Tuesday, May 17, 2005

Command Me

by Donna L. Watkins

© Donna L. Watkins - Eastern Gray Squirrel

In Isaiah the Lord says, "Concerning the work of My hands command ye Me." (Is. 45:11). There are many times in the Bible that men took Him at His word and commanded Him.

Joshua did during his moment of greatest victory. He lifted up his spear towards the sunset and cried aloud, "O sun, stand still." (Joshua 10:12). Elijah stopped the rain from heaven and started it again after 3-1/2 years. In case you think this is only for men of the Bible, Smith Wigglesworth commanded when he raised people from the dead, and Martin Luther applied it when by his dying colleague, Philipp Melanchthon, he knelt to pray and forbid death to take its victim.

These examples invite us in to a relationship with God that is rarely seen in our world any more. Where is our Faith? If only it were the size of a mustard seed. Seeing in Isaiah that God wants us to command Him to act, we realize that we may not have in our minds the relationship He wants to have with us.

Our prayers offered have so much hesitancy and unbelief. Uncertainty that God really wants to bless us. We have no power behind those prayers and we find no answer to them for the Bible says, "Let him ask in Faith." The constant repetition of prayers that have been voiced for so long causes them to lose their cutting edge. Although our Faith may have grown since we began a specific prayer request, the fact that it has been a request from the days of our lack of faith renders it useless.

Oh! that we could always cry, "Yes, I believe, but help my unbelief!" However, it's a position that God wants us to move out from. Surely He has answered our prayers at times to show Himself strong, but He wants us to move upward and onward in our Faith so that we can move mountains.

How often did Jesus put people in a position to command Him? In Matthew 20 we read that as Jesus and His disciples were leaving Jericho, He stopped and responded to two blind men who were calling out to Him. "What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus asked. It was like He was saying, "I am yours to command."

Remember the woman from Syrian Phoenicia? (Mark 7:24-30) Jesus gave all His resources to her when He told her to help herself to all that she needed.

We must have the passion and faith of the strength and power of Christ in us to go before our Lord and command Him. Seek His answers for your sickness - seek healing by Faith that will change YOU. The change within you is what brings the healing. We are a new creation. We don't walk in that statement. We continue to allow the old nature to rule.

Change your mind! "And I will do whatever ye ask in my name." John 14:13 Command ye Me!

Copyright and Reprint Information
All photos remain the property of Donna L. Watkins and may not be republished without written permission. You may forward or use this copyrighted article on a website if you include the following credit and an active link back to this site:
© 2000-2007 Donna L. Watkins - This article was reprinted with permission. Visit the author's website, TheNatureInUs.com for more articles and free email subscription. Link URL: http://www.TheNatureInUs.com

Saturday, May 7, 2005

The Creator's Manual

by Donna L. Watkins
© Donna L. Watkins - Mockingbird at Mepkin

 Do you take the Bible literally? Do you really believe it is the Word of God, that God has protected His Word over the years to say and mean exactly what He desired it to be?

If we can't rely on God's Word as Truth, then we have taken away its ability to give us strength and power and to be our foundation for life's direction.

Many are asking what life is all about. There are many different definitions of what living a good life means. We as Christians need to know that God leads and directs through His Word that is everlasting and true. 

 Recently, I read about a great scientist, Matthew F. Maury (1806-1873). From an early age he was fascinated with the mysteries of the ocean, and equally captivated by the Holy Scriptures. His pursuit of oceanography was inspired from enlightenment he received in the Bible.

As a young man he read Psalm 8:8 that there are "paths in the seas." He said: "There is a river in the sea. In the severest droughts it never fails, and in the mightiest floods it never overflows. Its banks and its bottom are of cold water, while its current is of warm. The Gulf of Mexico is its fountain, and its mouth is in the Arctic Seas."

Through exhaustive study of the trade winds, ocean currents, and mapping elevation of the ocean floor, he defined the Gulf Stream!

Maury published Physical Geography of the Sea in 1855, and it earned him the title of Founder of Oceanography. He established a new science. The textbook was remarkable because of his insistence on accepting the literal words of the Bible in guiding his study of the ocean.

He was asked by the Atlantic Cable Company to chart the ocean floor for the best route for the trans-Atlantic telegraphic cable. He was given the title" Pathfinder of the Seas," and rose to the rank of Commander. His charts and instruments are held at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, where Maury Hall is named in his honor.

