We are entering into a very busy time of the year as we get ready for the Christmas Season by spending time with family and friends, decorating with lights, trees, candles and so much more. I want to encourage you this season to let your light shine for Jesus more than ever before.
As you go about your day and people say to you “Happy Holidays”, boldly proclaim back “Merry Christmas to you.” I am going to let you in on a little secret of mine. Promise not to tell? This drives me crazy when people say Happy Holidays! After all, isn’t Christmas about the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ?
The Roman pagans would celebrate Saturnalia from December 17-25. During this time the Roman authorities chose “an enemy of the Roman people” to represent the “Lord of Misrule.” Each Roman community selected a victim whom they forced to indulge in food and other physical pleasures throughout the week. At the end of this festival which was December 25th, the authorities believed they were destroying the forces of darkness by brutally murdering this innocent man or woman.
Christian leaders wanted to get to the pagans so they took over this holiday but it was no easy task. The Christian leaders announced that on the final day, December 25th, they would celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Over the years the struggle has always been the same, remembering why the Christians took over Christmas.
Christians took over this holiday in an attempt to bring the pagans before God Almighty. Christians took what was a time of self indulgence, self gratification and pagan rituals and attempted to turn it around to celebrate the birth of Christ.
Unfortunately, this struggle is still there. As Christians, we are bombarded by what the world has made Christmas to be.
I think it is time for us as Christians to stand up and fight for what this Holiday is all about. It is time to fight for our brothers and sisters who are still lost in sin and don’t know the truth. After all, wasn’t paganism about people wrapped up in sin? It is time for us to boldly proclaim that Jesus Christ is the one true living God, that He died for our iniquities and our transgressions and that we can have ever lasting life in Him.
I urge you that this Christmas as you go about your days, you are constantly reminding everyone around you why you celebrate this Holiday and what it means to you. I urge you to press into your relationship with Christ more than ever before. I urge you to study the Word and allow your heart to become a sponge so you can truly know who God is. His Word tells us that He is:
Jehovah-Shammah – The Lord my Companion
Elohim – The all powerful One Creator
YHWH – The one who is self existent one
El Roi - The God who sees me
Jehovah-Jireh- You will provide
Jehovah – Rapha – the Lord who heals
Adonai – The Lord. My Great Lord.
Jehovah-Rohi – The Lord is my shepherd.
Jehovah-Mekaddishkem – The Lord who sanctifies
Jehovah-Tsidkenu – The Lord Our Righteousness
Jehovah-Nissi – The Lord is my Banner
Jehovah-Rapha - The Lord who heals
Jehovah-Shalom-The Lord is my Peace
Jehovah-Sabaoth - The Lord of Hosts The Lord of Armies
El Olam - The eternal God. The everlasting God.
El Elyon - The God Most High
El Shaddai – The all sufficient One
Immanuel – God is with us. I AM.
This is the God we serve! This is God who gave His one and only son to be born. Jesus Christ came into this world to die. He was born so that one day, He would die for the sins of the world.
I urge you to fall on your face during this Holiday season and seek Him. I urge you to press into His loving arms and forget the things of this world. I urge you to be like the woman with the issue of blood in Mark 5. She had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. This caused her to be weak and tired. It was debilitating to her in all areas of her life. The Bible tells us that she had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and she had spent all that she had. I can only imagine what this poor woman went through. She knew that her only hope was this Jesus that she had heard all about.
There was a large crowd following Jesus and they pressed in around him. This weak and tired woman knew that if she pressed in through the crowd and touched the hem of His garment, she would be healed. Can you picture it? I can. I can see the crowd pushing and trying to stop her from reaching Him. I can see as she gets a few steps closer someone pushes her all the back to where she started. Her mind is telling her to give up but her heart is telling her to fight even harder. She doesn’t give up until she reaches the Healer and touches His garment. At that very moment the bleeding stops and she is healed.
I urge you to push in to the things of God just like that woman did. You won’t be sorry. The Lord God will turn to you and say “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”
Merry CHRISTMAS and God bless you!
Monday, November 30, 2009
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
A Life Changing Trip by Kim Checkeye
I have just arrived home after a twelve day mission trip to Ecuador. The time that I spent there was life changing. We first ministered in Quito which is the capital of Ecuador. Over 2.5 million people live in the city. What I saw in that city broke my heart. The crime rate there is so bad and out of control that they brought in the military forces. Military personnel were everywhere with their big guns trying to get control. The amount of garbage that was everywhere was mind blowing then to see all the homeless dogs running around was painful. Not only that, I saw dead dogs just decaying on the street. But what broke my heart and took me on my knees to God Almighty was the amount of children just running around. Just running and roaming the streets. I kept wondering where their parents were and why they were alone. One boy came up begging to us on the street. I saw elderly women and men begging for money. They could barely walk and they had no homes. I saw the homeless being robbed by other homeless people. What I saw in Quito will be forever grafted into my mind.
Even in the midst of all this pain, crime and heartbreak, God’s presence was so strong. My mind could not get around what my eyes could and what my heart sensed from the Lord.
My home church is Kingdom Life Family Center in Orefield and my Pastor’s are Tony and Tammy Adamo. They lived in Ecuador for 5 years doing missionary work. The church plants that we have in Quito and Latacunga wanted to do a women’s conference. Now, for you and me, women’s conferences are the normal thing to do. In Ecuador, not so much! They don’t do these kind of things. Plus, to pull the churches together to work and support a women’s conference, well, that is just unheard of. However, they put their hands to the plow and started the work. They asked Pastor Tammy to come and speak at the conferences and talk to their leaders and married couples. We went as a support system for Pastor Tammy and to teach some breakout sessions.
After most of the conference times or after church services on Sundays, we had the opportunity to pray for people. This part worried me a little because I don’t speak Spanish. Nothing!!! So, I was concerned about how I was going to pray for people and how they were going to understand what I was saying. However, what God did just blew my mind.
God moved in such a mighty way that the language barrier didn’t matter. Women and men were so desperate to hear from God, to experience God or to just receive a touch from God, that their hearts were so open. Language did not matter. As we prayed for the people, I saw and experienced things that I had never seen before. People broke so openly and poured their heart out to God. Some I just held in my arms as they wept and cried. Some fell to their knees, some danced, some jumped, some shook, some fell over and the list goes on and on.
Sometimes, when I prayed for people, I just wept. I could not contain myself because my heart was breaking for them. I could literally feel their pain. Now you may think I am crazy when I say that but that is the only way I can describe it.
The one woman that stands out in my mind was in Quito. We had a women’s leaders time for any woman who was in ministry or in leadership. Pastor Tammy taught an amazing lesson on women in ministry and at the end, we had time to pray for the women. I was praying for women and I looked up and saw this elderly Indigenous woman who had to be in her 70’s or over. She was hunched over and she looked like she has had a very hard life. No doubt, life has not been good to her. She pushed her way through the women to get to the front so she could be prayed for. She reminded me so much of the woman with the issue of blood in the Bible. As she pushed her way through, she was weeping. I started to pray for her and she was yelling out to God. I have no idea what she said and I know she had no idea what I was saying. We just wept together and prayed out to God. Two hearts were united that night and we cried out together to God for whatever it may have been that she was asking for.
That was it for me. That night I learned so much about God and His presence and who He is and who I am in Him, it was like a crash course in experiencing the presence of God. I knew that that night, I would never be the same or ever look at praying for people the same ever again.
That is what it was like every time we prayed for people. They were so hungry for God because most of them had no other option but God. He was all they had! It was like they were teaching us what it was like to have nothing and only have hope in God. Time and time again, we prayed over people and time and time again, God answered them.
