Bring on the Rain

I got this great interview idea from Daughter of the King! I thought it would be so fun to do with my son who is 4! I'll try not to giggle ;)


1. What is something Mom always says to you?
Landon, clean, pick up, throw in the garbage!

2. What makes Mom happy?
Make stuff clean.

3. What makes Mom sad?
If you be mean?

4. How does Mom make you laugh?
If you be silly!

5. What was Mom like as a kid?
You meet my dad?

6. How old is Mom?
Um, twenty four?

7. How tall is Mom?
Um, really far?

8. What is Mom's favorite thing to do?
Um, do work!

9. What does Mom do when you're not around?
Um, just wait?

10. If your Mom becomes famous what will it be for?
Um, to be happy!

11. What is Mom really good at?
Me.

12. What is Mom not good at?
Um, being mad!

13. What is Mom's favorite food?
Eggs.

14. What do you and Mom do together?
Play!

15. If your Mom was a TV character who would she be?
Mommy!

16. How are you and Mom different?
Um, she makes babies.

17. How are you and Mom the same?
Um, we watch tv and ninja turtles!

Here is a list that includes the doctrines of Catholicism and what the Word of God says about each one. I have tried to make it simple and clear as I can. If you are a Catholic reading this, I plead with you to open your ears to God's Word and see if it aligns with what you have been taught in your church. God's scripture is the final authority on all things.

“Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar”. Proverbs 30:5-6

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works”. Timothy 3:16-17


Here is a List of Doctrines by the Catholic Church and the Bible verses that debunk them:


1. Catholics go to a priest and ask them for the forgiveness of sins.

A: "But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (he saith to the sick of the palsy,) Mark 2:10

(Only Jesus Christ has the power to forgive sins.)

2. Catholics pray to saints to intercede to God on their behalf.

"For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus." Timothy 2:5

(And the Bible forbids us to speak to the dead. Saints are dead, and Jesus Christ is alive.)

3. Catholics believe that the Virgin Mary is the Queen of Heaven.

"And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her" Luke 1:38

(A handmaid is a female servant. The Vatican added "Queen of Heaven" to their Bible and it is forbidden to add unto the Bible. )

4. Catholics believe in the Immaculate Conception.

"For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." 2 Corinthians 5:21

(Jesus was the only perfect person on Earth and knew no sin. Mary was blessed to be chosen to open her womb for God, but she was not immaculate. She also made a sin offering for herself (two turtle doves: refer to Luke 2).

5. Catholics believe in Purgatory.

"Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." Matthew 25:34

"Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels." Matthew 25:34

(There is no purgatory written in the Bible. The Bible states there are only two places for us to go to. Heaven or Hell. There is no limbo land.)

6. Catholics call their priests "father."

"But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.

And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.

Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ." Matthew 23:8-10

(The Bible says not to call anyone father, rabbi or master because we only have one father in Heaven.)

7. Catholics bow down to the Pope.

"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." Romans 3:23

(The Pope is a man, and there is no man higher than another. All have sinned and all have fallen short. Only worship GOD and do not bow down before anyone else.)

8. Catholics Believe that they call down Jesus body to be broken and crucified again through communion.

"And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, this cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me." 1 Corinthians 11:24-25

Jesus called us to the Lord's Supper, the breaking of bread and drinking grape juice to remember him only. It is a memorial to remember what Christ has done for us on the cross. When Jesus Christ died on the cross, he did it once and for all, and that was sufficient.

9. The Catholic Church creates their own rituals and observances while the Catholic people try to complete them all so they can earn their way to Heaven.

"All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not. For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers." Matthew 23:3-4

The Catholic Church creates a heavy yoke for their believers, more laws, rules, rituals and the majority of it is not a Biblical command. Jesus warned us of these. God's burden is light, not heavy. Come to him all ye weary.



Conclusion

I have written this to help Catholic people who are seeking for the truth. I am not against Catholic people, but my heart grieves for them to know the truth. I want Catholics to be free from the bondage by the Roman Catholic Church and to be free from the false gospel of works. I want Catholics to enjoy the true freedom offered in Christ Jesus. While some of you reading this may struggle in accepting it, because it is a hard thing to accept after believing in something for so long. I understand that. I pray you will open your hearts and your mind to finding the answer. It's so important while our time on Earth is short. Ask God, and he will show you the way. He wants you to find the answer and he wants you to find him.


"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." John 14:6

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

"That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." Romans 10:9-10

There is salvation in Christ Jesus and in him alone. Man will not save you, church will not save you, your works will not save you, nothing else will save you but the blood of Jesus Christ. If there were any other way, he would not have died on the cross.

