Bring Forth Fruit

Have you ever noticed that a lot of Christ' teachings were positive and that he used fruit to explain what our attitude should be like? Be fruitful and multiply. Bear fruit when keeping repentance. Every good tree bears good fruit. In order that we might bear fruit from God. If someone says he has fruit but he has no works. In John 15:16 Jesus teaches that our fruit should remain.

Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: (to bear, i.e. endure, to endure the rigour of a thing, to bear patiently one's conduct) whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.
John 15:16 KJV

What kind of fruit do we 'bring forth' that can remain? Fruit in this verse is the Greek word karpos. It means that which originates or comes from something, an effect, result, work, act, deed, advantage, profit, utility, praises, which are presented to God as a thank offering,
to gather fruit (i.e. a reaped harvest) into life eternal. To bring forth fruit that should remain means to have good works, to plant seeds of God's love and word into the hearts of others, to love the way Christ taught us to love, to love by his example.

Galatians 5:22-23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

We are to love with a godly love and to bear the fruit of the spirit in our actions which is made possible by the Holy Spirit who will come into our hearts and lives if we just ask. But God will not be mocked. You can't pretend. You can't be one way and then another.

Galatians 6:7-9
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.

Living right according to the teachings of Jesus Christ isn't easy but it's expected. The Holy Spirit strengthens us. We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.

Colossians 3:5-10
Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience, and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them. But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him.

All of this can be overwhelming especially if you have habits like I used to. I praise God for taking them away and healing me from old mindsets and helping me to make my ways his ways. In John 15:16 Jesus stated that he ordained us. Ordained here is the Greek Word tithēmi. It means to set forth, to establish. Jesus didn't just say do this and do that he established us, equipped us so that we can remain in his will.

Jesus is a loving Lord and Savior, King, who serves us. He sits at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us. He is truly out Savior in every sense of the word and he loves us with a perfect and unconditional love. Salvation is a gift. This Christmas hold your hands out to Jesus and receive what he has for, the beautiful gifts he has prepared for you.

Lisa C

A Child's Religious Instruction

I recently researched and did a speech on a child's religious instruction. The research that I found was fascinating. I was and still am excited about the information that I found to back up the word of God because so often today people question the authenticity of the word of God and Christian values. Taking children to church and giving them a faith in God teaches them that they are here for a purpose, it develops their self-worth and self-confidence and teaches them self-control among so many other things. But you don't have to take my word for it. You can research the topic yourself. I found that Meg Meeker, the country's leading authority on parenting, teens and children's health recommends teaching a child to have faith in God, https://www.megmeekermd.com/blog/why-you-must-give-your-child-a-faith-in-god/. John Bartkowsky and his colleagues did a study on over 16,000 children and their parents and school teachers and found how taking children to church benefits children and plays a significant role in their behavior, http://www.livescience.com/1465-study-religion-good-kids.html. Rich Langton, innovative and respected pastor and leader at Hillsong Church which has churches in 21 countries and on 5 continents gives 99 reasons to go to church. On Hillsong Church website Tyler VanderWeele, PhD, Professor of Epidemiology at Harvard did a study on how going to church lengthens your life and many other benefits of going to church. https://hillsong.com/collected/blog/2014/09/99-reasons-you-should-go-to-church-this-weekend/#W7rB2XtKjlV. There was an article in Psychology Today by Michael Unger, PhD, on 'Does Religion Make Children Resilient', https://psychologytoday.com/us/blog/nurturing-resilience/201406/does-religion-make-children-resilient. There were also persuasive findings from Christianity Today, https://christianitytoday.com/pastors/2011/summer/makingministers.html and on Assemblies of God website at https://www.childrensministry.com/where-should-children-worship-2/.

I have always believed in taking children to church because with instruction in the word of God we can learn to manifest the fruit of the spirit as well as christian morals and values in our lives. But to find pediatricians, sociologist and Harvard graduates to back up what I knew was true all along was exciting because if people won't believe the word of God or me or their local pastor maybe they'll believe these people. Some of the benefits of taking children to church that were PROVEN are: (1) Children learn that they are here for a purpose. (2) Children learn that they are important and have strengths, talents and things to offer as an individual. (3) Not taking children to church leaves them vulnerable to be led astray in self-destructive behaviors. (4) Children learn to have self-control. (5) Children exhibit better behavior and are happier in general. (6) Children show more respect towards grown-ups. (7) Children have better social skills. (8) Children have better approaches to learning. (9) Children show more respect towards their peers. (10) Children and parents have a social network of social support. (11) Children and parents have a more optimistic attitude. When you go to church you hear about the great things that God is doing. I love hearing praise reports given by other church members. My own are fascinating but it is a blessing to hear about others as well. Going to church gives you something great to do with your kids and if you go to a church like mine we enjoy music, praise and worship together and then children have their own children's church while parents relax and enjoy theirs. And at church their are many social events to enjoy. God intended for us to be a social people, to have 'church family', to help each other, to serve God together, to pull together in times of crisis and times of joy and to uplift one another.