I went to Ecuador praying to God about four things:
1. Continue to create in me a servant’s heart
2. Break my heart for your people
3. Why do miracles occur in third world countries so much and not in the USA?
4. Continue to stretch me in my faith
I can honestly tell you that God answered every single one of those prayers!! He taught me so much about His faithfulness and just trusting in Him. He taught me that if I trust Him and reach out in faith, He will supply what I need and what I am lacking whether that be physical, mental, emotional, in ministry and spiritually. At times, I wanted my family that my heart ached for them. Yet, God filled my heart and helped me in my longing for them. At times, I was physically tired that I didn’t feel like I could give any more out, He supplied me and strengthened me. Even when I was emotionally gone because of all the tears that were shed for others, He helped me to go one step farther.
I was asked a question from a friend months ago about this trip. The question was “If your call in life is Truth for Women, then what does this trip have to do with that?” My answer at that time was “Nothing. It has everything to do with me and my growth in the Lord”. Now please hear my heart that definitly was the case but I also realize now that it was also to help me as I lead this ministry forward. After what I saw in Ecuador, my heart longs even more for women to embrace God’s word as truth and for women to experience the presence of God like I saw there. My heart longs even more for lives to be changed by the presence of God because they see Him, feel Him and experience Him like never before.
This has been my first mission trip ever in my life and I can certainly tell you, it will not be the last.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Being Transparent
I received an email from a dear friend of mine that I cherish very close to my heart. When I read it, I thought “This needs to be shared with as many people as possible.” Why? Because as Christians, we need to be reminded of God’s Unfailing Love and that we need to love Him with everything we have. So, I asked my friend if I could share this with all of you. The below will change your heart if you allow it.
Kim Checkeye
Last Sunday I finished "Breaking Free" by Beth Moore. You would think that when someone finishes a Bible study that they would finish with the last lesson, but not me. You see, I had done all the lessons in the workbook but I had not listened to all the tapes. So on Sunday I listened to two tapes that I still needed to hear and finished the study.
I know now that this was “no mistake” on my part that I listened to the tapes out of order, but a greater part of God’s plan for me. The last tape was on “God’s Unfailing Love.” I had to confess to myself and to God after listening to it that I don’t love Him as I should, I don’t find joy in Him as I should, I don’t find satisfaction in Him as I should and because I don’t then there are strongholds in my life that are preventing me from doing this. What are these strongholds? It struck me, I have been a Christian for most of my life and yet I am still not fulfilling God’s chief end for my life which is “to glorify God and enjoy Him forever” on a consistent basis. This is not the deepest desire of my heart if I was going to be honest with myself and more importantly with God. It brought me to tears. I cried out, “Why don’t I love You, LORD, with all my heart, soul, mind and strength? Do I even want to? How do I begin as I don’t even know what an intimate relationship “looks like?”
I learned from the video that God wants our love for three reason:
1. Love motivates obedience
2. Love motivates perseverance
3. Love motivates safety
If I don’t love God first with all my being, then how do I expect to live a life pleasing to Him? How do I obey, persevere and remain in His safe keeping daily if I don’t first love Him with my all. How do I overcome strongholds in my life? It’s impossible.
These questions struck home to me again at Bible study on Tuesday night during the video, “God is the Gospel” by John Piper. Piper quoted Psalm 73:25, "Whom have I in heaven but You and on earth there is nothing I desire than You" again...I couldn't say, "God you are all I desire on the earth" and be honest with Him and myself, there are material things, activities and relationships that my heart are drawn to more than Him, in other words, IDOLS...how can this be? I was challenged by another passage in the video, Habakkuk 3:17-18, “Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.” Piper commented, many Christians love what Jesus offers (blessings and gifts) but not Jesus Himself. That smacked me in the face…that was me. I loved what Jesus did for me, but I did not fully love Jesus with my heart, mind, soul and strength.
So I asked myself, “If God never did another thing in my life, if He never blessed me with another thing, would I still seek Him, would I still want to know Him, would I find enjoyment in Him, would I find satisfaction in Him, would I love Him?”
I was challenged by this concept, “to love the Giver and not the gifts or the blessings of the Giver.” I learned from the videos that I can not develop this love for God on my own. It is Spirit driven. So I have made a concerted effort during the week with the help of the Holy Spirit to seek God purely for Himself...not asking for this or that from Him, but seeking out who He is for Himself alone and enjoying Him. I began to consider God's attributes as a place to start for in order to love God then I must know God and what better way to know Him then to find out who He really is. Which drew me to a book that I have had on my shelf for sometime..."Praying the Names of God" by Ann Spangler. I highly recommend this book. It has 26 names of God that one can discover. The first week, I studied and prayed the name, Elohim (e-lo HEEM, God the Mighty Creator.) The first day of the week I discovered the meaning of Elohim, the next three days I prayed the name and on the fifth day I learned about the promises of the name. My heart began to lean towards God and to discover Him in ways I never knew.
During the week I found some times with God that I truly enjoyed His creation. He showed me on one of my walks the precision Canadian geese come in for a landing and realized for the first time in all my years watching them that they all "touch down" on the grass at the same time...the first geese continue to flap their wings just above the ground until every one is in place and then together in one motion they hit the ground. It was amazing. I saw a sky last night that I never saw before...a pale lavender on the horizon of the mountains with a shade of blue above it like I have never seen with white on top of that...I enjoyed that...I ENJOYED GOD!
I don't know where you are with your relationship with God, but I challenge you to ask yourself, “Do I desire Him more than anything else on earth?” If not, then you might have a stronghold in your life preventing you from God’s best, just like me. I encourage you today to start seeking Him first and not the blessings or the gifts that He gives, they will follow along with obedience, perseverance and His safe keeping.
Here is a sample of one of the day’s of prayer in Ann Spangler’s book, enjoy!
Elohim - God the Mighty Creator...
Elohim is the Hebrew word for God that appears in the very first sentence of the Bible. When we pray to Elohim, we remember that he is the one who began it all, creating the heavens and the earth and separating light from darkness, water from dry land, night from day. This ancient name for God contains the idea of God’s creative power as well as his authority and sovereignty. Jesus used a form of the name in his agonized prayer from the cross. About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”—which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Key Scripture
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1).
Praying the Name…
In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. Like clothing you will change them and they will be discarded. But you remain the same. (Psalm 102:25–27a)
Reflect On: Psalm 102
Praise God: For his unchanging nature—no matter what hap¬pens to us or to the world around us, God remains the same.
Offer Thanks: That our Creator is perfect—nothing could be added to or subtracted from him to improve his nature.
Confess: Any tendency to place God on your own level, as though he is subject to the same laws and limitations of creation as you are.
Ask God: To help you perceive his greatness more fully so that you will stop projecting your own feelings and judgments on him.
Imagine for a moment that you live in a world that never changes. In this world civilizations never rise and fall, the weather is constant, children don’t grow up, and people never change jobs. In this world, the same old television shows run year after year.
Wouldn’t it bore you to death? Without the right kind of change, there would be no growth or development, no hope, nothing whatever to aim for. No one would ever talk about discerning God’s plan for their lives nor would anyone strive to fulfill their God-given potential because there wouldn’t even be a word for “potential.” We know that to be human is to be subject to change.
As human beings we need constructive change because both we and the world we live in are imperfect. We are not yet everything God intends us to be. But God himself is already perfect, already everything he needs to be: all-powerful, loving, wise, beautiful, and good. Change could not possibly improve him. Furthermore, he is not subject to a changing universe because he exists outside of time and space. He always was and he always will be. This means that the God who loves you will never stop being who he is. His attitude won’t change depending on his mood, depending on your mood.
Perhaps you face unwelcome changes right now: the loss of a loved one, a child leaving home, a dwindling paycheck—the future you counted on suddenly in jeopardy. Or maybe you suffer from a mood disorder, up one day and way down the next.
Let the God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever steady your world today.
