Jesus, I thank You for Your blood, you did the impossible for man, you stayed so much stronger than I ever could. Your Words have never stumbled, Your heart was never weary, Your compassion is beautiful, Your mercy is so elegant, You are the love of my life, my heart sings for You every single day, my breath is precious, You have given me the life I never imagined could be. I believe You Lord, I trust You and I love You Jesus. Thank You for being in me, Your peace be still within my heart as your angels take charge over me in this world, with flaming swords. Your love for me as a citizen of you kingdom proves to me my understanding for my being your child and You being my Father- I Agape You, in Jesus' Name, Amen.
I am so very excited about this blog I get to put together today! This past month has been a
whirlwind of visits from Justin, Jimmy, and another fellow student (and AMAZING MAN OF GOD!) Jonathan, I call them our "J's"! Fellowship with these three is nothing less then every sister's dream- doing hard work, having fun and talking about God's goodness, dissecting the Word and encouraging one another in our most Holy Faith! Be sure to check out the pictures at the end of all the fun! But in addition to fellowship with these three at our home, we continue to be blown away by all that God is doing in each and every one of the men at Teen Challenge. They lift us up every time we see them and words cannot express the love we have for them as God's work shines through them.
Just last week Brandon, a fellow student with Justin at Teen Challenge, read a poem he's been working on for a while. When he started to read it we weren't exactly sure what to expect because Brandon said that he had battled to get this poem down on paper. I asked him if it was okay if I kept chopping vegetables while he read, and he said, "sure." I didn't get one more chop in. As he read, in the classic smooth cadence that only Brandon can deliver, my mouth was literally dropped open. Justin and I exchanged glances of shock, while Leah's eyes never left Brandon. I could explain just why this poem moved me but it isn't necessary once you read it for yourself. The deep understanding this young man has of his God, his Savior- the love and devotion leaves me in awe of my Father.
By: Brandon Micheal Keen
I love my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ with all of my heart,
His Light shines bright when it seems like life is dark,
He makes me feel alright when it feels like life is falling apart,
He always hears me when I call Him to talk,
He turns my guilt into gracious, my sins into salvation,
So be patient when you’re going through trials and tribulations,
He’s the Creator of all creations, the Ruler of all nations,
He was crucified to save us from Satan and damnation,
Temptation is hard to resist, hypocrites will try to mislead you,
But I believe in God, and He provides for His people,
He’s with you when you’re lonely, if you’re hungry he’ll feed you,
It’s true that money is the root of all evil,
That’s why it’s hard for the rich to get into heaven,
The wealth will tarnish your soul,
Knowledge and understanding is more valuable than silver and gold,
Lust for money can make you burn like you’re on the stove,
But faith will make you twice as rich, I read that in the book of Job,
They say the Bible is a hard book to understand cuz they wrote it back in the day,
But if you pray, you’ll be amazed how you can comprehend every page,
Easter, Christmas, and all the holidays were made to generate paper,
Not to give the maker His praise,
The world we live in is filled with hatred and war,
We’re supposed to love each other, but not all spirits can soar,
Soon Jesus will be back, that’s in Matthew 24,
To Destroy the world with fire, He did it with water before,
So get on your knees, and repent to the King and sing the Gospel,
If you believe, the blessings you’ll receive will probably shock you,
If you’re righteous and follow His commandments, they can’t stop you,
The devil will try to knock you, but God bought you,
From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible is education,
I’m dedicating my life to Christ, not to Satan,
But instead of waiting until your spirit is elevating,
Awaken out of that spell, cuz hell is devastating,
The King has been throned, He’s sending us, skin and bone,
But you don’t have to swim in the fire and brimstone,
Cuz you are not alone,
He’s here to protect you,
He never neglects you,
He’s here to accept you,
When you’re wrong, He always corrects you,
He teaches you to live righteous, as long as your life lasts,
And you should love God, not cash,
Living the fast life, will bring an end to your life fast,
Worship the Lord, He created the earth and heavens,
And please read John, Chapter 1 verse 7,
So walk in the Light, no one is perfect brethren,
I believe the words of Proverbs Chapter 11,
I don’t knock anyone else’s religion,
I just opened my eyes and made a wise decision,
But there’s only One God, so there should only be one Vision,
When you walk with God no strength is lost, so keep walking,
When you talk with God no breath is lost, so keep talking,
When you wait on God, no time is lost so keep waiting,
Some people hate, but no love is lost so stop hating,
Evil won’t strive when my God defeats Satan,
The water will roar, the mountains will keep shaking,
Therefore praise God, it’s what we’re here for
The devil will try to stop you,
But God got you
There is an eternal battle, not only with us in our own lives, but really, between God and the devil- and that battle is between sin and salvation. With Jesus we are offered eternal life, joy here on earth, love. But somehow, the devil lies to us and tries to get us to believe that sin is our friend. Sin is not your friend, and listen as Justin uncovers the truth to what sin really is...
Dear "Sin"
By: Justin Justice Bee
Hey Buddy,
It's SIN, you know, your deadly enemy. I am about to deceive you, destroy you and send you to hell...
Hey Sin,
It's Justin Justice, I have the Kingdom of God within me and around me,
God's mighty angels are here with me.
