10” is the first number after all the single digits. When separated it has one and nothing.

·         A collection of ten items (most often ten years) is called a decade.

·         The ordinal adjective is denary.

·         Increasing a quantity by one order of magnitude is most widely understood to mean multiplying the quantity by ten.

·         To reduce something by one-tenth is to decimate. (In ancient Rome, the killing of one in ten soldiers in a cohort was the punishment for cowardice or mutiny; or, one-tenth of the able-bodied men in a village as a form of retribution, thus causing a labor shortage and threat of starvation in agrarian societies.)

·         With ten being the base of the decimal system, a scale of 1 to 10 is often used to rank things, as a smaller version of a 1-to-100 scale (as is used in percentages and wine-tasting). Hence, something that scores perfectly is "a perfect ten". A person who is attractive and physically flawless is often said to be "a ten", from the idea of ranking that person's appearance and sex-appeal on a 1-to-10 scale.

But what is involved with this “40 days”? The number forty is used by God to represent a period of testing or judgment (the length of time necessary to accomplish some major part of Gods plan in his dealings with various portions of mankind). The 40 days of rain in the days of the flood were the judgments of God. The 40 day periods of fasting, testing, and communing with God that were faced by Moses and Jesus were a form of God's judgments. The forty years that the Israelites spent in the wilderness were also the judgments of God. Various leaders in Israel who reigned for 40 year periods were put there BY God according to His Will and Judgments. Egypt was left desolate for 40 years because of God's judgments.

Matthews 4:1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." 4 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.' " 5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6 "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down. For it is written: " 'He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.' " 7 Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.' " 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me." 10 Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.' " 11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

Hebrews 4: 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin.

Genesis 1: 1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" 2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' " 4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." 6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

1 Thessalonians3:5 For this reason, when I could stand it no longer, I sent to find out about your faith. I was afraid that in some way the tempter might have tempted you and our efforts might have been useless.

Deuteronomy 8: 3 He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.

John 4: 34 "My food," said Jesus, "is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.

Psalms 91: 11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; 12 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

Dueteronomy 6: 16 Do not test the LORD your God as you did at Massah.

In 1 Chronicles, chapters 19 thru 21, David had to deal with his kindness being taken for granted. People humiliated him and it enticed him to react. When he began to react it enticed the seed planted to grow inside of him. Before he realized it he was going up against God. 1 Chronicles 21: 1 Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel.

Job 1: 6 One day the angels1 came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan2 also came with them.3 7 The LORD said to Satan, "Where have you come from?" Satan answered the LORD, "From roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it."4 8 Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job?5 There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God6 and shuns evil."7 9 "Does Job fear God for nothing?"8 Satan replied.

Matthews 16: 23 Jesus turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men."

Mark 4: 15 Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them.

Luke 10: 18 He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.

Luke 13:16 Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?"

Luke 22: 3 Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve.

This is a form of “demon possession”, which is actually “feeding on the fruit’s of evil”

Romans 16: 20 The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

God will put Satan under our feet if we do not feed on the fruits of evil, but allow them to fall by the way side. Bad fruits usually decay and rot and then become food for the soil. We then can walk on this soil to facilitate the firmness of our walking path.

2 Corinthians 2: 11 in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.

At times the fruits of evil look good on the outside, but when we bite into them we find the bitter taste it has from decaying on the inside.

2 Corinthians 11: 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.

Again, it is not always what you see is what you get. We have to analyze what we see to ensure it is what it is.

2 Thessalonians 2: 9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders,

Revelations 12: 9 The great dragon was hurled down--that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.

Although satan comes to tempt us and work the miracles in our presence, we have been design to process what he does. Satan makes things look desireable but we have to take into consideration, what is involved in the presentation. God stands in the forefront of what happens in our lives but what we choose to do has to be in accordance to God’s Will. When satan brings it to be me, my reaction must be what is this, first. Understand what is here and thien make a sound decision how to best deal with what is brought to me. I cannot react like the animals do because I have the ability to analyse and use my senses to get a better understanding. Satan’s revelations are just that, what I see, or what is revealed through my senses. My job is to find out what it is and handle it in an orderly fashion

For 40 years, I have come under a lot of attacks that enticed me to react. When I look back on my life I see that what those things were didn’t cause me to react the way I did but I didn’t utilize my God-given talents to deal with those situations properly. All my biblical instruction could have been used to handle the situations, I encountered, on a more manly manner. Instead I reacted like a mitch and the outcomes were not the best. I still, to this day, suffer due to how I handled my past situations. I thank The Almighty for still allowing me to come to this point in my life because He really didn’t have to let me live. But because He has I try to improve my self by studying His Word and manifesting myself in Him.