Whatever challenge or change confronts you, let it drive you toward the God who never changes, a God so stable and strong you can lean on him forever.
Author - Anonymous
Kim Checkeye
Last Sunday I finished "Breaking Free" by Beth Moore. You would think that when someone finishes a Bible study that they would finish with the last lesson, but not me. You see, I had done all the lessons in the workbook but I had not listened to all the tapes. So on Sunday I listened to two tapes that I still needed to hear and finished the study.
I know now that this was “no mistake” on my part that I listened to the tapes out of order, but a greater part of God’s plan for me. The last tape was on “God’s Unfailing Love.” I had to confess to myself and to God after listening to it that I don’t love Him as I should, I don’t find joy in Him as I should, I don’t find satisfaction in Him as I should and because I don’t then there are strongholds in my life that are preventing me from doing this. What are these strongholds? It struck me, I have been a Christian for most of my life and yet I am still not fulfilling God’s chief end for my life which is “to glorify God and enjoy Him forever” on a consistent basis. This is not the deepest desire of my heart if I was going to be honest with myself and more importantly with God. It brought me to tears. I cried out, “Why don’t I love You, LORD, with all my heart, soul, mind and strength? Do I even want to? How do I begin as I don’t even know what an intimate relationship “looks like?”
I learned from the video that God wants our love for three reason:
1. Love motivates obedience
2. Love motivates perseverance
3. Love motivates safety
If I don’t love God first with all my being, then how do I expect to live a life pleasing to Him? How do I obey, persevere and remain in His safe keeping daily if I don’t first love Him with my all. How do I overcome strongholds in my life? It’s impossible.
These questions struck home to me again at Bible study on Tuesday night during the video, “God is the Gospel” by John Piper. Piper quoted Psalm 73:25, "Whom have I in heaven but You and on earth there is nothing I desire than You" again...I couldn't say, "God you are all I desire on the earth" and be honest with Him and myself, there are material things, activities and relationships that my heart are drawn to more than Him, in other words, IDOLS...how can this be? I was challenged by another passage in the video, Habakkuk 3:17-18, “Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.” Piper commented, many Christians love what Jesus offers (blessings and gifts) but not Jesus Himself. That smacked me in the face…that was me. I loved what Jesus did for me, but I did not fully love Jesus with my heart, mind, soul and strength.
So I asked myself, “If God never did another thing in my life, if He never blessed me with another thing, would I still seek Him, would I still want to know Him, would I find enjoyment in Him, would I find satisfaction in Him, would I love Him?”
I was challenged by this concept, “to love the Giver and not the gifts or the blessings of the Giver.” I learned from the videos that I can not develop this love for God on my own. It is Spirit driven. So I have made a concerted effort during the week with the help of the Holy Spirit to seek God purely for Himself...not asking for this or that from Him, but seeking out who He is for Himself alone and enjoying Him. I began to consider God's attributes as a place to start for in order to love God then I must know God and what better way to know Him then to find out who He really is. Which drew me to a book that I have had on my shelf for sometime..."Praying the Names of God" by Ann Spangler. I highly recommend this book. It has 26 names of God that one can discover. The first week, I studied and prayed the name, Elohim (e-lo HEEM, God the Mighty Creator.) The first day of the week I discovered the meaning of Elohim, the next three days I prayed the name and on the fifth day I learned about the promises of the name. My heart began to lean towards God and to discover Him in ways I never knew.
During the week I found some times with God that I truly enjoyed His creation. He showed me on one of my walks the precision Canadian geese come in for a landing and realized for the first time in all my years watching them that they all "touch down" on the grass at the same time...the first geese continue to flap their wings just above the ground until every one is in place and then together in one motion they hit the ground. It was amazing. I saw a sky last night that I never saw before...a pale lavender on the horizon of the mountains with a shade of blue above it like I have never seen with white on top of that...I enjoyed that...I ENJOYED GOD!
I don't know where you are with your relationship with God, but I challenge you to ask yourself, “Do I desire Him more than anything else on earth?” If not, then you might have a stronghold in your life preventing you from God’s best, just like me. I encourage you today to start seeking Him first and not the blessings or the gifts that He gives, they will follow along with obedience, perseverance and His safe keeping.
Here is a sample of one of the day’s of prayer in Ann Spangler’s book, enjoy!
Elohim - God the Mighty Creator...
Elohim is the Hebrew word for God that appears in the very first sentence of the Bible. When we pray to Elohim, we remember that he is the one who began it all, creating the heavens and the earth and separating light from darkness, water from dry land, night from day. This ancient name for God contains the idea of God’s creative power as well as his authority and sovereignty. Jesus used a form of the name in his agonized prayer from the cross. About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”—which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Key Scripture
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1).
Praying the Name…
In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. Like clothing you will change them and they will be discarded. But you remain the same. (Psalm 102:25–27a)
Reflect On: Psalm 102
Praise God: For his unchanging nature—no matter what hap¬pens to us or to the world around us, God remains the same.
Offer Thanks: That our Creator is perfect—nothing could be added to or subtracted from him to improve his nature.
Confess: Any tendency to place God on your own level, as though he is subject to the same laws and limitations of creation as you are.
Ask God: To help you perceive his greatness more fully so that you will stop projecting your own feelings and judgments on him.
Imagine for a moment that you live in a world that never changes. In this world civilizations never rise and fall, the weather is constant, children don’t grow up, and people never change jobs. In this world, the same old television shows run year after year.
Wouldn’t it bore you to death? Without the right kind of change, there would be no growth or development, no hope, nothing whatever to aim for. No one would ever talk about discerning God’s plan for their lives nor would anyone strive to fulfill their God-given potential because there wouldn’t even be a word for “potential.” We know that to be human is to be subject to change.
As human beings we need constructive change because both we and the world we live in are imperfect. We are not yet everything God intends us to be. But God himself is already perfect, already everything he needs to be: all-powerful, loving, wise, beautiful, and good. Change could not possibly improve him. Furthermore, he is not subject to a changing universe because he exists outside of time and space. He always was and he always will be. This means that the God who loves you will never stop being who he is. His attitude won’t change depending on his mood, depending on your mood.
Perhaps you face unwelcome changes right now: the loss of a loved one, a child leaving home, a dwindling paycheck—the future you counted on suddenly in jeopardy. Or maybe you suffer from a mood disorder, up one day and way down the next.
Let the God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever steady your world today.
Whatever challenge or change confronts you, let it drive you toward the God who never changes, a God so stable and strong you can lean on him forever.
Author - Anonymous
Monday, September 7, 2009
The Bride of Christ by Kim Checkeye
A few weeks ago, my husband’s brother, Wes, married his high school sweetheart, Roshelle. The wedding was one of the most beautiful and intimate weddings I have ever seen. The love that the two of them share for each other was so emanate as they looked into each other’s eyes. Their love for the Lord came across in every aspect of the day.
There are many things that stand out about the day but there is one thing that I continually keep going back too. I am sure most of the people who were there look back and remember it as one of the funniest memories but I seem to be drawn back for the spiritual symbolism that it represents.
You see, Wes is a very artistic person and he wrote the song that he would play as the bridesmaids walked down the aisle but not only that, it would be the song that he would play as his blushing bride would walk too as she is presented to him.
Normally, people strain to see the bride as she walks down the aisle but I love to watch the face of the groom. It was so obvious when Roshelle came into view just by the look on Wes’s face. Wes was sitting down at the piano which he placed directly in front of the aisle so he could see his bride and play the song that he created for her as she walked towards him.
Well, as she was coming down the aisle, our uncle stepped into the aisle to take pictures but he was blocking Wes’s view of Roshelle. Wes very politely spoke up and asked him to move. However, our uncle did not hear him and continued to stand in the way. Wes very loudly exclaimed “Get out of my way, I can’t see my bride!” Finally our uncle heard and moved so Wes could see his precious gift that God had given him.
