Devot. Christ is Risen!

Hi Folks,

I hope you had a very blessed Resurrection weekend!

You know,  I was thinking over several verses from 1 Corinthians 15 which say, 

1 " Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 

 ² by which also you are saved, (It is hearing and then receiving Gospel which saves a person)  if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 

³ For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 

⁴ and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, (basis for the Christ's death and resurrection) 

⁵ and that He was seen by ^[a]Cephas, then by the twelve.

 ⁶ After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have ^[b]fallen asleep (died). 

⁷ After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. 

⁸ Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time. And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! "

 

My pastor shared this passage with us yesterday morning and said that the basis for the reality Christ's death and resurrection is based on "the Scriptures", many folks saw Him alive  after His resurrection as well.  

Also, if Christ had not risen from the dead as He said He would, then He would be a liar, we wouldn't have the hope of spending an eternity in Heaven with Him and our faith would be empty.  As I've said before, the hinge point of Christian faith, even our very eternity, rests on Christ's resurrection. 

 

Below are two devots. and two upbeat Resurrection songs to kick off your week!   

You can read one of the devots. now and then come back to the blog  and read the other one the end of week:)

The songs are by 2 of my favorite Christian musicians, a husband and wife team.  If you like peppy, Irish/Celtic music, you will greatly enjoy these songs!

I pray that the devots. encourage your heart, help you to see the awesome significance of Christ's resurrection and the music will give a boost to your week.

Lord bless you and yours!

 

 

 

Devot. Comforting Truth:  https://www.dayspring.com/daily-devotion/date/2019-04-20?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=DaySpring%20Daily%20Devotion%202019-04-20&utm_term=DaySpring%20Daily%20Devotion

 

Devot. The Tomb is Empty-Our Hearts Our Full: https://www.dayspring.com/articles/the-tomb-is-empty-our-hearts-are-full?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=NEBNAEN2019-04-21TheTombIsEmptyOurHeartsAreFullArticles&utm_term=DaySpring%20Newsletter%20%2B%20Daily%20Devotion%20List

(Devots. Read and Share.  Taken from https://www.dayspring.com/articles/)

 

Music: 

Christ is Risen, He Is Risen Indeed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4E9s_W0sos

 

Music:

Magnificent, Marvelous Matchless Love https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgEn6ftrT-4

Devot. Preparing Your Heart for Resurrection Week

Hi Folks,  

Happy Resurrection Week!  

I pray that you are having a blessed week and your heart is being prepared for Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday.  I always say though that even when Resurrection Sunday ends, the Reason behind it (Jesus) can live in the hearts of those who have personally trusted Him throughout the year 

Below are two devots. for you:  One I used last year, but I thought it was really good and wanted to include again.  The 2nd one is a new one that I have not shared before.    

 I have also included 2 Resurrection songs that  will be a nice accompaniment to the devots.

 

I pray that the Lord uses these devots. and the music to prepare your heart for this very sacred week.  Consider going to a Good Friday service, a Passion Play 

(a dramatization of the death and resurrection of Christ) this week.   

I know that for myself, going to a Good Friday service is what helps to prepare my heart and de-clutter my head in preparation for Resurrection Sunday.      (Many Bible and Baptist churches will do both of these events.  If you can't make it to one, or a church in your area is not hosting a Passion Play, I found that this church will live stream their play called The Living Cross. 

Folks from all over come to see it:  https://livestream.com/opendoorchurchlive/Services

 

As I child, my parents would also take me to a Passion Play as a way or reminding us as a family, and teaching me, the reason behind Easter.    Folks, telling the kids about the true meaning of Easter is what will give them a solid foundation to their life.   Our children, grandchildren etc...need  to know  that Jesus  died and came back from the dead just for them and if they were the only person on earth, He would have still come and died for their sins because He loves them so immensely. 

 

I pray that you will remember how awesome, miraculous and powerful Christ's death and resurrection is!  1 Corinthians 5:14 clearly states, "And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. "   The hinge point of the Christian faith is Christ's resurrection, as it proved that Jesus was God and that His death was more than 

sufficient to pay for our way to Heaven.    May we never forget that.   

Have a blessed Resurrection Week!

