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BrotherA4him
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Name: Austin
Location: Mississippi, United States
Birthday: 8/25/1958
Gender: Male
Interests: God, God, God, God, God, Family, God, God, God, God, God, Rocks In Flight, God, God, God, God, God, God, Atlanta Braves, Work, God, God, God, God, God, God, Tommy Tenney (Long, but not so interesting story), God, God, God
Expertise: Me? You've got to be kidding.
Message: message meEmail: email me
Member Since:
11/6/2004
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There was a contractor who needed some workers.
He went looking at the normal spots he may find some day laborers.
There were several men there, all claiming to be ready for work.
He asked two of them to come speak to him, but they were too busy talking to each other and hadn't finished their morning coffee.
He saw another that he liked, but noticed he didn't have any tools with him and didn't have the proper work apparel.
Then he came across a man who had already had his breakfast, was dressed to work and had his tools and an eager look on his face.
That's who he chose.
Being prepared is always important. Taking care of your business ahead of time, so when the time comes you can be used.
There were two men who were going to make a sacrifice to God.
One picked out the choicest calf, had it properly butchered and laid it upon the altar ready to offer to God.
The other realized almost at the time of sacrifice that it was that time again, so he ran out and got the first animal he could find, killed it and slung it up on the altar.
Which one's sacrifice was accepted?
What we do everyday with our lives, our bodies, our minds matters.
Our very lives are what we are to be giving to God.
If we are going to sacrifice our bodies and our minds to the Lord, shouldn't we protect them?
Shouldn't we be prepared like the carpenter who was ready to go to work when the contractor called his name?
Shouldn't our bodies, our lives, be a well-prepared sacrifice ready to present to God just like the man who picked out the choicest calf?
Or are we planning to just give him what we can find without preparation or thought?
That's really how it is when you claim to accept Christ, but live your life the way you choose.
Inpsect yourself. More importantly, let the Holy Spirit inspect you and reveal things in your life that will make you a beautiful sacrifice before God Almighty.
Turn with me to Romans 12:1
Here is how it reads in the New King James Version
"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service."
Go out and prepare your sacrifice today and let the Holy Spirit lead you and guide you.
God bless you my sisters and brothers,
— Poppa ROck
March 6, 2006
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Do you wonder if God pays attention to you when you pray?
Do you wonder if he's really interested?
Well, he is.
In fact he cares so much that he makes an EFFORT to hear what you have to say and what your needs are.
Turn with me to Psalm 116: 2
Here is how it reads in the NLT
"Because He has inclined His ear to me, Therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live."
Think about that?
God himself, the creator of all things, is so interested in your life that he will INCLINE his ear to me. To You.
Also lets look at Psalm 116:1
"I love the Lord, because He has heard My voice and my supplication."
God has heard my voice ...
..... and he inclines his ear to me.
That is just awesome.
Grasp that, cling to that.
That's some serious awesome stuff.
God Bless you my precious Rocks,
--Poppa ROck
March 5, 2006 | | |
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You're driving down the road. Your coffee falls into the floor board. You look down for a minute ..... WHAM!!!!!
Someone is talking to you, but something flashes up on the televison screen. The person is still talking but you are no longer listening .... WHAM!!!!
You're cooking. A child comes into the room to ask you a question. You didn't reliaze the dish towel was so close to the stove ... WHAM!!!!
We all get distratcted. It is an easy, easy thing to do.
That's one of the reasons the Word urges us over and over again to focus on the Lord, to keep our eye on the prize, to continue to grow and seek God's wisdom.
We have to stay focused, we have to keep moving.
One of the best ways to stay in tune with God is involve him in everything in your life.
If he's already involved in your life, you don't have to remember to include him.
Maybe that will reduce the numbers of WHAMs we have to deal with.
Turn with me to Proverbs 3: 3-4
First I'm going to share it with you out of the Message Bible.
"Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don't try to figure out everything on your own.
"Listen for God's voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he's the one who will keep you on track."
It sounds so simple. And honestly, it really is.
The question is how do you here God's voice, how do you know it's God's voice?
That answer is simple as well. Get familiar with it.