Call me crazy but this has rung within my spirit so deep that I can’t seem to shake it. The verse that cries out in my heart is Isaiah 54:5 “For your Maker is your husband – the Lord Almighty is his name – the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; He is called the God of all the earth.” This verse alone teaches us so many truths about who God is and who we are in God. First we learn that God Almighty, the Maker of heaven and earth, is our husband. We belong to Him. We learn that God is the Holy One of Israel and that He is our Redeemer. We learn that He is the God of all the earth.
Now, what does this tell us about who we are? We are His bride! Do we truly understand that? Do we truly get what that means? You are the love of His life! You are the woman of his dreams! The one true living God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, looks at you as his blushing bride. Do you believe it?
I can’t help but to wonder how many times in my life I have allowed sin, disobedience, temptations etc. into my life to become an obstacle in my walk with the Lord. How many times have I allowed anger, frustration, jealousy or pride to block the view of Christ looking at me, His blushing bride? I can’t help but to think how many times Christ has cried out just like Wes “Get out of my way, I can’t see my bride!”
Let’s reflect on the ten bridesmaids in Matthew 25 for a moment. Back in Jesus’ time, the bridegroom went to the bride’s house for the ceremony then the bride and groom, along with a large processional, would take the feast back to the groom’s house. Often, this feast would last a full week. The ten bridesmaids were waiting for the great procession and they were excited to take part in the wedding banquet. But when the groom did not come at the “expected” time, five of them let the oil in their lamp go out. As the bridegroom came, they realized they had no oil so they quickly left to go purchase some. While they were out, the bridegroom came and collected the five that were ready and went to the wedding banquet. At that time, the door was shut.
The five who were out purchasing the oil came to the home and banged on the door asking for them to be allowed in. However, the bridegroom replied that he did not know them.
At the end of this parable, the Lord warns us to keep watch because we do not know the day or the hour of when Christ will return. The word watch here means “to keep watch” (meaning an action) and “to be on guard.”
This parable is so important to us today because sometimes as Christians, we become numb to the fact that one day Christ will return for His bride. We hear this time and time again and yet we let our guard down. It is so important for us to keep watch on our hearts, our minds and our character to make sure they are lining up with the Word of God. We must constantly be acting on the Word of God, obeying it and allowing it to change us from the inside out. We can’t let our guard down for if we do, we have a very real enemy who wants to steal, kill and destroy us.
Revelation 19:7-8 “Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.”
My prayer for each and every one of us is that we are preparing ourselves for the day that the Lamb comes to take his bride and that we are not allowing any obstacles to stand in our way. The last thing I want the Lord to say is “Get out of my way. I can’t see my bride.”
Monday, July 27, 2009
Are you willing to be an Elisha? By Kim Checkeye
I have been studying Elijah and Elisha in 1 Kings to prepare for an upcoming Bible Study I will be teaching this fall. One thing that has hit me more than words can express is 1 Kings 19:19, 20 “So he departed from there and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, while he was plowing with twelve pairs of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth. And Elijah passed over to him and threw his mantle on him. He left the oxen and ran after Elijah and said, “Please let me kiss my father and my mother, then I will follow you?” And he said to him, “Go back again, for what have I done to you?”
There are so many things to learn from these two verses that are so important for us today. The first point we see is that Elisha came from a wealthy family. We know this because he had twelve pairs of oxen that were being used to tend to the family farm. However, even though he came from a wealthy family, Elisha was out in the field putting his hand to the plow. He did not believe in being served, he believed in being a servant.
When Elijah threw his mantle on him, Elisha understood the symbolic application behind this and he immediately left the oxen and ran after Elijah. The second point we must see here is that Elisha received the call on his life while he was in his everyday work. So many times we expect to hear or see something “magical” when God calls us into the path that He has chosen for us. We expect to hear some audible booming voice coming down from the Heavens telling us what we are suppose to be doing. But in all reality, we are missing that soft still voice who is directing us in our everyday walk. How many times has God “called us” during our everyday life experiences and we didn’t hear it or see it because it wasn’t in the way we thought it should look?
Elisha didn’t hesitate or ask for a confirmation or doubt what he saw, he immediately ran after Elijah and asked permission to go back to his family and say good-bye. This is acknowledging that he is breaking from his past and stepping into the destiny that God had for him. This leads me to point number three. How many times do we get direction from the Lord but we are unwilling to break free from the past experiences in our life or break free from our natural tendencies? Ouch! I don’t know about you but this one hurts! Talk about a knife right to the heart of things. I know there are things in my life that the Lord is dealing with me so that He can transform me into the woman that I need to be for the call that He has placed on my life. To be point blank honest, that hurts sometimes. Sometimes it is scary and downright painful but in the end, being a disciple of Christ is far worth more than anything else on this earth.
This leads me to point number four. When Elijah threw his mantle on Elisha, this symbolized the passing of the anointing that was on Elijah. However, this did not mean that Elisha didn’t have to undergo some discipleship!!! Elisha had the unbelievable experience to take what he learned on the farm, being a servant, and apply it to being a servant to Elijah. Elisha was under the wing of Elijah and he was able to watch and learn from the man of God directly. What does this mean for us? God may call us but we will always have a time of training and learning from others. Take every bit of it and learn everything you can.
I thank God for my five years of being under Sally Hall during my time of serving within Truth for Women. These years were priceless as I watched and learned from a woman who was devoted to God. She taught me how to stand on the Word of God no matter what. She taught me how to grow as a leader and as a disciple of Christ. She taught me to learn from my mistakes and allow the Lord to mold me and change me. All that time was a training ground for today when I would take on the “mantle” of Truth for Women.
My question to all of you is “Are you willing to be an Elisha in this time? Are you willing to break free from your past and immediately step into a time of discipleship so you can be trained for the call on your life?”
There are so many things to learn from these two verses that are so important for us today. The first point we see is that Elisha came from a wealthy family. We know this because he had twelve pairs of oxen that were being used to tend to the family farm. However, even though he came from a wealthy family, Elisha was out in the field putting his hand to the plow. He did not believe in being served, he believed in being a servant.
When Elijah threw his mantle on him, Elisha understood the symbolic application behind this and he immediately left the oxen and ran after Elijah. The second point we must see here is that Elisha received the call on his life while he was in his everyday work. So many times we expect to hear or see something “magical” when God calls us into the path that He has chosen for us. We expect to hear some audible booming voice coming down from the Heavens telling us what we are suppose to be doing. But in all reality, we are missing that soft still voice who is directing us in our everyday walk. How many times has God “called us” during our everyday life experiences and we didn’t hear it or see it because it wasn’t in the way we thought it should look?
Elisha didn’t hesitate or ask for a confirmation or doubt what he saw, he immediately ran after Elijah and asked permission to go back to his family and say good-bye. This is acknowledging that he is breaking from his past and stepping into the destiny that God had for him. This leads me to point number three. How many times do we get direction from the Lord but we are unwilling to break free from the past experiences in our life or break free from our natural tendencies? Ouch! I don’t know about you but this one hurts! Talk about a knife right to the heart of things. I know there are things in my life that the Lord is dealing with me so that He can transform me into the woman that I need to be for the call that He has placed on my life. To be point blank honest, that hurts sometimes. Sometimes it is scary and downright painful but in the end, being a disciple of Christ is far worth more than anything else on this earth.
This leads me to point number four. When Elijah threw his mantle on Elisha, this symbolized the passing of the anointing that was on Elijah. However, this did not mean that Elisha didn’t have to undergo some discipleship!!! Elisha had the unbelievable experience to take what he learned on the farm, being a servant, and apply it to being a servant to Elijah. Elisha was under the wing of Elijah and he was able to watch and learn from the man of God directly. What does this mean for us? God may call us but we will always have a time of training and learning from others. Take every bit of it and learn everything you can.
