Category Archives: Condemnation

IS GOD FAIR???

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is-god-fair

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.

Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: Romans 1:21-26a

 

Okay! Don’t be looking at me with that tone of voice! Even if we were too sccaarred to speak it out loud, chances are, we’ve all thought about it at some point in our lives, huh?

Particularly, when circumstances didn’t flow in the natural order of progression according to our personal logic! That’s when we tend to get all philosophical and put God on the witness stand! “Why would a Loving God send people to Hell? Why do innocent babies die? Why do bad things happen to good people?” Unfortunately, as Bro. Job can attest to, except thru Holy Spirits’ impartation of revelation, we’re fundamentally incapable of assessing the Ways and Means of our Sovereign Lord’s Infinite Wisdom and Knowledge. (Ref. Job 42:3-5) Am I right about it?

Amazingly, The Sustainer of everything, knowing the hopelessness of relying on the innate frailty of our flawed, fickled, self-centered frame, so graciously restrains Godself with compassionate patience, suffering with us through The Divine Maturation Process, until we arrive at the unity of faith implied by trusting in The Son of God! (Ref. Ephesians 4:13)

Howeverrrrr, Truth be told, this type of interrogation is generally  a direct result of a deliberate, self-induced distortion, rebellion and ultimate rejection of God’s Perfect Morality in order to justify our unmoral proclivity to satisfy the our own fleshy lust for wickedness and evil-doing! WELL? #Didjaheardat? Like the ol’ skool preacha said, “I jus lost 1/2 my church!”

According to Scriptures, Creation declares the reality of God. Barring some rare genetic malfunction, every human being born into the earth has an inner GPS (God’s Protection System) directly plugged into The Creator of The Universe, commonly called a conscience. This inner sensory perception allows us to discern good from evil. Therefore, there’s no excuse for anyone to claim that they don’t know whether God exists or if He does exists, what He requires of their lives. Now, given that we are not robots, we all have the freedom and ability to suppress God’s moral standards in favor of our own or the world’s! And…such were all of us! (Ref. 1 Corinthians 6:11) Yet, the consequences of our erroneous decisions are completely out of our hands! And we all know how well that plays out, huh?

Beloved, there’s no denying how much God loves us! I mean, He was willing to sacrifice His Righteous Son to save us who so deserved the punishment for our unrighteousness! NEVERTHELESS HE CANNOT DENY HIS LOVE!

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16

Yet to deny the other part of his Holy Nature, is down-right foolish! Hence, stop trying to PLAY God! HE IS NOT THE ONE! Trust 2 know…the last thing you ever wanna DO is make God angry! Seriously! It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God! (Hebrew 10:31)

Beloved, God’s mercy awaits us every morning as He awakens us to embrace one more day! Unfortunately, we have no clue how long before Grace is frustrated. While it is yet today, Precious Ones, exercise your choice, accept Jesus as Savior and Lord! When it comes to your eternal destination…FAIRNESS IS OVER-RATED…CHOOSE LIFE!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

OUT ON A LIMB…

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out-on-a-limb-2

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house. And he made haste, and came down, and received him joyfully. And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, That he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner. And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold.

And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost. Luke 19:5-10

 

According to the latest statistics of The US Census Bureau regarding the world population in 2016, there are approximately 7,346,235,000 people on earth, as of August 23, 2016! These numbers are expected to increase at a rate of 1.13% annually! WOW! Who Knu?

Have you ever gazed up at the night sky  and wondered, ‘IS THERE ANYONE WHO REALLY CARES ABOUT ME?’ Oooh, I’m not saying that You don’t know that GOD is REAL and believe that HIS WORD IS TRUTH! But, I’m just wondering if you’ve ever entertained the thought, given the enormity of individuals inhabiting Terra Firma, ‘What’s the chance that God has time to be concerned about what’s going on in my life, at any given moment? I mean, something like 1 in 7 billion? YET! That’s exactly what The HOLY BIBLE says! While many are called, The God of all flesh chooses us, name by name!