The instruction I'm about to give you is like the ones I have shared over and over and is the true path to understanding God and communicating with him ...
1.) Read the Word
2.) Pray often, unashamedly and continiously. Keep that conversation going.
3.) Worship.
When you get done with that, Worshp some more.
A relationship is about communication.
Here is how Proverbs 3: 3-4 reads in the New King James Version.
This will probably be more familiar to most.
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;
"In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths."
God Bless You my precious rocks,
Have a beautiful and glorious weekend!!!!
— Poppa ROck
March 4, 2006
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What shall I do, what shall I do?
We often wind up asking questions like that. It could be which job to take, which bills to pay, how to handle tough personal relationships.
We are faced with decisions all the time.
Sometimes we really don't know what to do. Seriously.
But Jesus always does. Always.
And he knows what he's going to do, even before we ask him. But, he loves to interact with us, to see what we think. Does he know what we think? Sure!!!
But by bringing it out of us, it allows US to see what WE think!!!!
Think about that!!!
If he did it for us without challenging us to partake, then we would not grow.
And growth is important.
If we are not growing in our walk with Jesus Christ then we are dying. It's as simple as that.
Turn with me to John 6: 5-6
Here is how it reads in the New King James Version
"Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Phillip, 'where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?'
But this he said to test him, for He himself knew what He would do."
Jesus wants us to participate in our own lives. To learn to think more spiritually and heavenly, beyond what our eyes can see.
Embrace this interaction with Jesus, cling to the moments and enjoy the chance to GROW!!!!!
God Bless you my precious Rockheads,
— Poppa ROck
March, 2, 2006 | | |
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There are a lot of things that make you who you are.
Some of them, are ones you will embrace — your actions and deeds, the way you treat others, the way you follow after God.
Others are ones we would sometimes rather not be held accountable for — our disposition, our availiblity to help in times of need and comfort and the one that really stings .... the words of our mouth.
There is a saying that a man is only as good as his word.
I urge all of you not to take shortcuts when you speak with others .... speak plain, honest and truthful.
I'm not encouraging you to hurt others feelings at all, there are ways to speak without being harsh and brash and destructive.
In our dealings with others ... whether we've known them a long time or not at all, it pays to be honest.
You can't let the money, the fame, the potential, the CONVENIENCE get in the way of the truth.
Turn with me to Proverbs 28: 6
Here is how it reads in the New King James Version:
"Better is the poor who walks in his integrity
Than one perverse in his ways, though he be rich."
Let me tell you a story about myself.
Several years ago — probably 10 or so, maybe more than that — I decided I wanted to look into buying a little weekly newspaper South of Meridian. I contacted the broker who was handling it.
The way it works, at least at that time, is that they send you a booklet of information (prospective) that contains all kinds of financial figures and history of the company — quite extensive.
You look it over and send it back when you are done so they can send it on to another prospective buyer.
After a month or so and we had looked over the property, it was obvioius that I wasn't going to buy it.
The broker called asking me to send him the prospective back. I said sure, I'd drop it into the mail to him.
For whatever reason (probably couldn't find it right away), I didn't.
This kept going on for several months. Finally I located it and still hadn't sent it yet.
He called again and I said "It's in the mail, I just sent it."
I had not.
I went right out and sent it the next day.
But still, that ate at me. I had lied. It was a "white" lie to some, but to me it began to eat at my soul.
I felt I had weakened my integrity.
Finally, I could stand it no more and wrote the man a long letter apologizing for the lie, telling him I quite frankly just didn't handle the whole thing well and hoped it didn't cause him any problems that couldn't be overcome.
I never heard from him again.
I don't know how he received it, but I do know that I felt personally that I had given my integrity a chance to be restored.
I beg of you not to be so hungry for the Gold at the end of the rainbow, or so eager to take the "easy" way out, that you will take a chance on damaging your integrity.
Hold on to it dearly!!!!
Be honest!!!! Be what you say you are!!!!
Strive always to be what GOD has designed YOU to be!!!!!
God Bless you my precious rocks,
--Poppa ROck
March 1, 2006
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