Virginia celebrates his birthday as a school holiday. He was elected to the Hall of Fame for Great Americans in 1930. On his tombstone at the U.S. Naval Academy is inscribed:
Matthew F. Maury
Paths in the Sea
Psalm 8:8

How much time are you spending in His Word? Do you feel lost and confused about life's direction and purpose for you? The answers are in our Creator's Manual. Read it!

"Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." (Psalm 119:105)

Copyright and Reprint Information
All photos remain the property of Donna L. Watkins and may not be republished without written permission. You may forward or use this copyrighted article on a website if you include the following credit and an active link back to this site:
© 2000-2007 Donna L. Watkins - This article was reprinted with permission. Visit the author's website, TheNatureInUs.com for more articles and free email subscription. Link URL: http://www.TheNatureInUs.com

Thursday, May 5, 2005

Breaking Free From Debt

by Donna L. Watkins

Debt-free living is such a key area of our lives that needs to be changed in America. The focus needs to be taken off of THINGS and put on PEOPLE ... the time we spend shopping for stuff to fill our closets and cabinets could be and should be, spent on building relationships and helping others.

We need a Global Focus to understand that we don't have to have a Pity Party for ourselves to give up the stuff. You don't have to look very far to realize how blessed we are. There are people dying on streets that don't have any food to eat. There are people eating out of trash cans daily and sleeping on concrete. It's time for us to be grateful for what we have and to share with others who do not have. God told us to do so.

Here's a few of our tips for debt-free living. You have to find and make your own. Borrow some books from the library on debt-free living and on simplicity. You don't have to buy them ... just borrow them. People generally read a book only once and then stick it on the shelf as another possession. Use the library system or check with friends and begin to trade books.

We have been living debt-free now for many years...and it's brought tremendous blessings of peace and contentment to our lives. To get out of debt, we had to change bad habits of impulse buying. I believe that's how most people get in debt and stay there forever.

We made a commitment to God and ourselves that we would do three things:

#1) Anytime we intended to purchase something, we would grab our note pad (instead of our credit card) and write down what we wanted to purchase and the price. We would have to discuss it with each other. If we still thought we wanted to buy it, we would wait 24 hours to make the final decision to purchase ... that eliminated 90% of our purchases.

#2) When something was a necessity and over $20, we would get three prices on it to be sure we got the best deal for our money. Use the telephone and internet to research! Don't waste gas money shopping. Sometimes the shipping is less than the gas to buy something. According to the AAA, the average cost is 56 cents a mile for the year 2004 in America and that's rising.

#3) We set up a grocery budget that was reasonable, but not excessive, and we lived off of it. No exceptions! That budget included "eating out," which, by the way, we just decided to give up. There's very little nutrition in eating out, so we figured we'd be gaining in health and wealth. We "ate out" by serving meals in different place ... like on a tablecloth in a bedroom, or eating at the coffee table in the living room, or picnicking outside the back door.

Get creative and make getting out of debt a fun project, not a drudgery!

We had a variable income and it appeared to be an impossible task to set up a budget (although there are ways to do it), so we decided to set up boundaries instead. Those mile-high boundaries allowed us to have plenty of money each month to pay off the debts we had. After many years of doing this, it just became a "new habit" and we now consider it a lifestyle. It has simplified what I have to dust and clean and maintain ... because anything you own costs you to maintain it ... and what you own, owns you in some form or fashion.

This method takes a lot of self-control. Not everybody is ready for that, so a budget would be a necessary thing to make it work for you.

It's amazing how much time we have since we rarely go shopping. We purchase our food supplies in bulk and shop for produce twice a month. Staying out of grocery stores on a regular basis makes a huge difference in health and wealth also.

When you've earned the contentment that comes with the discipline of getting out of debt, and you've changed your mindset to wanting time and peace, instead of wanting things, life becomes a whole new adventure!

We were warned in the Bible about the pressures of debt in Proverbs 22:7, "The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower becomes the lender's slave." Carrying a load of debt around is definitely a form of slavery/bondage.

Have fun! Live simply! Life is not in who owns the most stuff!

Copyright and Reprint Information
All photos remain the property of Donna L. Watkins and may not be republished without written permission. You may forward or use this copyrighted article on a website if you include the following credit and an active link back to this site:
© 2000-2008 Donna L. Watkins - This article was reprinted with permission. Visit the author's website, TheNatureInUs.com for more articles and free email subscription.
Link URL: http://www.TheNatureInUs.com

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