LIFT UP HANDS IN VICTORY

LIFT UP HANDS IN VICTORY

I was working on a faux finish that would go on the outside of a building. I was matching an existing piece and was having a lot of trouble. The pressure was mounting, and I was getting more and more fearful as the day went on. The deadline was growing closer than the possibility of a solution. I got both my bosses outside to take a look at the pieces I’d done and get some suggestions. All the suggestions included mixing more paint, starting from scratch and going through all the steps again. Yikes!

We all went our separate ways for lunch, and I took the opportunity to pray. I prayed for Jesus to help me. I really needed Him, and I told Him so. I was directed by the Lord to open my Bible to the book of Ruth. As I was soaking in her story, the scripture came into my head: “Lift up the hands that hang down,” from Hebrews 12:12.

That scripture coming to my mind was evidence to me of the love of Jesus and the mercy of God to answer my cry for help. Next, the Lord reminded me of a TED talk I watched on YouTube about nonverbal communication. The premise was that if a people lifted their hands in a victory pose for just 2 minutes, their blood levels of testosterone would go up and they would feel more confident.

 I decided now was the time to try it.

I went into the restroom. I laid down my cell phone on the sink and looked at the time. I lifted my arms above my head as if I’d just won a race and I said out loud, “I have the victory through Jesus Christ; I have the victory through Jesus.” I snuck a look at my phone, and I’d only done it for one minute, so I stretched out my arms a little more and said it a few more times till 2 minutes were up. I left the restroom and doggone if I didn’t feel more confident. I really did. I felt invigorated and even a little carefree.

It worked! I lifted up my hands as it says in the Bible, and like it was confirmed and demonstrated on the TED talk.

When my one boss came back from lunch, he started working on the pieces with me, and we had some good laughs as we both came up with almost the same exact colors. We took them outside to see how they looked against the sample; they were way off! We both looked at each other with wrinkled brows. We shrugged our shoulders and back inside we went to try again.

The goofy thing is that the piece we were looking at appeared to have mustard color in it when we saw it outside, and the same color seemed to be reddish when we had it inside! We got out a fan deck of colors and took the piece outside to match it up, so I’m sure we’ll do better tomorrow. One thing’s for sure: I will have a better attitude, and my hands will stay lifted in victory.

Life is better with Jesus for sure and God’s kindness and mercy to me today was well appreciated. “With everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the Lord thy Redeemer” (Is. 54:8).

“For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. Therefore lift your drooping hands” (Heb. 12:11-12).

Well as it turned out, God’s mercy prevailed: I finished up the sample; the guys put it on the side of a huge building in California and the client loved it.

If you didn’t get to watch the TED talk before, here’s the link. I think it’s less than 10 minutes long. Enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ks-_Mh1QhMc

Love, Carolyn

My book, WINGS: A Journey in Faith – an awesome spiritual adventure and a great interactive workbook. Find it on Amazon in paperback or Kindle.

If you know of any family members or friends who would like to get my weekly Preach Letters, let me know.

I publish two every week, on FB, WordPress, and Blogger and can send them to an email address, or physical address too.

I sell my e-books and booklets on Amazon, as well as a paperback of my first book.

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=WINGS%3A+A+JOURNEY+IN+FAITH+ 

GOD AND HIS SON JESUS

GOD AND HIS SON JESUS

Several years ago I realized I didn’t know Jesus as well as I wanted to. I’d been taught a lot about relating to and praying to God, but Jesus somehow got bypassed. I’d been taught that it was Christ in us but not how to connect with Him as a real person. I couldn’t help questioning, “If He is our brother, shouldn’t we be able to talk to Him? We don’t have to go through our parents to talk to our human brothers, so why should it be different with Jesus?”

In Acts 2:36 we’re told that God “made the same Jesus, both Lord, and Christ.” Hebrews 13:8 tells us it’s “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” We read in the Gospels that when people came to Jesus, they called Him “Lord.” When the disciples talked to Him both before and after the resurrection (John 20:26-21:25), they also called Him “Lord.” Should we do any less?

The Greek word for “Lord” here means “supreme in authority; by implication, Master (as a respectful title).”

According to Romans 10:9, “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

I was born again when I was about eight years old. But it wasn’t until I was a teenager that I consciously realized I wasn’t doing such a great job at being my own master. I went back to Jesus, confessed that I was a mess and I needed Him to not only rescue me but be my Lord in guiding me in life. He was here on earth and experienced everything we’ll ever face, so He knows how to handle every situation, and he can guide us through. But sometimes we slip up a little in that category. We direct all our prayers and communication to God Almighty and leave Jesus out.