Perhaps, Zacchaeus pondered these very thoughts before risking public humiliation in front of the ever increasing crowds of folk who followed this new Prophet from Galilee! Being the Chief Tax Collector, he was already ostracized as it was. Yall know how folk feel about the IRS. Unless it involves a refund check, huh? Even though Zacchaeus was at the top of his profession and apparently extremely wealthy, we can safely assume that he didn’t have a whole lot of real friends. But for reasons, yet undisclosed by Scriptures, when he heard that Jesus was passing through town, Zacchaeus was driven by a passionate desire to get close to Jesus!

Now, we know that nothing Jesus did was by happenstance; wherever He went, He was sent on assignment. Nonetheless, who would  ever expect Jesus to make time out of His busy schedule for a face-to-face encounter with the likes of Zacchaeus! According to historical accounts, Jesus, Himself had testified that it’s easier to get a camel through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to get into Heaven. (Ref. Matthew 19:24) No! It’s not because The Father just wants poor folk, but because most wealthy people believe that everything they’ve accomplished, they’ve achieved on their own. So there’s no reason to submit to nobody—especially an Invisible Superior Being. After all, when this life is over, it’s over! Right?

Apparently, life had led Zacchaeus to the inevitable conclusion, ‘With all that I have, it’s still not enough to make me whole. Something missing, and from the stories I’ve heard, perhaps this MAN, JESUS, can fill the gaping hole in my life!’  Zacchaeus’ decision was eternally life-changing for himself as well as his family! He determined within himself that he would not allow anything to stand between his soul and His Savior. Hence, he ran ahead of the crowd, climbed a sycamore tree and went out on a limb to make sure that he didn’t miss Jesus!

I must confess, having grown up vertically challenged, I know what it’s like to be the runt of the pack, never quite measuring up to the crowd, as if you had a choice in being who God created you to be!

Unfortunately, the crowds aren’t the only things that keep some people from getting close to Jesus.! What about, pride, self-righteousness, education, careers, drinking and druggin, adultery and fornication, lying and cheating? And we can’t forget what would happen when the people we hang out with find out that we’ve given our lives completely over to Jesus 4 REAL! Yeah, sometimes we might have to climb over a whole lotta stuff to get to Jesus, huh? Nevertheless, like Zach, sooner or later everyone must answer, why am I here, where am I going and what am I going to do about Jesus? Whether we decide to accept or reject the Savior’s free gift of Grace, not one of us can remain indifferent!

Zach said, ‘I’m going to do whatever I need to do to get to the only ONE, who truly knows me, loves me and believes that I was worth dying for!’ Amazingly, Jesus knowing exactly where Zacchaeus was, spoke to him specifically as if He was the only person that He’d come to see! The Good News is…Jesus doesn’t play favorites! #didjaheardat?

Beloved, you are somebody special to Jesus! The Ol’ Skool preacha said, “He left His Home in Glory, came down thru 40 and 2 generations, was mocked, jailed, beaten, crucified, died, was buried, went down to hell before ascending back to Heaven, to be seated at the right side of The Father Eternally! There now, as our Great High Priest, He intercedes on our behalf, pleading for mercy, forgiveness and grace, waiting for you and I to come to the end of ourselves and seek SINCERELY after Him with all our hearts, minds, body and spirit!

The next question is, what risks are you willing to take to reach Jesus? What are you willing to let go of to lay hold of everything that Christ has prepared for you? How far are you willing to go to get closer to Him? #OUTONALIMB! #REALLY?

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

BACK 2 THE FUTURE

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BACK2 DA FUTURE2

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls, But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’ Jeremiah 6:16

 

Okay! I gotta confess, our family might be a bit eccentric! But, c’mon, ever met anyone’s clan who wasn’t, huh?  YEAH, RIGHT! 

One of the personal proclivities of our household is the weekly (or daily for the patriarch) excursions to every thrift store within a 20 mile radius of our home. Overtime, the quest to recruit followers has been somewhat successful, amongst the older members of the family. However, the considerable efforts to pass down this soul rewarding heritage to future generations, have most often been met with extreme resistance! Obviously, the young’ns have yet to developed the palate necessary to distinguish (#appreciatethevalue) old from vintage!

