Tag Archives: Jesus

Through The Will of God

2 Aug

Paul on Damascus Road

“Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, to the saints that are at Ephesus, and the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed [be] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly [places] in Christ:” Ephesians 1:1-3 ASV

Wait. Stop! What? “Paul, an Apostle, of Jesus Christ, Through the Will of God!” Paul?

Let’s step back a little bit in time. There was a man named Saul, of Tarsus, a Pharisee, who “knew” the Torah and Old Testament, being “zealous toward God” (Acts 22:4), believing that these followers of Jesus, these Christians, were an eminent threat to the Jews. Saul, who killed, imprisoned and persecuted the men and women of Christ, without mercy (Acts 7:58), because of his misunderstood faith. Saul who, one day, was on a mission to capture Christians to bring them to punishment when he met Jesus on the Damascus road. Jesus called his name (Acts 22:6), filled him with the Holy Spirit (Acts 9:17), changed his entire life (Acts 9:15), and created the most persuasive disciple to the Jews, Romans and Greeks. “Paul – – – through the will of God.”

Do you remember the day that Jesus called your name? I will never forget the night I cried out “here am I Lord, please come into my heart.” That night I became one of the “Faithful in Christ Jesus” with little to give, but zealous to learn and grow. I wasn’t called to change nations like Paul was, I was called to touch the wounded and hurting that crossed my path . . . through the will of God.

When God puts His Spirit inside of us, when He puts a call in our heart, whether big or small, it is purposed, it is specific, for our time. We don’t know where the finances will come from, we don’t know if there will be others to help, we don’t even know whether we will be wise enough to make the decisions and speak the words to impact the people God has called us to minister to. But, we do know that the burning is so deep inside to complete the call of God, with the “Grace and Peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph 1:2) that we cannot stop.

We lean on Ephesians 1:3, knowing that God has blessed us with EVERY Spiritual blessing to accomplish our task. “Every Spiritual blessing in Heavenly places in Christ,” not just financial blessings, not just wisdom, not just the minimum amount of blessing needed, but with “Every Spiritual Blessing.”

Lord, please help us to run the race you have set before us in full confidence that you run beside us and have given us all we need to finish the call, not matter how large or small, or the mistakes we have made in the past . . . . through Your will.

*A Journey Through Ephesians – Chapter 1, Part 1

Written by Linda J. Humes

7-3-14

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You Covered Me

28 Jul

To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: Ecclesiastes 3:1 KJV

God, this season has been the most difficult season of my life, But You covered me.

When scripture verses made no sense and chapters were just blurred words on a page, You reminded me that they never change, are never returned void, are always “Yes” and “Amen.”

When I searched for answers, only to find confusion and frustration, You sent me the right words through the voice of another.

When the weakness and fatigue overwhelmed me and all I could do was sleep or rest in my chair, I felt Your strong arms as You held me.

When loneliness started to creep in and I wondered what I had done to cause You to abandon me, You showed me that You were right there with me, every moment of every day.

When the illness made me doubt my faith, and all I know to be true, You wiped my tears and held me closer.

As I get stronger I can see the many miracles you provided along this journey, I am so grateful.

How do I thank a mighty God who holds a universe in His hands and knows the needs of every falling sparrow? By being an instrument of Your love. Knowing that You will always be there, Covering Me.

—

Written by Linda J. Humes

5-16-18

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THE GADSDEN

27 Jul

“Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” Romans 6:4 -KJV

We recently made a trip to Douglas, Arizona to visit my son. Motel choices in that little town are few and our experience during our last trip was more than unpleasant. We did not want to revisit the same motel and the huge black bugs that came under our door in droves and up into our beds.

There were three motel choices, two of them appearing quite unhealthy, one was $20 more per night. We were on a shoestring budget but decided to eat cheaper and spend the money for a nicer room at the Gadsden Hotel.

The Gadsden Hotel is a colorful hotel with wonderful history and lots of character. Being built in 1907 will give you a clue to the character; being in a poor border town will give you another. The strong walls and structure will stand forever, but the amenities leave much to be desired. The rooms are functional and fairly clean, but the walls and ceiling are cracking and what could be an amazing stay in historical elegance was just a room in an old hotel that was once elite.

All around the hotel were little ghost icons. I asked our waitress, with a “cute” little ghost icon on her apron, whether she had ever seen the “ghost”.