I was reading Acts 7 about Stephen: “And they stoned Stephen calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (v. 59). In the King James Version of the Bible, whenever a word is in italics, like the word “God” in this verse, it means that the translators added it. Since the word “God” was added to the original text, we can take it out, and the verse reads: “Lord Jesus receive my spirit.” And guess who was standing right there? Saul of Tarsus!

“The witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man's feet, whose name was Saul” (v. 58). Saul heard Stephen speak to Jesus.

Later when Saul was on his way to Damascus “breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord” (Acts 9:1), a light from heaven shone, and Saul fell to the earth, and everyone there heard a voice. When Saul asked, “‘Who art thou?’ The Lord said, “‘I am Jesus’” (v. 5). When Jesus Christ spoke to Saul, it didn’t surprise him at all because he had been there when Stephen talked with Jesus.

When Saul got to Damascus, the Lord Jesus told a regular disciple, Ananias to talk to Saul.

“And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, ‘Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit’” (Acts 9:17).

Isn’t that awesome?! There are many more verses in the Epistles that document a real and personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Paul tells the Corinthians: “Have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord?” (1 Cor. 9:1). Peter writes: “Even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me” (2 Pet. 1:4).

I’m not trying to direct anyone away from praying to God Almighty, our Father, and the kind of relationship we have with Him. I’m saying that our relationship with our Lord Jesus can grow as well.

I learned a long time ago that my secular work is directed and orchestrated by Jesus Christ. That realization wasn’t an instantaneous revelation. It didn’t come in a dream or audible announcement or anything flashy. I prayed to God about it; then one day I just knew it in my heart that Jesus was the one in charge of my work. I knew that secularly He would supply the jobs and the money I needed to live and pay the bills and do what I needed to do.

Every time I was out of work I consciously went to Jesus, expecting direction as to what’s next and I thanked Him for what He was arranging. In this category of my life, I know that God wants me to trust in the directions of His son Jesus Christ.

First Timothy 1:12: “And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry.”

I believe that there is a wonderful balance in our spiritual lives, things that God handles with us and things that our Lord Jesus handles and the Holy Spirit as well. We have all the help we need at our fingertips, closer even than breath itself.

Love, Carolyn

This preach letter is part of my second WINGS book. I’m currently working on its second edition. It’s going to be much better now 😊. At the end of each chapter I have some Questions. These are the ones for this chapter.

QUESTIONS AND EASY CHALLENGES

1. In addition to praying to God as your Father, do you talk to Jesus Christ as your Lord? How often would you say?

2. Name three or four Bible figures who spoke with Jesus after He was raised from the dead. Document with scriptures relating to these encounters.

3. If you haven’t talked much with the Lord Jesus, name some possible ways you might begin to acknowledge Him more often in your daily life.

TODAY THRU TUESDAY ---FREE BOOKLET: SUPERNATURAL SPIRITUAL POWERS WE HAVE AS CHRISTIANS

https://www.amazon.com/WINGS-Journey-Sample-SUPERNATURAL-POWERS-ebook/dp/B00HZ2CB58/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1546194534&sr=8-12&keywords=WINGS%3A+A+JOURNEY+IN+FAITH

If you can’t get it on Amazon, let me know, and I’ll send a pdf or word doc to your email. cjmolica@hotmail.com

If you know of any family members or frien

ds who would like to get my weekly Preach Letters, let me know.

I publish two every week, on FB, Wordpress, and Blogger and can send them to an email address, or physical address too.

I sell my e-books and booklets on Amazon, as well as a paperback of my first book.

STOP THE BLEEDING

 

STOP THE BLEEDING

In everyday life, we talk to people who are in circumstances that are so complicated and awful that even the heartiest of believers among us could be tempted to think there’s no solution. I’ve seen the devil pull this scenario again and again. The idea of no solution and no answer is the message Satan wants to propound. But Jesus Christ is the answer to every problem and has the solution to every trouble, no matter how complex or seemingly incurable.

We have the Lord Jesus Christ; we have the Bible; we have angels, but sometimes we forget that we also have each other. And it’s not a sin to ask for help. The Lord tells us we are to confess our faults one to another so that we can get help. “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” (James 5:16). It doesn’t do us any good to keep things bottled up inside.