I thank God for my five years of being under Sally Hall during my time of serving within Truth for Women. These years were priceless as I watched and learned from a woman who was devoted to God. She taught me how to stand on the Word of God no matter what. She taught me how to grow as a leader and as a disciple of Christ. She taught me to learn from my mistakes and allow the Lord to mold me and change me. All that time was a training ground for today when I would take on the “mantle” of Truth for Women.
My question to all of you is “Are you willing to be an Elisha in this time? Are you willing to break free from your past and immediately step into a time of discipleship so you can be trained for the call on your life?”
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
A Tribute to My Mother by Kim Checkeye
On June 14th, it would have been my mother’s 76th birthday. As the day gets closer, the more my thoughts are of her. My mom will be gone 18 years in August and yet, I still miss her dearly.
I have the awesome privilege of coaching my daughter’s lacrosse team and it brings back so many fond memories of my mother. You see, I played field hockey, basketball and lacrosse in high school and during those years, my mom was battling cancer. She had many chemotherapy and radiation appointments plus being sick, losing her hair, losing weight and the burns from the radiation were brutal. YET, she never missed one of my games. This amazing woman put aside her pain and suffering to be there for ME. To this day, it just amazes me.
I grew up in a Pennsylvania Dutch home where we were not told “I love you”. It just wasn’t something they did. However, they showed their love to me in other ways. To this day, when I close my eyes, I can still see my mom in the stands with her wig on screaming and cheering for our team. When I messed up, she yelled even harder to shake it off. I watched this woman deteriorate day by day in her body but she always had the strength to come to my games.
I remember how she was such a part of my siblings’ lives as they got married and had their children. She would go to their homes and clean their house for them and help with the children. She cooked dinners for them and was such a part of each of their lives.
In the last few months of her life, she longed for me to just sit with her on the couch. I would come home from school and she would ask me to just lay with her and hold her. This was NOT the norm in my family and I knew that she was coming to the end. I am so thankful for those times of just being with her. We really didn’t talk but we just sat there and held each other.
I will never forget the night she died. It was a life changing moment for me. The doctor had come to the house and they told my family that it was only a matter of time. I had lied to my dad about where I was going so they were calling everyone they could to find me. You see, I was 19 years old and even though I knew my mother was dying, I still had my own agenda. Finally, I came home and there were cars all over the driveway so I knew this was it. I ran up to the house and my sister-in-law whom I was very close to at the time, came out and tried to prepare me for what was to come. She had already lost her mom so she was trying to get me ready emotionally. However, nothing could have prepared me for what was about to happen.
My mom knew that we were all there and she was talking to us. She was telling us how she would be cheering for us even though she would not be there. She would slip in and out of consciousness yet she always knew where my dad was. He was sitting beside her in the hospital bed that we had set up in the living room. When she would slip into unconsciousness, she continued to turn her head towards my dad. At one point, she asked us all to leave the room so she could be alone with my dad. Oh, how I wish I knew what she said to him but that is a moment to be left between the two of them.
Finally, my mom began to talk about seeing a light, a brilliant vibrant light that was coming for her. At first, it kind of scared her but then she smiled and said “AHHHH!” Like she finally saw who it was who had come for her. A few moments later, she breathed her last breath and was gone. We called for the undertaker to come and get her but it took hours. We sat and watched the life drain out of her body and it was a sight that I will never forget. Watching someone’s body just drain away from life was absolutely horrible.
My family rallied and we spent every moment together preparing for the funeral. It was a precious time and the closest we have ever been. It is amazing how a tragedy can bring people together in ways you never thought was possible. However, the time came for everyone to return to their homes and I was scared of being alone with my dad. My dad was not an open and loving father. He rarely talked to us and when he did, he yelled. However, after the death of my mother, he changed. Something inside my father changed. I had the privilege of going out to dinner with him, going to get ice cream, going to the movies and doing things with him I had never done. I watched this man change before my eyes. I grew a bond with my father that was close and he became not only my daddy but he became my best friend.
Over the years, I have missed my mother being at my wedding, the birth of my daughters, me graduating from paralegal school, the building of our home etc. She has missed events of my life that I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that she would have been participating in with everything she had.
Through all of this, God has taught me so much about who I am and who He is. God has become my source of strength when the pain is so deep that I can’t even raise my head from my pillow. God has become my life line and the love of my life. God took the worse days of my life to use them to draw me closer to Him. He used them to show me who He truly is and how He truly sees me. A couple of times people have said to me “If there is a God, why would He have taken your mother from you at such a young age?” My response to them is this: God did not take my mother away. Nothing bad can come from God. Evil is not a part of Him. He is holy and just. Did God allow my mother to have cancer? Yes, He did. But God is all knowing and all powerful. He knows the plans for our lives before there was one day. He is my creator and the creator of all. God used the death of my mother and what happened that night to change the lives of others. God used her story to turn others to Him. I have witnessed it myself first hand. So how can I be angry at God when He took a horrible thing and turned it into something that would bring Him glory and honor?
This year my father is turning 77 and he is turning into a grumpy PA dutchy! Just being honest! He doesn’t want to leave his home and he doesn’t want to do anything. But you know what? He’s my daddy! I am thankful that God allows me to see my father in a whole different light. When my dad goes to buy birthday cards for his children, he spends so much time reading cards because he wants to pick that special one just for them. They are always cards filled of love and joy about his children. That’s his way of saying I love you. God has allowed me to see my father in a way that allows me to search for those precious signs of how he shows his love. My dad pulls out the sports section for my one brother because he knows how much he loves to keep track of teams. That’s him showing his love. I am grateful that God has given to me such an amazing mother and father that helped mold and create me to be the woman I am today.
God used the death of my mother to turn my life around. Since the age of 19, I have turned my life fully over to Him. Have I made mistakes? You bet I have!!!! Have I fallen short? Yes indeed. Is God still working on changing me to be more like Jesus? Yes!! I am a work in progress. But the truths that I have learned over the years are priceless. I know that God created me in my mother’s womb. I know that God knew me before the creation of the world. I know God choose me to be holy and blameless in His sight. I know when God looks at me He does not see a sinner but He sees His daughter covered by the blood of Jesus. I know that one day, I will be able to dance before Jesus and sing praise unto Him. And you know what? I know my mother will be there with me dancing along! She is free of cancer and free of worries because she is with the one true King of Kings!
I have the awesome privilege of coaching my daughter’s lacrosse team and it brings back so many fond memories of my mother. You see, I played field hockey, basketball and lacrosse in high school and during those years, my mom was battling cancer. She had many chemotherapy and radiation appointments plus being sick, losing her hair, losing weight and the burns from the radiation were brutal. YET, she never missed one of my games. This amazing woman put aside her pain and suffering to be there for ME. To this day, it just amazes me.
I grew up in a Pennsylvania Dutch home where we were not told “I love you”. It just wasn’t something they did. However, they showed their love to me in other ways. To this day, when I close my eyes, I can still see my mom in the stands with her wig on screaming and cheering for our team. When I messed up, she yelled even harder to shake it off. I watched this woman deteriorate day by day in her body but she always had the strength to come to my games.
I remember how she was such a part of my siblings’ lives as they got married and had their children. She would go to their homes and clean their house for them and help with the children. She cooked dinners for them and was such a part of each of their lives.
In the last few months of her life, she longed for me to just sit with her on the couch. I would come home from school and she would ask me to just lay with her and hold her. This was NOT the norm in my family and I knew that she was coming to the end. I am so thankful for those times of just being with her. We really didn’t talk but we just sat there and held each other.