 

Devot. 1:  Remembering Holy Week

https://www.dayspring.com/articles/remembering-holy-week  (Taken from https://www.dayspring.com/articles)

Song: Gethsemane Hymn:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKfzrNs4-UU

 

Devot. 2: Love Supreme: https://www.intouch.org/read/magazine/the-pulpit/love-supreme  (Used by permission.   Taken from https://www.intouch.org/read/magazine)

Song: The Power of the Cross: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BAPvqeFnjE

Catching Up!

Dear Journey HeavenWard Readers,

So sorry for not updating the blog with current devotionals!  Life has been busy!

I will be uploading the latest devotionals that I have written and I pray that they are a blessing.

Feel free to "refer a friend" to the blog, copy/paste the link unto your social media and or

copy/paste a devotional link and email to someone who may need to hear to Good News from God's Word.

Blessings!
Grace

Devot. The Value of Unborn Life: Fighting for the Unborn

Hi Folks,

I hope you had a good week!  

I am wrapping up our series on the value God's places on human life, specifically unborn human life.  I pray it has given you a chance to evaluate your mindset in the light of God's Word.

God says that each human life (that includes each of you!) is "fearfully and wonderfully made (Ps. 139:14), and no one is an exception to the rule.  

So, we know that legislative decisions are being made in regards to unborn life and the lives of unborn babies are on the line, so what can we do to make a difference?

Remember I mentioned that I had a Bible story for you that reminded me of what the US is battling right now?

 

In the first chapter of Exodus (Ex. 1:8-22), the king of Egypt saw that the number of Hebrews in the land of Egypt was growing and multiplying.   He was starting to get scared that maybe the Hebrews would try to take over his kingdom, so he ordered that they be made slaves in Egyt and also that all male babies, were to be murdered as soon as they were born.   There were though 2 very brave Jewish midwives who assisted the Egyptian and Hebrew women in childbirth.  They steadfastly determined that they would not raise their hand to kill any Hebrew male boy that was born and they did so because they had a deep respect for God.  They stood their ground for the sanctity of life, and God richly blessed their courage (Ex. 1:17,20,21)

We need more folks like this that will say, "Yes, I will take a stand, lift my voice in favor of letting the unborn/born infant live and have a right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness!"

So what can we do?  Pray, stay up to date on what is happening in our country, vote for folks that take seriously the value God places on life, regardless of what it costs them, sign petitions and vocally state to our folks in office that we are standing for life (God will bless them and us for it, just as He did the midwives in Exodus).

I have a number of things below for you to explore this week that encompasses the above areas I just stated.  

I would also close by saying that if the Christian film UNPLANNED in still in theaters, you can see it on Netflix, get it on dvd after it is released, do yourself a great favor and watch it.  (You also find clips and segments on youtube, just type in Abby Johnson or  Unplanned.  I did recently see that the full video itself had been posted as well).

I watched this film about a month back and it is a powerful true story of a Christian woman, Abby Johnson, who had 2 abortions herself, worked for Planned Parenthood but came face to face with truth.   God's grace, mercy, forgiveness is clearly shown in this film and it is not judgmental in any way, but a true honest perspective is given and the ending of the story is powerfully beautiful!  It is advertised as being for folks who are pro-life and pro-choice and Abby has said the message of the film is PRO-LOVE.   If you want to have God do a work in your heart so you can see the value of life the way God does, I challenge you to watch this film!

Lord bless you and yours this weekend!

Article: Prayer Makes a Difference in abortion rates dropping: https://www.lifenews.com/2019/03/25/167-babies-saved-from-abortion-during-40-days-for-life-prayer-campaign-so-far/

Adoptioas a Choice instead of Abortion:https://www.myfaithvotes.org/articles/every-year-we-abort-1-5-million-babies-while-over-3-million-families-are-in-line-to-adopt  (This is a subject very dear to my heart and very personal in my life for many reasons.   One is that many of the friends I grew up with were adopted and given a chance at life when their mother could not take care of them.)

Get Involved/Find the Truth/Learn More:

~ https://40daysforlife.com/ (A Christian organization whose sole weapon is prayer (not political action) as a means to end abortion.  They have proven stats that show, when folks pray for unborn lives to be sparred, abortion rates drop. Also, how you can find a local organization that is actively involved in praying that babies lives are saved in your city/state.  This organization is a central part of the Unplanned film.)