If you believe in your heart that Jesus died and rose again and confess him as your Saviour, you shall be saved. You will go to Heaven when you die and be with Jesus Christ. God made a simple and beautiful plan for us to go to Heaven while man tried to make it complicated. I encourage you if you have not done so yet, to accept Jesus Christ as your Saviour today.

And to the Vatican: Jesus Christ has spoken to you in the entire chapter of Matthew chapter 23.

Many of us face many battles everyday; whether it be sickness, financial troubles, a broken marriage, or anything else. We may be like soldiers on a field, facing a battle. We may see Satan's army before us and feel hopeless at the sight of what we are facing. Yet God has spoken, and he has said this battle is not yours, but his.

"Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the LORD with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the LORD will be with you." 2 Chronicles 20:15-17

Do not fight this battle, for this battle belongs to the Lord. God tells us to be firm, stand still and to trust in the victory we have in the Lord. Do not fear or waver, God is with us. If he be for us, who can be against us? Remember, God never loses a battle.

You may feel defeated because of the ruins that lay around you. Is everything such a mess that it seems hopeless? Yet, God has spoken. Whatever he sets to do, he shall do it. He restores what was lost, he fixes what is broken, heals what is damaged and not only that, but he can make it higher, stronger and better than it ever was before.

"Then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I the LORD build the ruined places, and plant that that was desolate: I the LORD have spoken it, and I will do it." Ezekiel 36:36

And everyone around you will see what God has done. They will believe in him and glorify him for what he has done in you.

"Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us" Ephesians 3:20

And anything is possible because of God's power that is given unto us to be used. God can do all that we ask, and do it exceedingly more than we ever dreamed of. Stop trying to do it yourself, because there's nothing we can really do. Let God be God, and he can create miracles.


"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." Hebrews 4:16

Are you facing a battle? Remember that the battle is not yours, but the Lord's.

I was battling discouragement for the past two days. I notice that happens when I allow myself to think about and dwell on things that seem hopeless to me. I realized that it was not of God, but a hindrance from the enemy. Discouragement is a tool that Satan uses to make us lose faith in God and waver. If you start to feel discouraged, remind yourself of the victory we have in Jesus Christ.

One example from the Bible is when God brought Moses and the Jews to the Promised Land, just as he said he would do. But, when they saw the giants in the land and the mighty city, they were discouraged. They had doubted in the Lord, and because of that, they couldn't enter the promised land. We all will face our own giants, but the only thing that can defeat us is our own discouragement.

"Whither shall we go up? our brethren have discouraged our heart, saying, The people is greater and taller than we; the cities are great and walled up to heaven; and moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakims there." Deuteronomy 1:28

Here are some verses of reassurance from God to help us get through these tough times. I recommend choosing at least one scripture and mediating on it. Store these words of comfort from the Lord in your heart, and remain steadfast.

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"Behold, the LORD thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the LORD God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged." Deuteronomy 1:21

(God has given you victory and wants you to go and claim it. Do not fear or be discouraged, go and receive these things the Lord has prepared for you.)

"Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest." Joshua 1:9

(Do not fear, God is with you in every battle you will face. With him, there is no such thing as impossible. In fact, God thrives on impossibilities. There is nothing too hard for him!)

"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." Isaiah 41:10

(Whatever you're going through, you are never alone. God gives us strength to get through it. He also never loses a battle. Trust in him and turn to him.)

As for me, I will not allow my discouragement to sink in. That is what the enemy wants and he will not have it from me. I believe in God and I believe in miracles. I will be steadfast and unwavering. Discouragement will not defeat me.

Today is the day that the judges will hear both sides of PROP 8 voice their cases before the court. We need to pray fervently today that God will control the hearts and minds of the judges and that those who are supporting to preserve marriage will speak effectively in court. If the courts overturn the ban, then what rights do we have as voters anymore? It will be void.

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^"26For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:

²⁷And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.

²⁸And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

²⁹Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,

³⁰Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

³¹Without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:

³²Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them." Romans 1:26-32

I learned from the Women's conference that we need to seek God in our everyday lives. Often times he is there, showing himself in small ways throughout our day, but he goes unnoticed. I want to practice paying attention and I want to learn to recognize God in my life.

Lately, it has been pouring rain. I have not seen this much rain fall in this area for years. We have been needing it because of the drought. I noticed that the tree that rests in plain view from my living room balcony was bare. But, as the rain continued on, the tree started blooming. Everyday, I see the flowers grow more and more.

It's like a love note from God to me, telling me that we need the rain to bring forth the blossoms. Just like in life, we must endure these things because what they bring forth is worth it. Remember, Winter brings forth Spring.

God brings me hope whenever I feel like I'm losing mine. He's so beautiful in so many ways. Without him, I would be grieving. With him, I find hope, joy, love and peace. So Lord... bring on the rain. I trust in you.