According to God's word we are to assemble ourselves together with like-minded believers (in Him). (1) 1 Peter 3:8 Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. (2) Philippians 2:2 Then make me truly happy by agreeing whole heartedly with each other, loving one another, and working with one mind and purpose. (3) Romans 15:5 May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other, as is fitting for followers of Christ Jesus. (4) 2 Corinthians 13:11 Dear brothers and sisters, I close my letter with these last words: Be joyful. Grow to maturity. Encourage each other. Live in harmony and peace. Then the God of love and peace will be with you. (5) Hebrews 10:25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.

Not only do we have a social support group at church in times of need but also to help us stay straight, to hold us accountable so as to strengthen us in the Lord. Our church family is there to uplift us. (1) 2 Timothy 3:16 All scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work. (2) 1 Thessalonians 5:11 So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing. (3) You must warn each other every day, while it is still 'today' so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. (4) 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. (5) Hebrews 10:24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. (6) Colossians 2:2-3 I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God's mysterious plan, which is Christ himself. In him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

If you don't have a church I strongly urge you to find one. The benefits of you and your children becoming an active member of the body of Christ and in your family in Christ are endless. I prayed for God to lead me to the church that he wanted me to become a member of, where I could grow and serve and he did. By God's grace, my loving church family who is family in God's sense of the word, me being true to God in serving him and my fellow believers, the word of God that I have learned and so much more I have grown so much, overcome more than I thought possible and am working to fulfill God's plans for me as an individual commissioned to tell others about the gospel as we all are. God is my everything and everyone to me. If you have been hurt by a church member remember that they are human just like you and the devil will seize any opportunity to hurt you and to convince you to stop going to church and serving him. Pray for them and love them the way Christ loves us. You don't have to let people who are working out their own problems and growing in their relationship with God to hurt you, use you or manipulate you but you are required to love with a godly love which shows others what Jesus' love looks like. If we reject people and stop assembling ourselves with others how are we going to uplift one another and help one another and serve God in his family, our family in Christ. Pray for your adversary's and for peace and leave the rest up to God. We are all people with all these things we've been through, grown up in, been hurt by or let down by...we're all human and need to be loved and when you remain in church you give God the opportunity to use you to help that person grow as a person and a member of God's family. So keep loving. Teach your children to love. Follow God and serve him. You don't serve people in the sense that you are their servant to obey their command but you serve God doing what he has called you to do and that is a privilege.

Just like the K-love challenge to listen to their channel (or any Christian channel) to help you to become more happy, healthy and to heal try a church challenge. Give it a try for six months. Be diligent, go at least Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights and stay for the whole service each time. Don't let anything or anyone to dissuade you because the devil will look for any little toe hold where he can get in and prevent you from receiving the benefits and blessing from going to church. Just try it. I promise you that you will not lose anything and that you will gain a whole lot more than you ever imagined. And don't wait for God to drop a brick on your head when you ask him to lead you...follow your heart.

Written by Lisa Clewis October 23, 2018

Love Like You Have Never Been Hurt

Love like you've never been hurt' are the words that I have tried to live by for the past eight years.  I owe my Lord and Savior my life and he has given me the grace and the fruit of the spirit to see through people's emotions and attitude, to see their hurt, to forgive them for what they never intended to do or say; to love with an 'agape' godly love.

Sometimes we just have raw emotion and don't know how to deal with what's going on or how to sort it out in our thoughts and get a grasp on it emotionally. It is at these times that I see how unconditional love and patience and understanding helps people to break down strongholds and to develop the skills that they need to gain self control of themselves, their thoughts, their emotions and their words before they speak them.

I have been through that. The fruit of the spirit is something that is developed over time and treating people with a godly, unconditional love helps them not only to see how much God loves them and how great he is but also how much they're loved just the way they are. And practicing it, learning how to love others the way we love ourselves, helps us to grow stronger spiritually and to bear more favorably the fruit of the spirit for our good and benefit. It is a learning process.

Breaking down strongholds is just the beginning to a whole brand new life and brand new identity. Just like everyone else I once was lost in sin and like the song goes Jesus took me in. People say there is no manual to life but there is. God used holy men of God to write the God breathed word, the Holy Bible. These words, these books, chapters and verses hold the keys to so many secrets to life. Secrets that unfold as you learn and grow just like when you go to college for a degree and take courses that build on one another to build your understanding and knowledge, truths will be unfolded to you as you study the word of God.

What started with love ends in love. God doesn't care what you've done or where you've been or where you plan on going out of revenge or anger or spite or hurt or grudges or blindly because you have lost touch with your heart and who you are underneath all the pain. God loves you just like you are, where you are and he loves you unconditionally and completely. He wants you to come home and to sit at his table and for you to let him feed you the words of life that feed your soul and develop inside of you into fruit that gives you true from God love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance.