I will never forget the night she died. It was a life changing moment for me. The doctor had come to the house and they told my family that it was only a matter of time. I had lied to my dad about where I was going so they were calling everyone they could to find me. You see, I was 19 years old and even though I knew my mother was dying, I still had my own agenda. Finally, I came home and there were cars all over the driveway so I knew this was it. I ran up to the house and my sister-in-law whom I was very close to at the time, came out and tried to prepare me for what was to come. She had already lost her mom so she was trying to get me ready emotionally. However, nothing could have prepared me for what was about to happen.
My mom knew that we were all there and she was talking to us. She was telling us how she would be cheering for us even though she would not be there. She would slip in and out of consciousness yet she always knew where my dad was. He was sitting beside her in the hospital bed that we had set up in the living room. When she would slip into unconsciousness, she continued to turn her head towards my dad. At one point, she asked us all to leave the room so she could be alone with my dad. Oh, how I wish I knew what she said to him but that is a moment to be left between the two of them.
Finally, my mom began to talk about seeing a light, a brilliant vibrant light that was coming for her. At first, it kind of scared her but then she smiled and said “AHHHH!” Like she finally saw who it was who had come for her. A few moments later, she breathed her last breath and was gone. We called for the undertaker to come and get her but it took hours. We sat and watched the life drain out of her body and it was a sight that I will never forget. Watching someone’s body just drain away from life was absolutely horrible.
My family rallied and we spent every moment together preparing for the funeral. It was a precious time and the closest we have ever been. It is amazing how a tragedy can bring people together in ways you never thought was possible. However, the time came for everyone to return to their homes and I was scared of being alone with my dad. My dad was not an open and loving father. He rarely talked to us and when he did, he yelled. However, after the death of my mother, he changed. Something inside my father changed. I had the privilege of going out to dinner with him, going to get ice cream, going to the movies and doing things with him I had never done. I watched this man change before my eyes. I grew a bond with my father that was close and he became not only my daddy but he became my best friend.
Over the years, I have missed my mother being at my wedding, the birth of my daughters, me graduating from paralegal school, the building of our home etc. She has missed events of my life that I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that she would have been participating in with everything she had.
Through all of this, God has taught me so much about who I am and who He is. God has become my source of strength when the pain is so deep that I can’t even raise my head from my pillow. God has become my life line and the love of my life. God took the worse days of my life to use them to draw me closer to Him. He used them to show me who He truly is and how He truly sees me. A couple of times people have said to me “If there is a God, why would He have taken your mother from you at such a young age?” My response to them is this: God did not take my mother away. Nothing bad can come from God. Evil is not a part of Him. He is holy and just. Did God allow my mother to have cancer? Yes, He did. But God is all knowing and all powerful. He knows the plans for our lives before there was one day. He is my creator and the creator of all. God used the death of my mother and what happened that night to change the lives of others. God used her story to turn others to Him. I have witnessed it myself first hand. So how can I be angry at God when He took a horrible thing and turned it into something that would bring Him glory and honor?
This year my father is turning 77 and he is turning into a grumpy PA dutchy! Just being honest! He doesn’t want to leave his home and he doesn’t want to do anything. But you know what? He’s my daddy! I am thankful that God allows me to see my father in a whole different light. When my dad goes to buy birthday cards for his children, he spends so much time reading cards because he wants to pick that special one just for them. They are always cards filled of love and joy about his children. That’s his way of saying I love you. God has allowed me to see my father in a way that allows me to search for those precious signs of how he shows his love. My dad pulls out the sports section for my one brother because he knows how much he loves to keep track of teams. That’s him showing his love. I am grateful that God has given to me such an amazing mother and father that helped mold and create me to be the woman I am today.
God used the death of my mother to turn my life around. Since the age of 19, I have turned my life fully over to Him. Have I made mistakes? You bet I have!!!! Have I fallen short? Yes indeed. Is God still working on changing me to be more like Jesus? Yes!! I am a work in progress. But the truths that I have learned over the years are priceless. I know that God created me in my mother’s womb. I know that God knew me before the creation of the world. I know God choose me to be holy and blameless in His sight. I know when God looks at me He does not see a sinner but He sees His daughter covered by the blood of Jesus. I know that one day, I will be able to dance before Jesus and sing praise unto Him. And you know what? I know my mother will be there with me dancing along! She is free of cancer and free of worries because she is with the one true King of Kings!
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
The Squirrel by Kim Checkeye
My husband and daughters gave me a bird feeder for my birthday one year. They hung it on a tree outside of my office window so I could watch the birds sit and feed. They also built me a birdhouse out of their own hands. However, the squirrels destroyed the bird feeder. They ripped off the stands and shattered the holes where the birds would feed. I had no idea these little creatures were so powerful. We bought a new feeder that was “squirrel proof.”
Yesterday, I was on the telephone with Sharon Brobst discussing the day to day work of Truth for Women. I looked outside my window and I saw a squirrel that was absolutely amazing. He was desperately trying to get food out of that “squirrel proof” bird feeder. I watched him twist his body every which way to try to get the food. But at one point, he dug his back legs into the tree and stretched his entire upper body out to the feeder. His front paws held on to the feeder while his back legs clung for dear life to the tree.
I started to laugh to Sharon and tell her about the squirrel. My exact words to her were “Boy this will preach to you. There has to be a sermon in this one.”
As I am sitting here this morning listening to the sounds of the birds singing praises to God, my mind wonders to that little squirrel. He knew that if he dug his feet into that tree and hung on to it with everything he had, he could reach that bird feeder which would supply him with the essentials his body needed. He was willing to do whatever it took to reach that supply of nourishment. He stretched his entire body to get the goal!
There are days in my walk with Christ that my spiritual body is so desperate and in need of nourishment of the Word of God. There are days that all I can do is dig my feet into the Truth of His Word and hold onto for dear life. There are days when I have to stretch myself to reach the essentials that I need in my spiritual walk.
Now, I must admit, there are times when I am just plain tired. Times when I am exhausted from the work of ministry and life. Times when I am so lonely for a friend. Lonely for someone to just talk too or go out for coffee.
Oh, how I need to be like that precious squirrel holding onto the Word of God as my lifeline and my plumb line. Holding onto His precious promises even though my mind and flesh is telling me not too. Holding onto His grace and love for me that my mind can’t comprehend. Then, at that very moment when that overwhelming feeling of just giving up comes crushing in, I must reach and stretch with everything that I have to reach for my source of strength and nourishment. Remembering that I am a little creature but the Spirit that is living in me is powerful. Using everything I have within me to press forward and push myself to reach the goal, to reach the prize! To reach that precious moment to feel the presence of my Lord and Savior.
I need to be just like that squirrel. I wonder if he really understands what he is doing or if it is just his natural instinct for survival? Lord, change me and mold me so my natural instinct is to do whatever it takes to reach you.
Thank you Lord God for sending that dear squirrel to my front yard as a reminder of who you are to me.
Yesterday, I was on the telephone with Sharon Brobst discussing the day to day work of Truth for Women. I looked outside my window and I saw a squirrel that was absolutely amazing. He was desperately trying to get food out of that “squirrel proof” bird feeder. I watched him twist his body every which way to try to get the food. But at one point, he dug his back legs into the tree and stretched his entire upper body out to the feeder. His front paws held on to the feeder while his back legs clung for dear life to the tree.
I started to laugh to Sharon and tell her about the squirrel. My exact words to her were “Boy this will preach to you. There has to be a sermon in this one.”
As I am sitting here this morning listening to the sounds of the birds singing praises to God, my mind wonders to that little squirrel. He knew that if he dug his feet into that tree and hung on to it with everything he had, he could reach that bird feeder which would supply him with the essentials his body needed. He was willing to do whatever it took to reach that supply of nourishment. He stretched his entire body to get the goal!
There are days in my walk with Christ that my spiritual body is so desperate and in need of nourishment of the Word of God. There are days that all I can do is dig my feet into the Truth of His Word and hold onto for dear life. There are days when I have to stretch myself to reach the essentials that I need in my spiritual walk.