If you were physically bleeding from a stab in the back, and you couldn’t stop it, you’d get yourself to the hospital and find help. It’s the same with us mentally, emotionally and spiritually. We have been given other people in the body of Christ to help stop the bleeding. Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another” (Eph. 4:25).

One of the biggest errors I see in the body of Christ is the hesitation to ask for help. I’m guilty of that myself. Pride gets in the way. But I think a more significant challenge is trying to figure out exactly what to ask or who to ask. We may need the Lord’s guidance even on that!

It can seem hard, but we need to remember that asking someone to pray for us or give Godly counsel benefits both parties. The person asking for help gets assistance and the person being asked gets a chance to stretch out his or her believing to manifest God’s love, maybe even in a different way than before. It’s a healing and wholesome exchange.

I believe that honesty in the body of Christ and asking for help when we need it will bring us closer as a family. With all the challenges we face in the world today, we need the expertise of others to help us meet and overcome the new adversities that confront us.

Love, Carolyn

My book, WINGS: A Journey in Faith – an excellent spiritual adventure and a great interactive workbook. Find it on Amazon in paperback or Kindle.

https://www.amazon.com/WINGS-Journey-Heavenly-Workbook-Christian-ebook/dp/B007T9AJ7E/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1548893981&sr=8-6&keywords=WINGS%3A+A+JOURNEY+IN+FAITH

BIND THE STRONGMAN - SATAN IN DUCT TAPE

  

BIND THE STRONGMAN - SATAN IN DUCT TAPE

Christians gather souls into the everlasting family of the one true God. Jesus said: “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them. . .; teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and low, I am with you always” (Matt.28:18-20). The devil is also working to gather souls. But until the final takedown of his kingdom, we have been given power in Christ to bind Satan and his minions, so that the message of Christ gets access to the people.

Notice that Jesus spoke to Satan, directly. We are supposed to do that too. Jesus “turned, and said unto Peter, ‘Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men’” (Matt. 16:23). Jesus wasn’t saying that Peter, the man, was the embodiment of Satan, but rather that Satan was present and was spiritually influencing Peter’s soul. Peter was telling Jesus he didn’t have to die, but that was not God’s will. Jesus was humanity’s only hope. He was sent to die for us so that we could live in heaven in God’s family forever.

Jesus spoke to Satan, showing us that we are not in a flesh war, but a spiritual one. “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Eph. 6:12)

The strongest entity in the devil’s kingdom is Satan himself (named by some as Lucifer or the devil). If we are to win souls to God, then we often need to take them back from the devil’s possession. In Revelation 18 we are told that the devil considers people as mere merchandise, so when we read Matthew 27:29 we know that the “spoils” Jesus is talking about are the hearts and souls of humanity.

Jesus says we must enter the strong man’s house to take back captured souls. Then he asks the question: “How can one enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? And then he will spoil his house. (Matt. 12:29) “spoil” is translated from the Greek for “plunder or seize.” And “goods” are, metaphorically “men of quality, chosen instruments.”

So how do we do this? Jesus said: “And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”(Matt. 16:19)

And “Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy” (Luke 10:19).

The strong man of every evil situation is going to go back to Satan in one way or another. So, if we are to bind a demon, let’s get to the source. For me, I get a mental picture of Satan entirely wrapped in duct tape: arms bound to his sides, feet bound together, mouth covered—you get the picture. When I bind him, he has no effect, no mobility; he is rolled back. Then I bind (from Ephesians 6:12) any principalities, powers and any other demons in duct tape too and turn them back. Then I ask for angels to go out to do whatever it takes to get to the souls of whoever I am praying for. With this mental/spiritual duct tape picture, I can see and believe for an opening to the victim’s soul. And we can use this powerful duct tape image in prayer for other matters that the Lord directs as well.

Binding Satan himself is top level stuff. But with our Lord Jesus Christ, we are top level! Colossians 1:27 says: “To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you.” And one of my favorites: “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure”  (Phil. 2:13).

You and I are way more powerful than we think when it comes to power over any enemy. With eyes on the Lord and duct tape in hand, “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper” (Isa. 54:17).