“No,” she said in an eerie voice, “but I know they are all around us!” I told her that I had read an article which said that the Gadsden “ghost” was most seen in the basement.

“Yes,” she said, “I hate to go down there, it’s creepy.”

Not wanting to go into a religious teaching on spirits versus ghosts, I stifled a chuckle and headed for my room. The thought crossed my mind – I wonder what they would do if I decided to head to the basement for a little demon casting – bet I’d be ushered out of town on a rail, all tarred and feathered.

This hotel was using a “ghost” as a marketing tool, clinging to their “ghost” and creating an exciting atmosphere for the supernaturally curious. Sad.

How many of us not only cling to the “ghosts” of our past, but thrive on retelling our “ghost stories” for attention? Do we create cute little “ghosts” or bigger than life horrific “ghosts”? Can’t we see that with these stories, repeated over and over again, that we give the demons of our past strongholds to grow larger and stronger? Don’t we realize that we give life to the words we speak; good or evil, love or hate, truth or lie?

Lord, always help me to recognize when I cling to a demon of the past I resurrect it bigger than life. Remind me not to “bury” the ghosts of the past, only to exhume them so I can “one up” another tale of misfortune. Instead, let me bury the hurts of my past for good. Help me to always speak life and leave the buried past under the Blood of Jesus.

By Linda J. Humes

Written 7-1-11

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True Purity

20 Mar

But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. James 3:17

In this world of sexual explosions and the pressures of looking sexy instead of wholesome, it’s tough. Nearly every television program promotes casual sex and nearly ever TV commercial tries to convince you that purchasing their product will guarantee absolute “sexiness”.  Movies not only indicate that casual sex is acceptable, but that “everyone” does it, AND they show you how it’s done – in living explicit color. Secular music not only encourages sexiness and casual sex, but violence to go with it.  In this culture of 2010, purity takes on a whole new meaning, if you follow the cultural mores. But, being bombarded with cultural “rights and wrongs” isn’t the hardest part of purity.

Purity is a state of mind. Purity is recognizing what is Biblically acceptable and building up from there. Purity not only involves the sexual area of our lives, but the mental and spiritual areas of our lives. Purity is how we perceive everything.

I believe thoughts are the most difficult area of our live to draw into purity. We watch the impoverished and judge . . . “if they would only” . . . they wouldn’t be in that mess. We see the rich . . . “if they would only” . . . other people could have a chance. Race prejudice, wealth/poverty prejudice, religious prejudice, regional prejudice, birth defect prejudice, hair color prejudice – prejudice for prejudice sake. Impure thoughts toward a person or group of people we don’t even know, yet we judge them and call it righteous.

Then there are the spiritual impurities. We feel it is okay for us to judge, banish, and ridicule those who have faith in areas that are not the same as ours. We feel that it’s okay to judge people with our same faith and beliefs, but who aren’t part of “our” church, so they must be less spiritual, less valuable, and perhaps they aren’t “saved” because they aren’t “US”, AND they are making the same comments about us and our church.

How do we get to the point that Mother Theresa was at, where she saw Jesus in the eyes of every person; no matter that the state of their life was? How do we get to the point that Billy Graham was at when he went into the prison and hugged Jim Bakker, when the entire world was condemning him for using God’s people to build his own kingdom? I think of the pictures of soldiers in Iraq who are rocking dead children covered in blood. How do we see past the “enemy” to the child God made; past the outside that is filthy and drug ridden; past the hooker walking the streets, aged well past their years. How do we step into their lives, for just a moment, and see the pain in their lives that caused them to make the choices they have. How do we see past the outside? Purity.

Purity allows us to see through the eyes of Jesus.

Purity allows us to love for the sake of the broken.

Purity allows us to give people chance after chance, even after they have failed many, many times.

Purity is HOPE.

Purity is LOVE.

Purity is Jesus inside of us.

I pray daily for Purity.

Written by Linda J Humes

Written on 3-19-2010

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Rich in Faith

9 Mar

“I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.” Revelation 3:18 (KJV)

—

When my youngest son was in grade school, he took great pride in telling people that he was going to be a millionaire. We all smiled, cheered him on, and knew that in light of the failing economy, his dream would probably always remain that . . . a dream.