Hence, may I submit for your consideration, that these same sentiments can  perhaps be attributed, spiritually, to the world at large! Don’t shout me down, now? Seriously! Given the spirit of this 21st Century Age of comtemporarized, unconventional, ambiguity, tolerance and self-motivated righteousness, apparently there’s little need and even less desire to conform to the irrelevant, antiquated dictatorship of The Holy Bible! After all, look what we’ve already done! Jus check out the mind-blowing accomplishments that we’ve attained just in the past 100 years, right?

To be honest, in a high-tech synthetic world of rockets, jets, cruiseliners, skycrapers and paved roadways, voice activated iphones and ipads…one might easily get caught up in a world where nature is generally overlooked! It’s no wonder that we tend to ignore The Creator and glorify creation! I mean, it’s kinda foolish to serve a God that you can’t even explain, when our sophisticated intellectual contemporary world appears to offer every kind of solutions to any problems that we face, right?

I’m sure you know by now that there’s always going to be plenty of folk around you who will tell you that ‘all you gotta do’ is keep on trying; pull yourself up by your bootstraps, and remember you da man 2 make it happen, right? But as good as that sounds, what do you do when you ain’t got no boots?

Life has a way of suddenly intruding upon, unannounced and uninvited, and dismantling the perfect 5-year plan that we’ve conjured up, leaving you at the crossroads of clueless, helpless and worse yet hopeless as how to recover and reconnect the broken pieces! It’s  usually at this point, that our Heavenly Father, reaches down into the pits of our vanity and depravity and draws us into a personal encounter with the Creator of Life, Love, Faith for Peace and Joy! It’s in this state that we discover that the true meaning and purpose for our being is to praise and glorify HIM!

As Holy Spirit begins to reveal Godself to you through The Word and intimate communion (prayer) the eyes of your understanding is enlighten and you recognize that the path for right living has already been marked out by God before the foundation of the world!

Unfortunately, even today, so few will choose to leave the glitz and glamour of the wide road, going their own way, and venture off to the old narrow pathways to follow in the footsteps of The OneTrue Shepherd! Those who have lost (or were never privvy to) God’s Perspective of their lives, tend to minimize the benefits of being set apart to manifest the Glory of God’s Mercy and Grace to a people living in a world filled with the emptiness of gross darkness, lost yet consumed with persuing a hell-bound life of eternal devastation and destruction!

Everyday, we’re forced to make numerous decisions, however there’re those which have eternal consequences. Are you going to choose the old ways (God’s) or will you continue forging on new paths of your own way?

Don’t get it twisted, JESUS is STILL the ONLY WAY LEADING TO PEACE AND REST FOR YOUR SOUL! #BACK2DAFUTURE!!!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

 

WAKE UP AMERICA!

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WAKE UP AMERICA!

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my ace, and turn from their wicked ways,then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
2 Chronicles 7:14

 

WELL, AMERICA’S GREAT AGAIN, huh?  WOW!

Today despite of all the  predictions, our Nation has survived one more surprise attack, huh?  Who knu it would come from within the borders of our own democratic system? Nontheless, they say, ‘Liberty For All’, right? Well, I suppose that depends on one’s personal perspective. Nevertheless, we can agree on this, Freedom is not free nor is it cheap!

Yet,  I declare and decree, in Order to form a more perfect Unity, establish true Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain. establish, stand steadfast, immovable always abiding in THIS TRUTH, that despite all of this sophisticated technological security advancements of  the 21st Century,  that the safest place in the whole wide world yet remains “smack-dabb” in the middle of GOD’S PERFECT WILL!!!

While many families are still struggling to cope and recover from the distress of 911, the increase in the random killings of young students,  senseless massacre of innocent kindergarteners at Connecticut’s Sandy Hook Elementary,  bomb blasts  abruptly interrupting The Boston Marathon , suicide bombings at airports globally, lunatics open-firing on random citizens out enjoying an afternoon movie, shopping at the local mall and evenings at their favorite niteclubs, and we cannot forget those who arbitrarily invade the sanctify of Bible Study and Prayer Meetings, each of which so obviously re-enforce the new-now reality! America has changed forever! Hence, that somewhat nonchalant attitude that we once held viewing  media broadcasts detailing the slaughter of civilians in other countries has given way to a national sense of restrained anxiety and anticipation.