Love, Carolyn

FREE TODAY THRU TUESDAY. On AMAZON, or email me if you’d like a free pdf or word doc: cjmolica@hotmail.com.

https://www.amazon.com/WINGS-Journey-Faith-Sample-WORKS-ebook/dp/B00DFPWNZM/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1546194534&sr=8-13&keywords=WINGS%3A+A+JOURNEY+IN+FAITH

This sample booklet contains 6 of the 61 chapters from the complete book. The chapters I chose for this sample book are true life stories about forward actions that proceed from faith and how they work beautifully. 
CHAPTERS:

THANKS IN RELATIONSHIPS
THE ADVENTURE OF PLANTING SEEDS
NIT-PICKING
NO GLASS CEILINGS
MAGNIFICENT MONEY MANEUVERS

BEING AN APRIL FOOL IN THE BEST OF WAYS

FREE BOOKLET - WORKS OF FAITH

FREE TODAY THRU TUESDAY. On AMAZON, or email me if you’d like a free pdf or word doc: cjmolica@hotmail.com.

This sample booklet contains 6 of the 61 chapters from the complete book. The chapters I chose for this sample book are true life stories about forward actions that proceed from faith and how they work beautifully. 
CHAPTERS:

THANKS IN RELATIONSHIPS
THE ADVENTURE OF PLANTING SEEDS
NIT-PICKING
NO GLASS CEILINGS
MAGNIFICENT MONEY MANEUVERS

BEING AN APRIL FOOL IN THE BEST OF WAYS

SURVIVAL MODE - SHAKE IT OFF

SURVIVAL MODE – SHAKE IT OFF

He stepped into the quicksand mud hole and sunk up to his neck. To free himself, he lifted his knees up as far as he could and crawled slowly with his arms and knees to the edge of the slime. Then he stood, shook himself off, and took off all his clothes. He had to do that because if he left the sand on himself, soon it would itch and tear at his skin and cause terrible infections.

This TV story reminded me of Jesus talking to his disciples: “Whosoever will not receive you, when ye go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet for a testimony against them” (Luke 9:5). The disciples listened.

Paul and Barnabas were preaching the gospel of Jesus  Christ in what today is southern Turkey.

“And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region.

“But the Jews stirred up the devout and honourable women, and the chief men of the city, and raised persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them out of their coasts” (Acts 13:49-50).

Then Paul and Barnabas did what Jesus told them to do. They moved on. “They shook off the dust of their feet against them and came unto Iconium” (Acts 13:51).

When we let something go, we have room for something else to replace it. Shaking off the grit leaves an empty spot. The survivalist who crawled out of the quicksand barely made it out, and he had to expose himself. He got naked.

When we’re trapped in something, part of our deliverance may include being exposed. If we’re leaving something, we may not be assured of what we are going to. We may turn our backs to being overly involved with certain people or certain organizations, and when we go, we sometimes don’t quite know what to do.

We let other people and groups give us our identity, and without them, we may not be entirely sure of who we are or what we want. But Jesus knows who we are and when we’ve lost something, or have just crawled out of the quicksand and are standing there naked—well that’s the perfect time to turn to Him. He is more than willing to show us the way. I love that verse in Revelation 3:20 where Jesus says, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.”

Sometimes I feel like we just stay in the quicksand or we get out and then stand there naked, instead of just going to the door and letting Jesus in to have a chit-chat over dinner and figure out our next move.  

Most of the time we seem to stay in adverse situations longer than we should. Some of the reasons could be: We honestly don’t realize how bad they are. We know how bad they are, but we don’t want to acknowledge it. We are too afraid or too tired to think about having to change. We don’t have much hope in what’s ahead.

Or maybe we want to leave but for some reason need to stay a while longer in the situation. Often that’s the hardest position to be in, holding out till we actually reach the exit.

In the show about the guy in the quicksand, he had to have the presence of mind just to keep focused on what he needed to do—crawl slowly to the edge. He couldn’t move too fast, or he would be sucked down. So what do we do? We get discouraged or angry or fearful and stay put. But we need just to keep moving toward our goals, even if it’s only a little at a time.

When we have to stay in the mud hole until the right time to get out, an excellent way to stay healthy is to open that Revelation 3:20 door to the Lord every day. We remember to ask that He shows us something new, teach us something we can use, give us some way to bless someone before we leave, things like that—things that keep our minds and hearts from being bitter. Instead of focusing entirely on the situation we’re in, we can focus on what He’s showing us, without being a part of it.

I remember when I was about a month away from moving back to the States from South Africa. I worked at an insurance company doing some filing. Every day was drudgery. It was horrible and was making me sick and weak. I didn’t need the money. So why did I stay? Obligation? Loyalty? Habit? I have no idea, but when it was over, I was kicking myself for not leaving sooner.