~https://www.liveaction.org/  (Very informative website, articles and videos on the truth about abortion, folks who were pro-choice, now pro-life and what made them change their minds, plus much more.)

~https://lc.org/

~http://www.operationrescue.org/

News-Keep up to date on what is happening in the pro-life/pro-choice war:

https://aclj.org/

https://lc.org/

Devot. The Value of Unborn Life: Abortion Survivors

Hi Folks,

I hope you had a good start to your week! 

 

I am starting to wrap up our series on the value of Unborn Life.

 

I hope that you have had time to ponder, think of where you stand on this issue. 

I hope you have asked yourself, "Do I value life as God and His Word does, and if not, what must I do to transform my mindset to think as God thinks?"

As I said last week, Philippians 2:5 and 1 Corinthians 2:16 says that Believers in Jesus are to have the "mind of Christ."

We are to have a spiritual, Biblical outlook on all areas of life as we follow Jesus. 

How do we do that?? By reading the Bible, God's love letter to those who have personally trusted Jesus for salvation.

You will find as you read His Word, the Lord will start to readjust your heart and mind, in a good way, to have how He thinks.

I have a couple things for you today.  First of all, today's devot. is on "abortion survivors."  In the youtube videos I have watched, many folks have said that this term is commonly associated with those who have had an abortion. Not so. The term is actually a reference to a person who was intended to be aborted, the abortion failed and they lived. 

According to one youtube video I watched (which I will cite below), "based on failed abortion rates through the CDC, it's estimated that minimally there could be 44,000 late term abortion survivors in the US alone."   (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eASVT4iB56M and https://theabortionsurvivors.com/get-informed/)

 

The lady who gave this quote is Melissa Oden, a abortion survivor who founded https://theabortionsurvivors.com/ to reach out to others whose lives were meant to be terminated to help them heal and have hope and to educate folks on this growing community of survivors and abortion in general.

Imagine: God intended this little person to live, He had a good plan and purpose all along for them (Jeremiah 29:13)and has given then a platform to speak on the behalf of unborn babies from "one who knows."

I have included a clip at the bottom of a lovely, vibrant young lady named, Gianna Jessen, who is an "Abortion Survivor" and a Christian.

She tells her miraculous story with a cheerful and update attitude.  She is an amazing, beautiful person who speaks powerfully from her heart in a way that will bring tears to your eyes or give your own heart courage to stand for life.

I especially love the last statement she makes right before the clip ends.

Please watch it.  Oh the plans God had already made for this young lady when the abortion did not succeed, praise God for it! 

Lastly, in light of this topic, I'm sure we have all heard of the Born-Alive Abortion Survivor bill that was rejected by the US Senate a few weeks ago. I'm sure most of us probably haven't take the time to dive in to see what such a crucial bill is about.  

 

I found a link to the bill and looked though it (included below).  Basically the bill states that if a baby was born alive after an abortion or attempted abortion, that little one is to be considered a legal person under the law and entitled to the same rights/medical care as any child that was born.  Penalties would dealt out if any doctor would kill the child after it was born or deny that baby medical care and instead willfully let it die.   https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/130/text

You know, in all of the "abortion survivor" stories I have recently listened to, I have heard each person say that they are glad that they survived.  They are happy to be alive and that someone, like a nurse, intervened and gave them the medical care that they needed so that they could be alive today.   Wouldn't each of us be glad to be alive as well if our circumstances had been the same?

You know, this reminds me of a Bible study in the first chapter of Exodus.  I won't get into right now, but will save the story for next week, which will tie into our last "The Value of Unborn Life" devot.

Pray you would have a blessed week and explore the links I have included below as your convenience.  I think you will find the links on abortion survivors very educational, informative considering the times we are living in. It's a good time to educate ourselves on what is really going on...  Blessings!  