The Blood of Christ has redeemed me from you and set me free.
I have been forgiven, healed and crowned with compassion by God
Who satisfies my desires with good things.
God rules the peace in my heart, He has dominion in my life, I am anointed by God.
God is my Father,
Jesus is my Lord
And I am a child of the King.
You have no power over this temple Sin,
you have no choice, God wins...
In Jesus' Name!
Romans 6:1-14 "What shall we say [to all this]? Are we to remain in sin in order that God’s grace (favor and mercy) may multiply and overflow? Certainly not! How can we who died to sin live in it any longer? Are you ignorant of the fact that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? We were buried therefore with Him by the baptism into death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious [power] of the Father, so we too might [habitually] live and behave in newness of
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| Team Justin, thank God for Ernie and June, what an encouragement! |
But now that we see sin for what it is, just exactly how are we to walk here on earth. This revelation that God showed to Jimmy (Teen Challenge graduate) is exactly the template we are to pattern our lives by. Everyday I want to walk with eyes of heaven!
Eyes
of Heaven
By: James (Jimmy) Victor Alexander III
I walk with my eyes fixed on Heaven.
With my eyes on Heaven, I walk
like an alien, talk like a foreigner.
Having my eyes on Heaven, people love me
less, avoid me when they see me, but God is my Life, My Creator, and Helper.
With eyes of Heaven I live for Jesus, not people! If my eyes focus off of Him,
I stumble -- If my eyes look down- pity, depression & defeat pounces on me. If my eyes look behind me- I see Egypt, my past, and pain, then I fall. If my
eyes look ahead- I see my selfish ambition, My own worldly kingdom, worries and
anxiety.
But
with The eyes of Heaven I move mountains, I'm seated with Jesus at the right
hand of God. Crushing all the carnal, overcoming the natural, demolishing the
darkness.
Every
thought captive, every move I make or word out of my mouth -- is done with my
eyes on Jesus Christ Our Lord. Acknowledging Him in all my ways. Looking
towards the goal of the prize of the upward calling of God in Christ. Truly I
have lost my life, but I have gained everything.
Proverbs 4:25-27 "Let your eyes look straight ahead,
And your eyelids look right before you.
26 Ponder the path of your feet,
And let all your ways be established.
27 Do not turn to the right or the left;
Remove your foot from evil."
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| Might men of God, Jimmy and Jonathan |
Proverbs 4:25-27 "Let your eyes look straight ahead,
And your eyelids look right before you.
26 Ponder the path of your feet,
And let all your ways be established.
27 Do not turn to the right or the left;
Remove your foot from evil."
Joshua 1:7 "Only you be strong and very courageous, that you may do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you. Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go."
Philippians 1:21 "For me to live is Christ [His life in me], and to die is gain [the gain of the glory of eternity]."
I am so in love with Jesus the Carpenter, when I see Him teaching these amazing men of God how to build lasting truths in their lives, pointing them to God the Father, Creator, Provider, Protector. Giving them the tools not only to combat the lies and evil (sin) of the devil, but then showing them how to move forward, to take His example and touch their own families. In this last entry, we see that our identity comes from God our Father and that as such, He has put in perfect order how He wants His children to live- with His love for us being the perfect example for any Carpenter's Son or Daughter to follow.
A Real Father
By: Justin Justice Bee
Many children grow up without having fathers, therefore, not knowing their fathers and since they don't know their father's characteristics they are bound to think they don't know themselves for who they are. It is important for people's feelings to have a sense of self worth- that we are a part of something bigger than ourselves.
I love 1 Corinthians 11:3 "I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ and the head of every woman is man and the head of Christ is God." Children are to submit to their parents, the wife to her husband, and her husband to Christ. When all are aligned properly, God protects and blesses and each are covered. This is the role of a father as a covering authority.
Another role of a father is priesthood for the household. It is the father's responsibility to bring the family's needs and concerns of the family to God- as well as passing on truths and revelations from God to them. The father represents God in the family and is the mediator and intercessor for them.
Job was one man of the Bible whole fulfilled this role for his family as spiritual leader of the home. The father is to share his faith and insights from God's word, he is to pray for his children, even before they are born.
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| Working hard! |
For a man to fulfill the role of a provider for his family he has to rely on God providing first and must be focused on God before work. Whatever the father hears from the Lord about what it is God leads him to do is the biggest and best thing he can do to provide.
Thank you for spending your time with us today, we hope that you have been as uplifted and refreshed as we have!
Until next time, remember that Jesus is that beautiful Light that expels all darkness!
With Love ~ Matt, Leah, Michelle, Justin and Jimmy!
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| Jimmy being a boss with the tiller! |
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| Love that Jimmy smile! |
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| Canoeing! |
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| The Carpenter's Sons! |
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| Brothers in covenant! |
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| I love this beautiful lady! |
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| Mother and son, doesn't get any better! |
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| Diggin holes! |
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| Cookin with Will and Jonathan! |
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| Michelle, Jonathan's mom Anne, his sister Kristen, Jonathan, and Regena |
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| Jonathan makes breakfast! |
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| Handsome fellas! |
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| Justin says, "my welds don't break" |
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| Love Regena's beautiful |
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