The false sense of serenity that our nation once enjoyed has now converted to sporadic rampant acts of violence, devastation and destruction. In the after mass, we see a socieity of proud Americans struggling to present a united front, clinging, crying, comforting, praying together in an attempt to let the world know “We’re proud to be Americans; United we stand and God bless America”!

Now don’t shout me down! Trust me, I’m just as patriotic as anyone. I am grateful that God destined me to be born in this country. However, first and foremost, I’m a Christian; a citizen of The Kingdom of God! Therefore I am compelled to plead on behalf of all my fellow countrymen, “America, bless Our GOD!”

None can deny that God has been so merciful to America. Time and time again, God has proven Himself to be so near to us. Our nation’s history confirms that God has continuously reached out to assure us, “My children, we are in this thing together…forever. I am here to help you. I am your shield and your buckler; I am as close as the very breath you breathe. I am fully and totally committed to you.” Unfortunately, just like the Israelites in Bible days, this nation has persisted in boldly rejected GOD’s Way, insisting on doing things our way, legislating unrighteousness!

Well can I offer my most solemn suggestion; my fellow Americans, instead of trying to pass the buck, we need to repent. Why spend so much time, money and attention pursuing false gods? We don’t need another God to save us! We just need to turn back to the One True Foundation of this great nation. It’s time to bend our knees, bow our hearts, and surrender our praise and worship to The True and Living God our Lord Jesus Christ. Clearly, everything that we will ever need is in Him.

What’s the point of having another National Day of Prayer if we have no intention of changing? I mean, can you imagine the stinch that’s seeping into The Throne Room of His Grace and Mercy? #yukyuk! Awemazingly, The Living God is waiting for His Chosen People to humbly cry out in sincerity to Him, (actually repenting) and return to the Rock of our Salvation! Remember, God has promised that in the midst of troubling times, we’d find Him to be a Very Present Help.

“Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the LORD of hosts.” Zechariah 1:3

WAKE UP AMERICA, IT’S WAY PASS TIME TO BLESS OUR GOD!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

SEASONED SALT!

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seasoning-salt2

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

“Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.”

Matthew 5:13

 

WOW! Aren’t you glad that you’re saved, sanctified, living all you can to serve and please da Lord?

BUT! Before we go slappin’ 5 with our neighbors or yourself on the back, perhaps we need to take a closer look at today’s scripture text. Sometimes, WE—THE SAINTS—have a way of judging others by their actions BUT judging ourselves by our good intentions, huh?

Whatchatalkinbout? It’s easy to make yourself come out smelling like a rose, as long as we’re comparing ourselves to one another! However, God never intended to make our own warped flesh the plumb-line for gauging His Righteousness!

Remember the story of the Pharisee who went up to the Temple to pray, stood off by himself, looked across the room and seeing the tax collector, praying “God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector.” (Ref. Luke 18:9-14)

Have you noticed how often God’s elect develop a severe case of selective amnesia once they’ve been saved for any length of time! Perhaps that’s why The Apostle Paul left a not-so-friendly reminder to us. “And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” 

1 Corinthians 6:11

Hence, DON’T GET IT TWISTED! No matter how many right things you manage to do on a daily basis, at the end of your bestest day—every single one of us must acknowledge “that if it had not been for JESUS…where would I be.” (Ref. Romans 3:23) Truthfully, there ain’t none good but GOD!  That’s why He sent Jesus! The Perfect role model for us to keep before us. Righteousness Personified! (Ref. John 3:16-17)

So the next time, you’re tempted to bask in the glorraa of your own self-righteousness,  check yourself! Remember your frail-flawed-fickle human tendency to judge one another by outward appearances! Precious one, please recognize that God really does read hearts! (Ref. 1 Samuel 16:7)