I felt inspired when I read a few scriptures in my Sunday School class this morning. It stayed with me all day and I knew I had to write about it. I want to go in depth with these scriptures and write about how we can easily be deceived. This is something we all need to evaluate within ourselves.

Deception has been a tool used by Satan since the beginning of creation. He was the serpent that deceived Eve with the fruit from the forbidden tree. Satan has been using deception ever since, and that is why he is called the father of lies.

Deception is when something is so close to the truth, but yet it's not the truth. Those are the hardest to distinguish, but by the spirit of God, we can have discernment. By the Word of God, we will know what's right and what's not. God equips us to escape Satan's traps.

1. Are you being deceived by religion?

Many people are involved in religion but they don't know God. They are not saved. We can do the entire enchilada: Be a faithful member of church, tithe our money, be involved in the ministry, or bringing the best fried chicken at the potluck, yadda, you name it, it won't save you. None of these things will get you to heaven.

Church will not save you. People will not save you. Religion will not save you. Only the blood of Jesus Christ can save you. There's a terrible false belief of universalism that says there are many ways to heaven, but that is bunk. Without Jesus Christ, nobody can enter heaven. If any other thing could get us to heaven, then why would Jesus die on the cross? That's because he knew it would be the only way.


"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." John 14:6

2. Are you being deceived by your zeal?

"Wow, look at all those people.. they're doing community services, feeding the hungry, visiting the widows, donating to charities, saving the spotted owls and all of the good deeds there are out there! They're so good.. they're definitely going to heaven!" Does that sound like you?

Do good people go to heaven? No. Does giving back to the world and doing community service redeem you? No. That's not your redemption. It doesn't matter how good you are or what you do, because it's not your works that save you. That won't even get you inside the lobby room of Heaven.

It's grace. God left his kingdom and his throne to come on Earth as a man to bear the sins of the world. Jesus never sinned once, but took our place of punishment and death so that we may take his place as heirs to God's kingdom. He traded with us! Why? Because he loved us that much.

Now it's all wrapped nicely as a gift for everyone, including you. It's up to you to receive it or to reject it. That's all there is to it and it's your choice. Nobody can make that choice for you but YOU alone.

3. Are you being deceived by yourself?

Do you say: "I am a good person."
God's answer: "but we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our inquities, like the wind, have taken us away." Isaiah 64:6

Do you have your own opinions on what is right and wrong and think you're just as good as the next guy?
God's answer: "There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death." Proverbs 14:12.

Did you know our own ways lead to death? The only way we can go to Heaven is if we do it God's way. He's there already, wants you to go there too, and made a road map for you in the Bible. It's impossible for us, a sinful being, to enter the perfection of Heaven that knows no sin. So God made a plan to get us there with him, and it is so easy. Isn't that nice?


"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God." Romans 3:23-25.

4. Are you being deceived by the world?

Sin has it's pleasures, but they are only for a short time. None of these things will last and the end will bring forth death. It's like the story of how a trapper will catch a wolf. They put a knife inside an ice block and cover it in blood. The wolf continues to lick the blood until the ice melts and the knife gets them at the end. That's sin.

"Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season." Hebrews 11:25

Are you fighting away an emptiness inside and looking to fulfill it in the world? Maybe you are searching for fulfillment in alcohol, drugs, narcotics, anything to get you feeling something. Maybe you're searching for it in promiscuous relationships, one night stands, looking for love in the wrong places. Maybe you're finding yourself on shopping sprees, buying things that only seem to satisfy you for a short time, and then you must have something bigger, better and more expensive.

You need the Saviour. That hole was meant to be filled by him and him alone. You'll never find it anywhere in the World. The World sure promises us with happiness but they are only temporary. Happiness comes and goes depending on the circumstances. With Jesus Christ, you can have joy and it will be abiding no matter what the circumstances are.

Conclusion

If you died in some freak accident today, where would you go? Would you go to Heaven, or would you go to hell? Now hell is a very real place. We don't die into some kind of eternal sleep or blackness. Unfortunately, I have to tell you the truth about hell but the good news is that you don't have to go there.

The Bible says that anyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. If you believe that Jesus Christ is God's son who was sent to die on the cross for our sins, and that he rose three days later, you shall be saved. If you confess with your mouth that he is Lord and want him to be your Saviour, then kneel down and ask God to forgive your sins and ask him to be your Saviour today. I urge you not to put this off. Tomorrow is not guaranteed.

"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Romans 10:13

And if you have already done so, welcome to the family! Life just changes when we know what happens at the end. Suddenly all our problems just seem so minor and petty in light of eternity. This is all just temporary. What a day of rejoicing that will be when we finally see our Saviour face to face at last!