Paul and Barnabas shook the dust off against the people that didn’t want them around, and they went to the next town. That’s what Jesus taught them to do, and Jesus does know the best solutions for every problem. The survivalist shook and scraped off the quicksand, put his clothes back on and took off for the next adventure.

I have several friends who have taken on new adventures over the past years, and I am so proud of them for having the boldness to move on. I pray they open the door for the real Jesus to come in, spend time with them and talk things over, then lead them in the next step of their lives.

Everyone is going to end up in some quicksand at one point or another. But we can trust in Jesus to see us naked, clean us up, clothe us and lead us on. Let’s be courageous.

Love, Carolyn

If you know of any family members or friends who would like to get my weekly Preach Letters, let me know.

I publish two every week, on FB, WordPress, and Blogger and can send them to an email address, or physical address too.

I sell my e-books and booklets on Amazon, as well as a paperback of my first book.

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=WINGS%3A+A+JOURNEY+IN+FAITH+

HIS WAYS ARE ABOVE OURS

HIS WAYS ARE ABOVE OURS

Jaden was the perfect candidate for leadership. He met the requirements, participated in all the meetings, and added real insight and help to the other members. Several of the leaders recommended him, and it looked like a lock. But when the final job interview came, he was denied. Why? God, why?

There are just some things we’re not going to be able to figure out or understand. God is all-knowing. But we are not, and we can’t figure it out with reasoning or logic. We’ve heard the common phrase, “there’s a reason for everything.” But the second half of that should be, “but we don’t get to know all the reasons.” God is always going to know more than we do. He sees the bigger picture beyond what we can see.

Job 9:10 says He “doeth great things past finding out.”

That’s where trust comes in. With faith and obedience, there’s always going to be some unanswered questions: “Why?” “How?” “When?” We trust and obey from our hearts, not our minds. Our minds are too small to handle all the data it takes to answer every question all at once.

We have problems at times waiting on God and trusting Him. But we’re not the only ones. Take a look at Gideon.

The Midianites were destroying the land. The Israelites were hiding in caves, and they were in poverty. Gideon was threshing some wheat to conceal it from the Midianites, when an angel came to him and said: “The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valour” (Judges 6:12). At the time, Gideon was only a young man, definitely not a man of valour. But God saw him as different from how he saw himself.

Then Gideon questioned: “Oh my Lord, if the Lord be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt? but now the Lord hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites” (v.13).

But the angel didn’t bother to explain why it was happening. He just told Gideon what to do next, and said: “Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee?” (v.14)

“And he [Gideon] said unto him, ‘Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house.’ And the Lord said unto him, ‘Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man’” (vv.15-16).

Detail by detail, God guided Gideon. The fascinating battle strategies, the beliefs, the errors, the loves and losses, and more, are all recorded in Judges 6-8. It’s amazing to read it all. Gideon trusted and obeyed, and he saved Israel. “Thus was Midian subdued before the children of Israel, so that they lifted up their heads no more. And the country was in quietness forty years in the days of Gideon” (Judges 8:28).

We have to get used to doing spiritual things without always having to know why. The spirit of God urges us, and our job is to obey. We read the Bible or let someone else teach us from the Bible as to what God does, and what He’s really like.

Daniel 4:35 says: “He does according to His will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth. No one can restrain His hand or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’”  God doesn’t have to tell us. But He does let us know He has a good plan for us, so just do the next thing and trust Him.

Jaden did the next thing God opened for him. He later found out that the company he had applied for was corrupt. Because of his integrity, he wouldn’t have lasted there even if he’d gotten the job.

So many things are like that; we don’t find out until later why our prayers weren’t answered in the way we had expected or in the time frame we were wanting. However, we see in the Bible, that everyone who trusted God and just obeyed, got great results, whether or not they understood the why and wherefore.

Love, Carolyn

FREE TODAY THRU TUESDAY. On AMAZON, or email me if you’d like a free pdf or word doc: cjmolica@hotmail.com.

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In this sample booklet I’ve chosen 6 chapters specifically about miracles. In our world today we sometimes get so involved in medicines and technology that we forget about the bigness of God in providing the miraculous. These stories remind us to think BIGGER.

Chapters:

JESUS GETS TO THE ROOTS

CALLING THE DOG

GOD’S SPIRIT TOUCHES OUR SPIRIT

PUPPY HEALED DOG

MIRACLE OF BETTER EYESIGHT

BLACK ICE

ANGELS AND MOTHERS