Jesus warned, “For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:20

SO! Before you start sending any po’ souls straight to HELL, because they don’t measure up to your standardss, MIGHT I SUGGEST THAT WE MAKE SURE THAT OUR OWN SALT IS  WELL SEASONED WITH LOTS OF LOVE, MERCY AND GRACE! #IJS #saltysaints

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

 

PREDESTINED 2 UNCONQUERABLE LOVE

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PREDESTINED 2 UNCONQUERABLE LOVE

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. Romans 8:37

There are various perspectives on ‘predestination’ even amongst the Christian community. Some believe that God has earmarked certain ones to receive His gift of Salvation; while others believe that because The Omniscient Creator already knew those who would respond to this gracious offer by accepting the atonement offered by Christ, their salvation is inevitable! But for those, just like me, my philosophy is ‘I don’t know why Jesus loved me, I don’t know why He cared! I don’t know why He Sacraficed His Life, Oooohhh But I’m glad! So glad HE DID!’

 
I  don’t know about you, but I still get happy just thinking about being saved! I mean, knowing that there was absolutely nothing in my life’s repertoire that remotely merited so great a gift, but God summoned me to such Grace according to His own purpose, amazes the hell outta a wretch like me! To those who have an ongoing proclivity to engage in a self-loathing-guilt-shame-blame game, these words scribed by The Apostle Paul in Romans Chapter 8:28-39, offer  new perspective and continue to be a source of great comfort, confidence, strength and hope to po’ souls!

Do you understand, beloved, that in the Mind of God, you and I are not an afterthought? Oh Yeah! Before the foundation of the world God Soveignly called us to fulfill His ultimate purpose, to make us like His Son Jesus! WOW! I know, right? Knowing that The Omniscient God knew you would sin before you committed one sin, yet loved you and will always love you is beyond human comprehension, but it’s TRUE! Kinda sheds a new light on how and why Paul calls the painful test, trials and tragedies that we all experience in this fallen world, a light affliction, huh?

Can you imagine how Micael, Gabriel and the rest of the angels who have never failed to honor God feel about us? (Ref. Psalm 8:4) WOW! Crazy LOVE, right!

Now! We need to understand that there’s an Accuser who will never forget that you defected from his kingdom of darkness, volunteering to go to the other side, Jesus Christ! Satan’s tracking your every move, gathering infractions you’ve committed in order to charge you before The Righteous Judge, but don’t be fooled! You have an Advocate, Jesus! His Sacrificial Blood has already rendered the devil, defeated!

God promised those who trust in the riches of Jesus are secure in His Righteousness and Hope for His Redemption, need never fear His Rejection!

Precious Saints, the reality is, this same GRACE that saves us, empowers us to live to serve and honor The One who loves us eternally! #whatalife! UNCONQUERABLE LOVE!

 

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

 

 

AN ALTERNATIVE LIFESTYLE!

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AN ALTERNATIVE LIFESTYLE

 

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

You have trusted in your wickedness and have said, ‘No one sees me. Your widom and knowledge mislead you when you say to yourself “I am, and there is none beside me.’ Isaiah 47:10
I still remember, as a child being ushered from my classroom, thru the halls and down to the basement to the make-shift -fall-out-shelters. Despite of that lingering black cloud of fear looming over the atmosphere, most of the time folk went about doing life as usual. We hardly ever thought about the fact that there was a ‘cold war’ going on between our country and the Russians. That is, until the alarms went off alerting us to proceed immediately to the designated Bomb-Shelters! The thing is, we never knew whether it was just another drill or had the OTHER shoe finally dropped.

Like today, there’s a war going on all around us and a whole lotta folk are clueless to what’s unfolding right before our very eyes! Truthfully, most of this 21st Century New Millinieum High-Teckies are so entrenched in staying abreast of what’s trending, obsessed with pursuing personal power and pleasure and lounging in their own security, oblivious to anyone or anything that does not coincide with their self-god-centered lifestyles! That is, until the roof is blown off of their homes!