Now, I must admit, there are times when I am just plain tired. Times when I am exhausted from the work of ministry and life. Times when I am so lonely for a friend. Lonely for someone to just talk too or go out for coffee.
Oh, how I need to be like that precious squirrel holding onto the Word of God as my lifeline and my plumb line. Holding onto His precious promises even though my mind and flesh is telling me not too. Holding onto His grace and love for me that my mind can’t comprehend. Then, at that very moment when that overwhelming feeling of just giving up comes crushing in, I must reach and stretch with everything that I have to reach for my source of strength and nourishment. Remembering that I am a little creature but the Spirit that is living in me is powerful. Using everything I have within me to press forward and push myself to reach the goal, to reach the prize! To reach that precious moment to feel the presence of my Lord and Savior.
I need to be just like that squirrel. I wonder if he really understands what he is doing or if it is just his natural instinct for survival? Lord, change me and mold me so my natural instinct is to do whatever it takes to reach you.
Thank you Lord God for sending that dear squirrel to my front yard as a reminder of who you are to me.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Are You Making Yourself Ready?
I am jealous for you with the jealousy of God himself.
For I promised you as a pure bride to one husband, Christ.
2 Corinthians 11:2
Let us be glad and rejoice and honor him.
For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb, and his bride has prepared herself. Revelation 19:7
And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven
like a beautiful bride prepared for her husband.
Revelation 21:2 (NLT)
Have you forgotten that you are My bride? Instead of making yourself ready you go out and play in the world forgetting to be careful to keep yourself separate. So your bridal clothes becomes dirty, torn and ragged. You walk around trying to be like them, and in your dirty clothes you forget Me.
You keep running around looking for where you belong, you keep trying to find love and acceptance. You forget you have an enemy that tells you that you are no longer worthy and your bridal clothes have been destroyed beyond repair.
My love for you is far greater and wider than you can ever imagine. Come to me my bride and I will give you new a new bridal dress. I will wash you whiter than snow. Stay with me and you will see that my love for you is never changing. My love for you is the same today as it was yesterday and it will still be there tomorrow. You will never have more or less of my love than you have right now. You have ALL my love.
Why do you continue to look to things and people? You continue to prostitute yourself to the world. You runs after your lovers. My bride I will not force you, but I will win you back once again.
I will lead you out into the desert and speak to you tenderly there. It will be in the dry and pain of the desert that you will give yourself to me as you did long ago. It will be then that you will come to see me as your beloved groom to whom you were promised.
I will make you my wife forever, showing you righteousness and justice, unfailing love and compassion.I will be faithful to you and make you mine, and you will finally know me as your Beloved Groom. I will show love to you and then I will say, Now you are my bride.
Then you will reply, You are my Groom.Oh come away with me my bride, let me love you. Make yourself ready for the marriage feast of your precious Lamb.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Do we truly get it? by Kim Checkeye
As we begin to prepare to enjoy Easter weekend, I can’t seem to shake this heavy heart. I have read time and time again what Jesus did for us on the cross and at times I asked myself “Do I truly get it?” Do I truly understand what Jesus did for me? I have seen the movies, watched the passion plays, listened to beautiful Easter choirs sing about redemption and forgiveness, but do I truly get it?
Throughout the gospels I read about this amazing teacher who healed the sick, healed the lame and loved people like no one else has ever loved anyone and yet, those same people turned on Him. The same people, who He healed and loved with an undying love, turned on Him and had Jesus crucified. Now I don’t know about you, but that’s when I start to judge them and think about how horrible they were. How could they have done that to Him? How could they have turned their back on Jesus when all He did was love them? How could they not trust Him when they watched Him heal people?
It doesn’t take long for that soft still voice in my heart to speak up and bring me back to reality. Wasn’t I just like them? To be frank and brutally honest, aren’t I still like them at times? For a long time in my life I did not know Christ as my Savior. At times I try to make my own paths for this life instead of following the one that God has created for me. Many times I don’t listen to that soft still voice or listen to what the Bible tells me about my character. How many times have I tried to figure something out on my own instead of just trusting and resting in God?
In Isaiah 52, the Bible tells us that Jesus was marred beyond human likeness and his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of ANY MAN! What this tells us is that all the movies and plays we have seen about the beating and death of Jesus Christ is nothing compared to what really happened. You see, when he hung on the cross in the performances, he still looked human. Clearly the Word tells us that Jesus did not look like a man when He hung on the cross because He was so disfigured from the beatings He had received. When Jesus went to the cross He was marred beyond human likeness.
That is what He willingly did for us because He loves us with an undying love. He did this for us so that we could have eternal life. He did this for us because it was the only way for our sins to be forgiven and we could have communion with the Father. He was beaten and bruised for our iniquities.
Do we truly get it?
The world is still looking for a savior when in all reality, the one true living Savior was already here. He died and rose again! He is seated at the right hand of God Almighty. All we have to do is acknowledge Him as our Savior and submit our life to Him. Surrender who we are and allow Him to changes us! Allow Jesus to take out that heart of stone and replace it with His love.
Do we truly get what Jesus Christ did for us?
Throughout the gospels I read about this amazing teacher who healed the sick, healed the lame and loved people like no one else has ever loved anyone and yet, those same people turned on Him. The same people, who He healed and loved with an undying love, turned on Him and had Jesus crucified. Now I don’t know about you, but that’s when I start to judge them and think about how horrible they were. How could they have done that to Him? How could they have turned their back on Jesus when all He did was love them? How could they not trust Him when they watched Him heal people?
It doesn’t take long for that soft still voice in my heart to speak up and bring me back to reality. Wasn’t I just like them? To be frank and brutally honest, aren’t I still like them at times? For a long time in my life I did not know Christ as my Savior. At times I try to make my own paths for this life instead of following the one that God has created for me. Many times I don’t listen to that soft still voice or listen to what the Bible tells me about my character. How many times have I tried to figure something out on my own instead of just trusting and resting in God?
In Isaiah 52, the Bible tells us that Jesus was marred beyond human likeness and his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of ANY MAN! What this tells us is that all the movies and plays we have seen about the beating and death of Jesus Christ is nothing compared to what really happened. You see, when he hung on the cross in the performances, he still looked human. Clearly the Word tells us that Jesus did not look like a man when He hung on the cross because He was so disfigured from the beatings He had received. When Jesus went to the cross He was marred beyond human likeness.
That is what He willingly did for us because He loves us with an undying love. He did this for us so that we could have eternal life. He did this for us because it was the only way for our sins to be forgiven and we could have communion with the Father. He was beaten and bruised for our iniquities.
Do we truly get it?
The world is still looking for a savior when in all reality, the one true living Savior was already here. He died and rose again! He is seated at the right hand of God Almighty. All we have to do is acknowledge Him as our Savior and submit our life to Him. Surrender who we are and allow Him to changes us! Allow Jesus to take out that heart of stone and replace it with His love.
Do we truly get what Jesus Christ did for us?
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Absolute Truth by Kim Checkeye
Do you believe the Word of God is the absolute Truth for your life? We live in a world that tells us that what we feel or what we think is the absolute truth for our life. That is a lie.
The word absolute means perfect in nature, complete, pure, total, not to be doubted or questioned.
The word truth means a fact, standard and proven to be accepted as true.
Absolute truth is a standard that is not to be doubted or questioned. It is perfect, complete, pure and unchangeable.
Do you believe that to be true of the Bible?
Do you believe that the Bible is the absolute truth to live your life?