My son was dogged determined to believe in his wealthy future, even though his friends and acquaintances laughed at him. At home we let him dream. Every week he had a new plan on how he was going to make it happen; logistics aside, he had it all figured out.

One day he began to question me, “When I’m a millionaire, what kind of house do you want me to buy you?”

“A small house on an acre; easy for me to clean and yet room for all of my animals,” I said.

Next he asked, “When I’m a millionaire, what kind of a car do you want me to buy for you?”

That was easy, “A car that holds my whole family and starts every time I turn the key.”

He sat there perplexed for a few minutes and then quietly said, “Mom, you’ve been poor for so long that you don’t know how to dream rich anymore.”

Dreaming about being financially rich was never something I did. I grew up in poverty and learned how to stretch a dollar at a young age. When we had a little extra, we shared. When we had a little less, we did without and we did just fine. Money was never something that defined me . . . my faith was.

My faith and trust in God has made me feel rich beyond belief. When my children chose to spread their wings and walk away from our home and our beliefs; I knew God was watching over them. When doctor’s reports came in with shadows of death, the faithful prayers of the Saints brought a miracle. When my job was gone and I had to search for a new job along with millions of other people; God provided a wonderful job and made provision for us as we waited. I could not buy the things that my God has given me . . . even if I had all the money in the world.

Thank you Jesus for being my provider, my healer, my Savior and my friend. Thank you for always making me feel abundantly, exceedingly rich!

—

Written By Linda J. Humes

Written on 3-4-2012

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The Flame Inside

13 Feb

“And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”   Acts 2:3-4

 

The flame that glows inside my soul speaks endless words:

  • Words of Joy for the brokenhearted,
  • Words of Peace for those caught in turmoil,
  • Words of Healing for those who suffer,
  • Words of Hope for those in despair,
  • Words of Patience for those who strive,
  • Words of Kindness for those who have suffered at the hands and words of others,
  • Words of Gentleness for those who have lived through trauma,
  • Words of Self-Control for those torn by addictions,
  • Words of Goodness to those who have felt the pains of rejection,
  • Words of Faithfulness for those who have been betrayed,
  • And Words of Love for every soul, young and old, pleasant and tormenting, with a deeper portion for the most unlovable.

 

Lord God, give me the power to unleash the flame,

Growing it large enough to cover every need with Warmth and Grace.

 

Let my words flow with the gift of Life.

Use Me . . . . .

————

Written by Linda J. Humes on 2-13-2018

Published 2-18-2018

Republished 10-13-2021

Republished 6-26-2022

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WHAT IF HE . . .

17 Sep

“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”  Philippians 4:19  KJV

 

💕

What if He hadn’t done it that day,

Fashioned our lives with compassion and clay.

💕

What if the Garden had soon been destroyed,

Because of man’s sin against God, there deployed.

💕

What if He hadn’t called Noah to build,

If He’d thought it easier if all had been killed.

💕

What if He hadn’t called Moses to lead,

Had left wayward people to tend Pharaoh’s needs.

💕

What if He hadn’t sent Manna for food,

But waited ‘til man proved righteous and good.

💕

What if He hadn’t sent Giants to flight,

If He hadn’t called David to stand up and fight.

💕

What if He hadn’t sent Joshua to scout,

If all those who went said there was no way out.

💕

What if He hadn’t sent people to pray,

Provide for the Prophets, to open the way.

💕

What if He hadn’t sent Jesus to die,

Then where, in God’s world, would stand you and I.

💕

What if He hadn’t resurrected that day,

Come back to earth to show us the way.

💕

And what if He hadn’t called you and I,

But left us to sin, to shame and to die.

💕

But He didn’t leave us, Never will the Word reads.

He stands right beside us, And provides all our needs.

 

 

 

💕 Written 3/18/95

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SACRIFICE

16 Sep

“By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.”  Hebrews 13:15  KJV

✝

The Ancient of Days,

cast Himself to the earth,

in the form of a seed,

in the womb of a virgin.

✝

Subject, now, to heat and cold,

to fatigue and illness,

to prejudice and ridicule,

to suffering and pain.

✝

The Ancient of Days,

became man,

flesh, blood and Spirit;

willingly giving,

the power of deity,

for the birth of a nation.

✝

The God of Jessie,

born through the sacrifice of blood,

to become the blood sacrifice.

✝

From the promises to Adam,

to the revelation shown John,

the blood of God coursed the earth,

changing strength and direction,

at the tributary called Christ.

✝

The new stream of Christ,

fed the trees of new life,

where the roots of the old,

were washed clean.

✝

The water, most pure,

chased the stagnant pools of red,

that once rinsed man’s hands,

but touched not the soul.

✝

The water, most pure,

flowed over and cleansed,

the wounds of the past,

refreshing the hope,

of a dark, tarnished dream.

✝

The water of life,

borne from the blood,

of an innocent man,

takes sweet revenge,

on the deepest of sin.

✝

Released to be washed,

by the power of mercy,

by the treasure of grace,

it rises back up,

to the base of the cross.

✝

There, at the cross,

the blood and water,

of grace and mercy,

flows down to the earth,

as forgiven sin reaches up,

meeting at the feet of Christ.

✝

Running together they became one,

the earth shook with promise,

the sky darkened,

to reveal a new light,

and the rivers flowed,

with a new wine,

washing clean the weary souls,

of all that would reach forth,

in praise.

✝

 

 

Written 10-18-1998

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PRAISE

14 Sep

“For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish:”  2 Corinthians 2:15 KJV

✝

Breath of Heaven,

whispers down,

soothes,

caresses,

covering,

with sweet oils,

of the anointing.

✝

The face of God,

reflects in the tears

of the worshiper.

✝

Water and oil,

flowing together,

drips to the ground.

✝

Called to earth,

by the sweet fragrance,

of sacrificed praise;

sweet,

fresh,

Rose of Sharon.

✝

His robe whispers,

billows,

whispers,

as His feet gently tread,

on Holy Ground.

✝

The Angels sing,

Holy,

Holy.

The anointing flows,

covers,

soothes,

caresses.

✝

Holy, Holy,

as the voice of God,

reaches the lost,

and bursts forth,

once again,

in Praise.

✝

 

Written 7-17-97

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LITTLE CHILD

12 Apr

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. Luke 4:18-19

…

Huddled mass, skin and bone,

Family gone, not a home.

Alcohol, to soothe the pain,

Curb the heat, repel the rain.

…

The future looks very bleak,

Live day by day, week by week.

Need to change, don’t know how,

Need it bad, need it now.

…

Little child, deep inside,

I am here, I am light,

Come to Me,

You’ll be free.

I am Jesus.

…

Every night, fight and steal,

Need the drugs, need to deal.

Seated deep, anger hides,

Worthlessness, fear inside.

…

Drugs help forget, take you high,

Just for today, it’s gone tonight.

Have to stop, too much strife,

I want to love, I want a life.

…

Little child, deep inside,

I am here, I am light,

Come to Me,

You’ll be free.

I am Jesus.

…

Daytime I sleep, nights work the street,

Sometimes it’s okay, sometimes I’m beat.

Don’t matter to no one, no one to care,

I can’t run away, I wouldn’t dare.

…

I still have a family, ran away from that mess,

Afraid to go back, they hate me, I guess.

I want to be wanted, want someone to care,

I need arms to hold me, someone to be there.

…

Little child, deep inside,

I am here, I am light,

Come to Me,

You’ll be free.

I am Jesus

…

Work all day, sometimes nights,

Work is tough, at home we fight.

Plagued by bills, how can we pay,

Sometimes I want to run away.

…

A wife and kids, they need to be fed,

Would they do better with me dead.

I can’t hardly cope with the pressure today,

There must be something, there must be a way.

…

Little child, deep inside,

I am here, I am light,

Come to Me,

You’ll be free.

I am Jesus.

…

Home all day, kids to tend,

House to clean, clothes to mend.

Screaming and fussing, night and day,

I want out, but there’s no way.

…

Husband’s late, if he comes home at all.

Drinking and fighting, never does call.

Don’t want today, don’t want tomorrow,

There must be some way to end this sorrow.

…

Little child, deep inside,

I am here, I am light,

Come to Me,

You’ll be free.

I am Jesus.

…

When it all seems to hard,

When there seems no way out,

When it all seems so hopeless,

Lives of anger and doubt.

…

There’s one who can help you,

He’s faithful and strong.

He’s waiting to greet you,

Whatever your wrongs.

…

He is Jesus.

Written 3/17/95

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