Didjaknow? There are people among us who wouldn’t think of leaving home without first seeking the advice (magic spells) of their private socerer, astrologist and stargazers to make sure they’re equipped to sucessfully navigate through their day! Oh Yeah! There’s no shortage of kindred-spirited demons who will gladly validate your personal preferences, as long as you can afford to pay them! Unfortunately, those who seek such are generally much too sophisticated to acknowledge the foolishness of relying upon pet idols who are absolutely powerless to deliver themselves from what shall come upon them from the Almighty Hand of The True and Living God! Whatever happened to dat 1-800 Dial-a-Demon lady? #ijwondering, yall!

According to the Holy Writ, Hell is enlarging herself daily to accommodate those unsuspecting idolotrist slain at the hand of satanic snipers! And they never knew that they’d volunteered to join forces with so many others who reject even the remote possibility of an alternative-lifestyle, other than their own sin-induced-self-centered-flesh-rewarding reality! WOW!

As citizens of The Kingdom of Heaven, we’ve been charged to stand boldly, sound the alarm and shout with Joy, whether they accuse you of being a hater or not… ‘LEAVE BABYLON, FLEE FROM THE BABYLONIANS! (Isaiah 48:20) JESUS IS SOON TO COME! That’s what LOVE does.

Don’t be scarred to let folk know that there is a more EXCELLENT WAY! TELL ‘EM! It’s available to anyone who will accept God’s Grace Gift of SALVATION by simply  placing your personal trust and faith in JESUS ALONE!

UR 2 SMART 4 DAT!  Y go to Hell when JESUS HAS ALREADY PAID THE BILL IN FULL! TAKE THE DEAL WHILE IT’S STILL ON THE TABLE! CHOOSE THE ALTERNATIVE…ETERNAL LIFE!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

IT’S THE GOODNESS OF GOD!

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ITZ THE GOODNESS OF GOD

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

And thinkest thou this O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgement of God? Or despisest thou the riches of His goodness, and forebearance and long-suffering; not kowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? Romans 2:3-4
A while ago, I heard a preacher confessing  that at one time he was an avid believer and willing partaker of one of the greatest lies that Satan has perpetrated. As he went on to talk about his early perception of God, I began reflecting back on the B.C. (Before Christ) in my own life, I humbly concluded, “You ain’t by yourself preacha!” If we would be honest, for real, a whole lot of us would have to raise our hands and say Amen 3X, Preacha!

How many of you once believed that somewhere, way out there, there was a Great Big Ol’ Angry God, watching and recording every single thing you did? And when you had accumulated that mystical, unknown number of sins, His Hand of Wrath would suddenly appear from heaven, striking you down with a big sledge hammer, crush you and fling your po’ soul straight into the devil’s hell! Oh, don’t play me like you never…

Perhaps you were with that other group—the self-righteous who ascribe to the lie that when they get themselves together, they fully intend to start going to church and but they’re not going to be no hypocrite, like all them other folk. They’re gonna be real about serving God!  And we all know how that’s gonna turn out, huh?

Just think about all those times He could’ve, should’ve, BUT didn’t serve you your just desserts. Remember all those unfulfilled promises you made (lies) just before He delivered you, again? How many times has God chosen to withhold justice and instead dispensed His Grace and Mercy towards us? WOW! Haven’t got a clue, huh? Neither do I!

Let’s be for real! You and I will never, ever be good enough to qualify as ‘acceptable’ to a Holy GOD—SO….get over you!  God already knew that we’d fall short numerous times.That’s why, before we were even formed in our mother’s womb, God’s plan of Salvation was already established!

Ephesians 2:8 declares, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:”! Didjaheardat? God never left it up to us! Salvation is God’s free gift.

That’s the GOSPEL! It’s called GRACE and it’s still available to WHOSOEVER will  humble themselves before God, acknowledge themselves as sinners who have no other Hope for Salvation but JESUS and accept His Amazing Gracious Merciful Forgiveness! NOW THAT’S THE GOODNESS OF GOD!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

 

 

COMPASSION

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COMPASSION 2

 

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 

God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. John 3:17

 

WOW! I know it’s been a while, nevertheless,  the movie “The Passion of Christ” starring Mel Gibson, still continues to amaze skeptics and awaken the consciousness of untold hundreds of thousands of people in and out of the church!