Devot. https://www.icr.org/article/working-no-ill-preborn  (Used by permission.  Taken from https://www.icr.org)

 

Gianna Jessen Survivor Story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0Wwgh7kdKM

 

Survivor Stories (scroll all the way to the bottom of this page to read some miraculous stories): https://theabortionsurvivors.com/

Devot. The Value of Unborn Life: Conception Under Difficult Circumstances

Hi Folks,

 

I hope you have a very restful weekend!

 

We are continuing with our topic of the Value of Unborn Human Life.

I am going to tackle one of the harder questions that I broached a few weeks ago.  

 

What if a baby was conceived under a very difficult, painful circumstance?

Would it be better for mom and baby if the baby was aborted?

I bumped into a video on youtube last Wednesday, I wasn't looking for it, but it that handles this question in an incredibly, powerful way.

 

This is the powerful story of a Christian lady who became pregnant under very difficult circumstances and how she handled her pregnancy.   

PLEASE watch it all the way through:

 

1. As her story is remarkably powerful 

 

2. You will be impacted by it and 

 

3. It covers how the value of a baby's life should be viewed, even under very tough circumstances, 4.  You won't get the full impact of the last 6 minutes of the clip, the climax, unless you hear her whole story.  

This gal is a strong women, but you will notice that she credits all her strength to God, she never blames Him (as it's so easy to do), but instead relies on the strength He pours into her life and into the life of her family.   Her husband is an amazingly, godly guy who looks at the beauty in spite of the ashes.

I wish you to particular attention to what this lady says at the 19-20 minute point.  If you remember anything she says, remember what she says at this point. She then goes from the 21 minute mark until the end onto to share the question, "Abortion is ok in cases such as this" and explains what it truly means to be pro-life (powerful words!)and answers this question based on her own experience.  The ending is a POWERFUL must listen to in light of the pro-life/pro-choice war our country is in right now!   PLEASE WATCH IT!

 

After you watch this, even in clips over the next week or two, again, ask yourself the questions:  "Do I value all human life the way God does? And if not, what do I need to do to transform my mindset and think as God thinks?"

In closing, I have included a devot. on God's peace that will be an added blessing to your week.

 

Pray the Lord uses the video and the devot. as blessing to your week and that the Lord uses both of these vehicles to teach you something valuable. 

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1k2_UQP1V4Q

Devot. https://www.dayspring.com/articles/experiencing-gods-peace?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=NEBNANN2019-03-06PreparingForLentArticles&utm_term=DaySpring%20Newsletter%20%2B%20Daily%20Devotion%20List  (Taken from https://www.dayspring.com/articles/)

Devot. Fearfully and Wonderfully Made Part 2/Pro-Life Move in Theaters!

Hi Folks,

I hope you had a super weekend!

We continue our series today on how God views human life.

This devot. is taken from Ps. 139:14, "I will praise You, for ^[a]I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well."

Now the context of the devot. is focusing on adults, as a reminder of how wonderfully unique, and special we were made by God's own hand.  BUT, I wish for you to read this and think of it in the context of an unborn little life, a human being yet to know that they were made by God's own hand and who had no say in whether or not they were conceived or (in light of abortion)whether or not they would be born.  

I have also included a neat movie link soon to be released in theaters across the US (end of March).  It is called "Unplanned" and it is based on the true story of a young woman, Abby Johnson who was working her way up the corporate ladder of Planned Parenthood.  She firmly believed in her heart that she was doing the right thing and making a positive difference in the lives of women.   Then, she had a life changing experience that forever changed her heart, mind and perspective.    The film is advertised and as must watch for anyone-whether they are pro-life or pro-choice and it is not produced with a judgmental attitude, rather to inform, tell the truth and to show God's grace and forgiveness.

I have also included an interview link by the lead actress in this film.  She shares her "abortion survivor story"- it is powerful and touching. In light of the "Born Alive Abortion Survivors" bill that was recently blocked by the Senate, the testimony of the lady is very powerful.

Pray you will check the movie trailer and interview out with open eyes, and consider even going to the movie, even out of curiosity.  

 

 

Lord bless you and yours this week!

Devot.  https://www.dayspring.com/articles/you-are-wonderfully-made  (Read and Share.   Taken from https://www.dayspring.com/articles)

 

Movie Trailer: https://www.unplannedfilm.com/

 

Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnpHHJTRgpQ