All things are possible

Today's Jesus card reading is a difficult one to write upon, I felt there was not enough background information in it. So I went to the passage in the Bible in order to make better sense of it.

"He answered, 'Because of your little faith [your lack of trust and confidence in the power of God]; for I assure you and most solemnly say to you, if you have [living] faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and [if it is God’s will] it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.'" (Matthew 17.20)

As I searched in the Amplified Bible Version, I saw that the passages leading up to today's Jesus card was when the disciples could not drive the demon out from the infected sufferer, a child, at that (Matthew 17. 15-6). When they left, feeling utterly dejected, they in private asked Jesus, "Lord, why could we not exorcise this demon?" (Matthew 17.14-20). Jesus replied, "Because of your little faith (lack of trust and confidence) (Ibid).

And this is what today's message is - no matter how unsure you are, no matter how inadequate you feel, no matter how full of rot you believe to have festering in you - tell the devil "NO! Go back to where you came from!"

Fake it till you make it, and I will witness to you a hundred times over, you WILL make it, in every challenge in your life, whether it be spiritual or secular. Say affirmations, read spiritual literature, get out of that chair you've been sitting in for the past few hours and (try to) touch your toes, take a shower, put on a new set of clothing. But more importantly, repeat to yourself that you are a child of God. Repeat it until is so ingrained in you, not only do you start to believe it, it becomes effortless to remember and call upon it.

Jesus promises us that with the faith of a mustard seed - a tiny seed that dies and and then grows very quickly into a very large tree that houses the birds, gives shade to the weary, and provides nourishment for us - our smallness is deceiving. We have the Power of God propelling us, and therefore NOTHING is impossible (Matthew 17.20). Amen.

Saving faith

Today's Jesus card is living in the peace that is given to us when we have faith in our Lord and Saviour.

Once again, we have the reoccurring theme of salvation through faith. In today's reading I would like to emphasize on the faith that with God, all things are possible, and this is also a short theme in the predecessor reading. 

Even when all of our resources are deplenished, even when we feel totally alone and abandoned, even when we have let ourselves and those around us down, and have to count from minute to minute just to survive - when we have a real trust in God, a real praise for Him, we will soon and miraculously see that he will repay us when we suffer alongside him, He WILL give us what we both want and need (Deuteronomy 30.3).

This is God's promise to all of us, absolutely all of us. Hurt, suffer, cry, yell, kick the wall, but never forget that God is right there, and at anytime you want to collapse to the floor, he will cover you completely with his healing love and protection. And when you rise, remember to testify, remember that God healed you of your madness, and prosperity will soon follow you (Jeremiah 29.11).

So go in peace, let your cross be lifted high in the faith that God WILL DELIVER YOU!! (Psalm 50.15) Amen.

Ask and ye shall receive

Today's Jesus card reading is about receiving our heart's desires.

But unlike what Doreen Virtue (The author of these cards) used to teach about the laws of attraction and abundance, and what she today recognizes to be false, this teaching by Jesus is not about wishing on stars, or focussing really really hard to get what we want. Rather once again, it is about pure faith - the same unfettered faith that saves us.

This is a very confusing teaching, because this sentence on it's own makes it appear that we can have anything, and yet the Christian knows this simply is not so. Our flesh is never to get what it wants. for our commandment is to die to the flesh (Romans 8.13). So I pulled up the verses leading to today's card for reference:

"Do not doubt in his heart [in God’s unlimited power], but believes that what he says is going to take place, it will be done for him [in accordance with God’s will]. For this reason I am telling you, whatever things you ask for in prayer [in accordance with God’s will], believe [with confident trust] that you have received them, and they will be given to you." (Mark 11. 23-4)

So we need to really understand God's will before sending our requests. For me, if I really want something in a situation, but I sincerely do not know if it's what is best for me, or for any others who might be involved, I pray only that I act in accordance with God's will. To only pray to act in God's will is the greatest message in today's reading, because God will provide what we need. So let us default to asking what we need in times of not understanding what is best for us, knowing very well what we want, but also having an open enough mind to recognize that it might not actually be good for us. 

To ask in earnest faith is to submit to God's will - to say, "Let me live in accordance with your Will - Thy will be done", with confident trust, we do not need to ask God for what we wish - we don't even want to. 

Greater works

Today's card reading is about doing as great works as Jesus!

I have always appreciated this teaching: I love anything that tells me how great I can be! And all I have to do is believe that Christ will save me - I don't even have to fully understand, I just have to accept his peace :) "Lord, I believe - help me with my disbelief!" (Mark 9.24). How reassuring it is to know that while I am given the encouragement to be perfect as God is perfect (Matthew 5.48), I don't have to have it all figured out.

We can overcome the obstacle of living in our imperfections, "missing the mark" (1 Timothy 6:20-1), and feel sure that we are still fit to reach countless people - "greater" (more than) who Jesus sought after when he was on Earth (Matthew 15.24). And all we need is to have the trust and faith that we will be carried through to the end (2 Timothy 4.7).

When we keep the faith, when we persevere through our shortcomings, when we lose confidence in self and gain confidence in God, thereby not allowing others to hinder us, we perform great works - we convict and save lives (Matthew 18.18). What greater power in the world is there than that?

Seek ye first the kingdom of God

Today's Jesus card reading is about putting God before all else. This is true humility, and the humble will inherit the Earth (Matthew 5.5). Imagine how enjoyable it will be to have dominion with God.

It is so easy to forget this, but I have found that when I truly believe that God loves me and is thinking about me constantly, giving His blessings and encouragement for me take the right path that he has laid out before me, it becomes so easy to have him, in turn, continually in the forefront of my mind - to be humble.

Listening to His angels that He sends has really helped to keep me on track, because they are  continually rooting for me, giving me their strength to help me trust that His will for me is good, and that I will be so happy if I only follow His path. And the first step that I must take is for Him, before my second. And I am second. 

When I remember that of myself I am nothing (John 14.10), I will be lifted up, to the point that my sheer presence will lift others up, and this is God's will for me, for all of us. This is easy to do, because when I remember to seek God's kingdom first, I remember how good I am going to feel during and after my good works. 

God puts me first, he loves me to the point of death (Philippians 2.8). When I remember this, I am so happy to seek His kingdom first, as well. And when all that is undesirable yields to me (Luke 10.20), not only do I receive all that I truly, truly desire, I cannot regret loving God with every last bit of me (Luke 10.27), because there is absolutely no shame, in seeking the kingdom of God (Romans 10.11).

Agape love

Today's card reading is about love for one another. Jesus commanded us to love one another, but it is not the type of love that we are understanding it to be. The original word for "love" as written in Greek is "agapate", (agape), and it means sacrifice and obedience.

So how did Jesus love us? First he healed his followers and then he died for all. Not only that, he was tortured and then executed in a horrific way. Jesus commanded his disciples to love one another as he loved them, and after giving this commandment, Peter talked the talk, saying that he did, but Jesus knew the truth - that he would be renounce him. Still, Jesus still loved Peter, despite his dishonesty (John 13.37-8). So to live by this example is the real love that he was teaching about. 

"Dying to self" is to very root of the Christian's life; it means to abandon one's own desires to instead care about what God wants - which is to take care of one another. We are to help each other carry our burdens (Galatians 6.2), this is the will of God that we cannot seem to understand.

When we love one another as Jesus loves us, our path becomes straight and easy (Matthew 7.13). We have more energy, are more happy, and we become open to receiving the peace of Christ in its fullest, which is to be completely comfortable throughout our days and nights. Amen. 

The bread of life

Today's card reading is about Jesus being the Way to everlasting life. 

In the Gospel of John, the most beautiful and mystical gospel, Jesus refers to himself as "manna", in order to explain that He is the Way to eternal life (John 6.35). This is a comparison in the New Testament to the Old, and is a common teaching tool, to when the Israelites were fleeing from Egypt. God provided them with bread from heaven in the morning (Exodus 16.4), but this was only to keep their bodies alive. Jesus was the Messiah for the soul - he was no great warrior, and this is why the Israelites rejected him as their Messiah. The Christ would not defeat their human enemies, he would only defeat our spiritual enemies, for we battle not against flesh, but against principalities from above (Ephesians 6.12).

When we accept Christ, we not only receive peace within, but we are confident in our inheritance that he prepared for us, which is the mansion that we will live in (John 14.2). No matter what our Cross to bear is, remember that Jesus went before us, for us, and he will help you carry your burden (John 15.18 + Matthew 11.28-30).

I believe that every person has one (and only one) cross, but that cross can manifest in multiple, and at times overwhelming, ways in our days and nights. I have spoken with Jesus about the cross that I had to bear during a stressful time in my life about a year and a half ago, and I can testify that when we ask for His help, we will be relieved immediately. There are many theories to the meaning of life, but when we truly believe that our time on Earth is but a passageway, it is much more easy for us to believe in God.

This why we are taught to pause throughout our day, because then we can not only recognize and then reflect on the solitary thorn in our sides, putting it into perspective, but more so because in that stillness we know that God is present (Psalm 46.10). We are then relieved of the fear that Christ came to free us of, and life becomes less heavy once again. This is because we are not here for temporal life, but for everlasting life. Amen. 

Forgiveness

Today's Jesus card reading is on forgiveness.

When we think of forgiveness, we think of showing mercy on a person, however in this reading, I would like to focus on self-forgiveness, because when we don't have compassion for ourselves, we don't welcome God's peace, His grace, and in rejecting this, we are greatly hurting ourselves. 

To have forgiveness is to not worry, and to not worry is to accept, and to accept is to recognize, and to recognize is to admit, and when we admit a fault, we may be forgiven. To be forgiven is to have true and lasting peace. But we are taught that in order to receive this peace, we must first offer it.  

Everyone makes mistakes, and we tend to live in the fear that we will suffer material or spiritual consequences when we make a mistake. But God never works that way - God is Love, and Love keeps no records of wrongs (1 Corinthians 13.5 + 1 John 4.8). Rather, what God really wants is for us to let go of regret and fear, and this is where real forgiveness enters us. To practice forgiveness, is to truly be penitent, and to believe fully that God will not only forgive us, but allow us to forgive ourselves. 

When we receive peace from forgiveness, we become grateful for what we do have, and what we don't have suddenly seems less important. We can see more clearly, which means we can see more truthfully. 

What a beautiful world we create for ourselves, when we forgive us our shortcomings, as God forgives us our trespasses. 

Provided for

Today's card reading is an extension of yesterday's reading: do not worry, for God knows exactly what we need, and He will provide!

Today's verse follows one of my favourite in the Bible, "Look at these lilies: see how they neither reap nor sow, and yet not even Solomon was dressed as fine as these." (Matthew 6:28-9). I really find this the most beautiful and comforting passage. God knows what we need, and he can, and does, take care of us. But do we really look and see?

We might find ourselves feeling overwhelmed by events that can happen in our days, and yes, this can easily make us shortsighted, muddling our ability to accept His peace, but when we seek comfort in the faith that we will be provided for, we can see that they are never so engulfing that we cannot manage, or even conquer them. 

Make a conscious effort to see past the challenges or disappointments that today might present you with, and recognize these inconveniences for what they really are - darts that the enemy is throwing at you in order to break your faith (Ephesians 6.16). But fear not! Be steadfast in your trust that God will relieve you of your setbacks! Where is your focus? Is it toward what is exciting about your day (even if it might seem mundane), or on the obstacles that you perceive to be in your way? Instead, look to The Way, that is God, and you will find yourself fully and completely provided for. 

God's peace

Today's Jesus card reading is about peace, more importantly, the peace that the Lord gives to us. 

Is there something in your life at this exact moment that you can immediately recall to the forefront of your mind that is taking your peace? I am sure that you don't even need to recall it, it has probably never moved to the recess of your mind. Are you feeling irritable of a routine, afraid of future events, or uncertain of a decision that needs to be made? This is the time to call upon God for His guidance and peace, even if it is not Jesus directly, because all of the Son of man's power is authorized through God the Father, anyway (Matthew 28.18).

Dear one, causing doubt is the devil's tactic - it is the strongest weapon that he uses. In the Old Testament he is called the Accuser. and in the New Testament his is called the father of lies (John 8.44). Spiritual warfare is the doubt, worry, and lack of faith that causes us to take matters into our own hands. As in the Garden of Eden, it is our greatest downfall to erroneously believe that we are like God, and can do what only He can do, and know what only He can know (Genesis 3.2-4). This is the folly that all humans fall into, but Christ offers us the Way around the landmines that destroy us, and the traps that ensnare us.

Today, make a conscious resolution that no matter what strife or fear you are experiencing, you will trust that there is a greater plan for you, more glorious than anything your broken spirit is equipped to process during this vulnerable time. Trust that God will protect you, and have the faith that you will get what you truly want in the end.

God rewards those who persevere. In fact, those who persevere are called saints - that is its true definition. So take heart! Your troubles have already been overcome (John 16.33), and peace is waiting for you, ready for the taking, at the exact and immediate moment that you choose to trust in God's healing power. 

Temptations

Welcome to my first Doreen Virtue Jesus Card Reading!! The way this works is, I select a card from a deck, and then write about it. It is very similar to Tarot, however, as shown below, it is not used to predict the future. I like to view it as opening the page to a random spot in a motivational book, as the Spirit guides us, but that there is a bit more ritual and intent involved. 

Today's card is about temptation. But it's more than just that. Temptation is all around us in every form imaginable. From food to sex to wrong thinking to laziness to anger.....the list goes on! Temptation is boring and uninspiring. No, the real message is to pray to be safe from temptation. Prayer is the true focus of today's card reading.

The Bible tells us to pray ceaselessly and tirelessly (1 Thessalonians 5.17-18). So the question really is, How free do we want to be? True strength is found only in humility, which means to know that of ourselves, we are nothing - it is the Father who doeth the work! (John 14.10). How well do we fight temptation on willpower alone? After an honest appraisal, chances are it will be revealed, not very well :)

There is nothing wrong in our weakness, for then we are strengthened in God (1 Thessalonians 5.17-18). So pray continuously to be relieved of the burdens of self; be sober and vigilant of the shortcomings that I know you work so courageously on (1 Peter 5:8), and then go into the world and be a witness to the miracle of God's saving grace. Announce the perfection that is your inheritance (Matthew 5:48), being confident that it will come into fruition, through God's complete and fulfilling love, and in our watching for anything that could be a stumbling block in our journey back to innocence. Amen.

Enoch

I had a friend from the Internet and we studied scripture together. We didn't focus on the same topics, but he was well versed in the Old Testament, and I was well versed in the New. However, he for the most part rejected Christianity. We got along amiably for years, we even talked in a round about way in forming our own belief system. He was so committed to his studies that he lived in the Middle East for years to aid in this research. Then he had real mental issues and things ended really badly for us. He attempted to reach out to me more recently, after I had to completely disconnect from him, to the point of even blocking him on Facebook. When he sent me a text message, as I said more recently, he cited PTSD. Something apparently happened in the Middle East, predominately Jordan from what I understand, but it was too late. I really do wish him well, but as someone who has been through the Twelve Steps, and who has done a thorough inventory and housecleaning, I knew that he was just sorry I blocked him, he wasn't really sorry for his behaviour, because he was still disconnected and ignorant to the root of his problem, and still playing the blame game. The sad truth is, I am certain that he had a psychotic break, though I can't know if it was before or after his relocation. 

I still really miss him, especially the past couple of days, where I have been inspired to delve once again academically into the scriptures. I really looked to him as a mentor, but it was never a balanced (working) relationship, he knew he was strong in his work, and he really believed  that I wasn't, and that I had nothing to bring to the table. He even accused me of using him, but I respected him greatly, and the truth was, he wanted more than a working relationship, he wanted to be romantic, and he disguised it in the form of wanting a "real" friendship - such as talking about personal issues, and even phone calls. This person was first in California, and then in the Middle East - there was no need for either, and I saw through it, but I still thirsted for his knowledge. 

But I am a different person now, I am confident, and for now, I can go it on my own. There are two things that have caught my attention recently, and re-sparked my love for real study of the scriptures and the traditions of Judaism and Christianity, however Judaism is an inclusive faith, and actually this is why he was such a valuable resource, he was nearly baptized as a Jewish convert. He had a wealth of information and could translate the Hebrew texts. He taught me a lot, but really, I have forgotten just about all of it. 

My first recent interest is the doctrine of purgatory. Protestants and Catholics tend to disagree on this teaching, the former denying it. This is a topic that I never studied before, I think it's pretty clear-cut, however in discussing it yesterday, I saw there was quite a bit to it that I was confused about, and even a woman who was doing really well in arguing for it kind of threw her arms up by the end of the debate, and really, I find this inspiring. My second interest is the Watchers, which are from what I have found thus far, best described in the apocryphal book of Enoch. This I have studied, this was my main area when I used to study with this man, and I think I was really strong in it, especially since I have a real talent in searching for information online. I even have an article on it, but it would be a hundred posts back by now, it was years ago. However I did title it "WIP" - Work in Progress, I knew it wasn't over. Now it's time for me to return to it, primarily because my current community is composed of born-again Christians, and I disagree with their fundamental assertions that Christ is the only way to heaven. In fact, I think they are treading down a dangerous path, and it is my intention to use the books of Enoch (there are three), to disprove them. 

I have the books in my cart on Amazon, and I am really excited, because this is my passion - to really study and write. I haven't done it in years, because like I said in my most recent post about card readings, I haven't been back in front of a computer in years. Four years, to be exact (the angel's number hahaha).

I miss having a mass spreading of literary resources sprawled in from of me, sheets of notes edited over and over, a Bible perpetually opened in my work space...This is a wonderful time for me once again. 

From within, pt II

My Doreen Virtue Jesus cards have been shipped (!) and I have decided to take this blog in a different direction, as I plan to prepare for my ministry. Perhaps in the new year I will let this blog rest, for it will have been seven years diligently writing at least one article, per month. I have 245 posts on this blog. I have changed a lot over those years, and seven years of posting on this blog is a great and holy number, which is why I want to really start considering putting it to rest. 

My ultimate goal is to be so intertwined with God, that He becomes my main focus, and so I feel certain that speaking His Word is my true destiny. I want to trust God utterly, and believe my mentors when they say that there is a plan for me, even if I can't see it yet, even though life seems to just want to beat me down. Working in a job that really kept me disconnected (too busy and then tired to be online, and no phone time allowed during work), and then studying business, did not work out. I am back at my desk job, where I often have too much spare time, and most of it wasted on Facebook. And I really do view it as wasted now. I think I am doing good on it, but all I really am is feeling dejected and judgemental, and I feel judged in turn. 

I am starting to accept that I am an artist - something that I didn't really want to be. But now, I know that I can still be in the world, and not of it. And I want to write. Truly. Writing is my true talent; it is what I am formally trained in, from an Ivy league university, and it feels right, it feels anointed.

My plan for my future writing is to ease my way into ministry through the use of the oracle cards. I plan to scan the card and use the image, since I finally understand that people respond more to images than to text, and then to write about it. And I have studied for so long, and have been given so many revelations, I really believe that I have a path in this. And I am feeling confident in the cards, as I have both studied and worked with Virtue's first deck of cards, Daily Guidance From Your Angels.

We'll see. I don't like good-byes, but I am not sure if I can keep up with this blog for another year, and I have done so well with it, I don't want to just crap out halfway though. I don't believe that I can't maintain two sites, or write both on daily card readings, or general entries, but it is so important to me to treat this blog with the utmost respect. This is just something that I am considering, in my hopes to get more serious, more evangelical, and to reach a bigger audience, and I wanted to share my intentions.