Give God a chance. Let him come into your heart and change you. He will be true to cover you with the grace you need to be a better person. He will forgive you of all your sins just because you believe in him and what he did out of love for you. He will freely give you an eternal life of happiness and health, a perfect life in a perfect world after we you through this one. And he will give you the strength to get through this one. He will lift you up. He will begin in you a new work. He will show you who you are in Christ and call you beloved, friend, daughter and son. Who better to give your life to than the creator of all instead of vengeance, pride and emptiness.

God loves you and he is waiting for you to ask him to come into your heart and into your life so he can fill you with his holy spirit and lead you and guide you to a whole new peace and joy filled satisfying life until this one is over. Mind you the powers of hell will try to deter you, steal from you the joy that God gives you and kill the spirit of hope in you and destroy that part of you that will live forever your soul.

Study the holy Bible every day. Find a church body of like minded believers that you can worship and praise God with and pray with and learn God's word with. Pray often throughout every day. Include God in every thought. Let him change you and your life and give you life and joy and peace that is beyond all understanding. Let him fill you with his holy spirit and love you and strengthen you the way he wants to.

God bless all my brothers and sisters in Christ. I can say I love you because if you accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior you have been born again of God's Spirit into his family and are now seated at his table.

Love honestly and whole hearted and remember that none of us is perfect. That part of us that's made in God's image is perfect. But these human bodies and emotions and thoughts that we have have to be gotten under control so we can bear the fruit of the spirit. Love one another. Help one another. Uplift one another. After all, just like we can't choose our earthly family we can't choose our family in Christ. We're none perfect and the powers of darkness are trying to rob all of us from the fruit of the spirit.

God's peace and joy to you all. I love you because God first loved me. And he first loved you, before you ever knew him. Love yourself enough to give your heart and life to God. Let him inspire you to have a new life that he can change and empower. God gives us strength, love, joy and peace in a world of hate, chaoes  and loss, and hateful pride.

God's peace to you all.

Written By: Lisa Clewis
April 7, 2018

You Are

How my heart swells for you.
The lamb of God, my King forever.
You laid down your life that I may have life.
Not only life but abundant Life filled with love and grace
You are holy. King of Kings. Holy. Holy. Holy
How much more you have done for us than we could ever repay.
Your name is Beauty, Awesome, Lover of my soul, Husband everlasting. Glory. Glory. Glory.
How can I repay you? Can I lay down my own life and follow you?
How do I? Help me to love you more completely, more satisfyingly to my soul; to put you first, above all, above any, above all.
You are the love of my soul everlasting.
You are my eternal life. How could I keep this one from you?
I will to sing to glorify your name. I will to sing praises to you for all of eternity.
To stand beside your throne and sing praises to glorify you, your name, your sacrifices of love would be my reward.
To honor you for all of eternity will be my reward.
I will sing to glorify you, praise you, lift you up and be a blessing to you for all of my eternal life.
That will be my reward, my victory, to stand by your throne and praise you for evermore.
You are victorious. You are perfect. You are love.
You are strange to this world of sin and darkness.
How I do not envy those who do not know you.
Their heart is a bottomless pit, their downfall. They can not see you.
How I long to bring salvation to their knowledge, for their benefit.
For to know you is life. You are love.
You are everlasting and wonderful.
Your praise is upon my lips.
You shed light into my heart.
You gave me life everlasting.
I will sing praises to you for all of eternity.
You saved me from myself and taught me that I was made in your image not the image of the world as the enemy would have me to believe.
You are light. You are strong.
You are strange to this dark world but you are the light to my world.

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Freedom From Sin

Verse:  There is therefore now no condemnation to them which (who live in union) are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. Romans 8:2

So often after people get saved they feel as though they come up short. Living a life free from sin is impossible. Only one man ever did it and that was Jesus Christ. But there is good news.

We who have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior and live in union with him are no longer condemned. Because in our mind we choose to serve God we are set free from the law of sin and death. Trying to live without sin is overwhelming.

We are made of flesh and spirit. There is a war going on between our flesh and spirit. We overcome the urge to sin by bringing our mind back to Christ, praying, studying the Bible, meditating on a verse, listening to Christian music, etc. But sometimes that is not enough.

At times we will sin. It is important to not dwell on the sin. If you dwell on your mistake it will weaken your spirit. Instead dwell on the fact that the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made you free from the law of sin and death. 

One of Jesus Christ disciples and one of the best apostles who ever lived explained the war between the flesh and the spirit as follows:

For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent (agree) unto the law that it is good. Now then it is no (not really me) more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth (lives) in me.  For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched (miserable) man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. There is therefore now no condemnation to them which (who live in union) are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity (opposed) against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye (you) are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. Romans 7:14 - Romans 8:10