Our enemy has been trying to make us doubt God's Word as absolute truth for our life since the beginning of time. Remember the Garden of Eden? In Genesis 2, God told Adam "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." In Genesis 3, the serpent came to the woman and put doubt in her mind about what God said. "Did God really say, You must not eat from any tree in the garden?" The enemy was putting doubt into Eve's mind. After that doubt was planted, the serpent went in and accused God of lying. "You will not surely die." Our enemy has been playing this game with us since the beginning of time. He is attempting to put doubt in our minds so we will doubt God's word as absolute truth for our life. Why does he do this? John 10:10 tells us. "He comes to steal, kill and destroy." What better way to do this then to make us doubt God's word as absolute truth for our life.
The Old Testament has over 300 prophecies of the coming Messiah. For Jesus Christ to have fulfilled 8 of those 300 would be a statistic of 1 out of 100,000,000,000,000,000! That is only for Christ to fulfill 8 of the 300. Yet, Christ fulfilled all 300 of them! We do not have a statistic for that one!
What about the Bible? It was written over a period of 1,500 years in various places stretching from Babylon to Rome. There were over 40 authors who were kings, peasants, poets, herdsmen, fishermen, scientists, farmers, priests, pastors, tent makers and governors. It was written in the wilderness, dungeon, inside palaces, prisons, lonely islands and military battles. Yet, it all ties together.
Psalm 119:160 All of God’s word is true
John 17:17 God’s word is truth
The bottom line is: Do you believe God’s word is absolute truth for your life?
Jan Silvious says “A Holy passion for God comes out of a determined, purposeful relationship with His Word.”
In order to begin to have a Holy passion for God, we need to believe that God’s Word is absolute truth for our lives. It is our foundation for how we act, how we speak, what our morals are based on and how we live our life. In this day and age, the Word of God is the only thing that we can stand on and trust. I know in my life, if I did not have the Word of God to stand on, I would have crumbled and fallen apart.
I challenge you to read the Bible everyday. I challenge you to study the Bible and apply it to your everyday life. I challenge you to shout from the roof tops the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The word absolute means perfect in nature, complete, pure, total, not to be doubted or questioned.
The word truth means a fact, standard and proven to be accepted as true.
Absolute truth is a standard that is not to be doubted or questioned. It is perfect, complete, pure and unchangeable.
Do you believe that to be true of the Bible?
Do you believe that the Bible is the absolute truth to live your life?
Our enemy has been trying to make us doubt God's Word as absolute truth for our life since the beginning of time. Remember the Garden of Eden? In Genesis 2, God told Adam "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." In Genesis 3, the serpent came to the woman and put doubt in her mind about what God said. "Did God really say, You must not eat from any tree in the garden?" The enemy was putting doubt into Eve's mind. After that doubt was planted, the serpent went in and accused God of lying. "You will not surely die." Our enemy has been playing this game with us since the beginning of time. He is attempting to put doubt in our minds so we will doubt God's word as absolute truth for our life. Why does he do this? John 10:10 tells us. "He comes to steal, kill and destroy." What better way to do this then to make us doubt God's word as absolute truth for our life.
The Old Testament has over 300 prophecies of the coming Messiah. For Jesus Christ to have fulfilled 8 of those 300 would be a statistic of 1 out of 100,000,000,000,000,000! That is only for Christ to fulfill 8 of the 300. Yet, Christ fulfilled all 300 of them! We do not have a statistic for that one!
What about the Bible? It was written over a period of 1,500 years in various places stretching from Babylon to Rome. There were over 40 authors who were kings, peasants, poets, herdsmen, fishermen, scientists, farmers, priests, pastors, tent makers and governors. It was written in the wilderness, dungeon, inside palaces, prisons, lonely islands and military battles. Yet, it all ties together.
Psalm 119:160 All of God’s word is true
John 17:17 God’s word is truth
The bottom line is: Do you believe God’s word is absolute truth for your life?
Jan Silvious says “A Holy passion for God comes out of a determined, purposeful relationship with His Word.”
In order to begin to have a Holy passion for God, we need to believe that God’s Word is absolute truth for our lives. It is our foundation for how we act, how we speak, what our morals are based on and how we live our life. In this day and age, the Word of God is the only thing that we can stand on and trust. I know in my life, if I did not have the Word of God to stand on, I would have crumbled and fallen apart.
I challenge you to read the Bible everyday. I challenge you to study the Bible and apply it to your everyday life. I challenge you to shout from the roof tops the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Welcome to the TFW Blog!
Our mission: Helping women to embrace God's word as truth!
Our vision: A spiritually healthy community full of women who are established in God's word and who understand and fulfill God's purposes for their lives.
We are in the process of developing this blog to be a place where Truth for Women will have the opportunity to share with you the heartbeat of the ministry. Through several staff members we will be posting the words of truth that God lays on our hearts.
Please check back soon to "hear" from us!
Our vision: A spiritually healthy community full of women who are established in God's word and who understand and fulfill God's purposes for their lives.
We are in the process of developing this blog to be a place where Truth for Women will have the opportunity to share with you the heartbeat of the ministry. Through several staff members we will be posting the words of truth that God lays on our hearts.
Please check back soon to "hear" from us!
Monday, April 6, 2009
Who we are
Truth for Women believes our greatest joy in living each day will be found as we live according to God’s plan and purpose. We seek to build community among women in the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania from every social, cultural, and or denominational background. A community where strengths, resources, and information are shared that will help us understand and fulfill God’s purpose for us as women.
Truth for Women ~ found only in the Word of God!
In the Bible, God tells us that His Word alone is Truth. God Himself wants us to know the Truth about the life He longs for us to have. As an interdenominational organization, God has called Truth for Women to provide, promote, and present women with opportunities to grow in true knowledge of Him. How? Through conferences, seminars, special events, church networking, and our website.
Truth for Women ~ found only in the Word of God!
In the Bible, God tells us that His Word alone is Truth. God Himself wants us to know the Truth about the life He longs for us to have. As an interdenominational organization, God has called Truth for Women to provide, promote, and present women with opportunities to grow in true knowledge of Him. How? Through conferences, seminars, special events, church networking, and our website.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Meet the Writers
Kim Checkeye Kim's ministry is founded on John 8:32 “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” Kim believes that the Word of God will bring victory and healing to all areas of our lives. She draws from her personal experiences of living a life of rejection, losing her mother to cancer and searching for love as she powerfully communicates to others that we have hope in Jesus Christ. Her sincerity touches your heart as she teaches and explores the Word of God to expose the lies we have allowed in our heart. Her down-to earth teaching will have you crying one minute and have you laughing the next.
Kim is President of Truth for Women. She is married to her husband Ben and is the mother of two girls, Hannah and Elizabeth. Kim is a motivational speaker and is available for seminars, conferences and retreats.
You can contact Kim at info@truthforwomen.org or visit her website at http://www.kimcheckeye.com/
Shana Minervini
Shana Minervini loves writing. God uses her life experiences to help her reach others through humor. She is originally from New Jersey and worked in New York City for 15 years. Shana loves the Lord and clings on to His promises. She has a heart for helping people in need. God planted the Truth for Women seed in her heart 4 years ago and is so grateful that seed is now in full bloom.
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Eileen Alpaugh
Eileen is a gifted speaker who brings a fresh and timely message from the heart of God. Her life is a glorious testimony to His lovingkindness, faithfulness and restoration power. Eileen will help you recognize the hand of God in the most difficult of circumstances and understand Scripture with Kingdom mentality. She serves as a Pastor's wife in an inner city ministry and is the Vice President of Truth for Women.
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Kelly Anne Liberto is a happy wife of thirty years and proud mama to three lovely young ladies. She spends her time writing, speaking and counseling on all that the Lord has done for her. Kelly shares her story of how God healed her miraculously from cancer on “Kelly’s Miracle”, a program created for the public access television show called “Total Recall”. Kelly is currently working on a full length novel in the supernatural thriller genre based on her experience of overcoming childhood sexual abuse.
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