In just about 3-hours of an action packed, emotionally charged sequence of events, the movie attempts to depict the final days of Jesus’ earthly ministry. Beginning with His Triumphant Entrance into The Holy City of Jerusalem on to His Betrayal, making His Way to Pilate’s judgment seat, up to His Sacrificial Death on Calvary’s Cross, thru His burial in Joseph of Arimathea’s borrowed tomb on route to His Victorious Resurrection and Glorious Ascension back to His Rightful Seat on The Throne in The Kingdom of His Father in Heaven. And we can’t even imagine  the view from Heaven’s perspective, huh?

Okay, I confess, while I too was noticeably touched by the animated shockingly detailed reality of what My Savior endured to redeem and restore my Eternal Life,  I am yet more perplexed by the persistent rippling effect that continues to invade my life even though it’s been several years since I sat silently sobbing in that theater.

And while it’s been several months since we’ve commemorated Resurrection Sunday,  I’m still reeling at the depth of Jesus’ compassion for a people who, for the most part, would ignorantly continue to reject The Grace that He so freely offers to us. (Ref. John 1:11)

I mean, when you just take the time to really think about it, it’s almost unbelievable, huh?  Seriously! What outrageous compassion our Lord displays as He walked the shores of Galilee healing all manner of sickness and disease! (Ref. Matthew 4:23)

What flamboyant compassion The Law Giver demonstrates when the woman caught in the act of adultery was thrown before Jesus by the teachers of the law and the Pharisees. (Ref. John 8:1-11)

What extravagant compassion The Servant exposes as He humbly kneels to wash His disciples feet, including Judas. (Ref. John 13:5)

What preposterous compassion The Suffering Savior manifests as He interrupts death on the Cross to assure and confirm the thief’s reservation in Paradise that day. (Ref. Luke 23:43) 

What excessive compassion lingers on as our Resurrected Lord and High Priest faithfully prays that The Father forgive us, and send The Promised Comforter and Keeper to us in this world. I know right…WHAT UNCONSCIONABLE COMPASSION?

Wow! And to think that Jesus trusts us to show that same exorbitant loving compassion to this lost and dying world. AWEMAAZING!

SELAH?

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!

Ann Caffee

 

DO U ANNOY GOD?

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DO U ANNOY GOD

 

SELAH Daily Devotions!

 
And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint. Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man: And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary. And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me…And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? Luke 18:1-5, 7

 

Do you ever feel like you’re annoying God? Hold on, don’t click me off. This question is not intended to condemn but to awaken your spirit to a liberating truth.

Some people think that if you repeatedly bring the same petitions or desires before The Lord, you run the risk of praying amiss. Apparently, based on the premise that by bringing it up again,  obviously you’re no longer operating in faith, but in doubt!

But, Jesus said that we should always pray! Truthfully, our Heavenly Father is ecstatically overjoyed when we come, as little children, boldly to the Throne of Grace and cast our cares upon Him. Hence, this lets God know that we’re yet trusting Him to respond to our prayers with Mercy and Grace.

Unlike the unjust judge, who responds out of annoyance, disgust and frustration, your Heavenly Father honors your faithful persistence with loving compassion. God is not intimidated by our persistent prayers. He knows that we’re simply acknowledging that He alone has the Power to bring to pass anything we ask of Him.  Ain’t dat amazing?

Don’t allow nothing or nobody to stop you from praying until you see God move in your situation. Because God empathizes with our feelings, He is never annoyed when we call out for His help.

Beloved, continue to trust Him to work His purpose through your situations knowing, even though it may tarry, the answer shall surely come! Don’t allow the pressures of your present situation to cause you to panic, but remain confident that at the  appointed time, He will speedily defend, protect and avenge the one whom He finds persistent in faithfulness!

But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Hebrew 11:6

ANNOY GOD? IT’S OKAY; YOUR BREAKTHROUGH IS IN YOUR PERSISTENCE!

SELAH!

Pause, Ponder, Pray & Praiz!
 
Ann Caffee