Open Heart Surgery

If you keep up with our Facebook page then you may have noticed a post that I posted from another blog called "Right Where I Don't Belong". If you by any chance read that blog you probably noticed the analogy of God giving me open heart surgery which I thought might be a good thing to talk about on Great News. 

Sometimes we as Christians forget what we were created for. God created us to be in relationship with Him and to spread His Word. The thing is, sometimes we try to do one and leave out the other, or worse... we try to just go through the motions and not worry about authenticity. 

Maybe I'm talking in circles; let me go back....

To be a Christian you have to have a relationship with Christ. That's better isn't it? More clear. Our faith several times in the Bible is referred to as a race. Here are the verses in the concordance of my Bible:

• "It bursts forth like a radiant bridegroom after his wedding. It rejoices like a great athlete eager to run the race." -Psalm 19:5 (NLT)

• "Don't you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win!" - 1 Corinthians 9:24 (NLT)

• "I went there because God revealed to me that I should go. While I was there I met privately with those considered to be leaders of the church and shared with them the message I had been preaching to the Gentiles. I wanted to make sure that we were in agreement, for fear that all my efforts had been wasted and I was running the race for nothing." - Galatians 2:2 (NLT) 

• "You were running the race so well. Who has held you back from following the truth?" - Galatians 5:7 (NLT)

• "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful." - 2 Timothy 4:7 (NLT)

• "Therefore since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us." - Hebrews 12:1 (NLT)

We are to run this race strong, but as a person I admire once said, sometimes we just want to sit on the sidelines and cheer everyone else on, but we're done. Some of us slow up.... and eventually, if we don't take it to God.... we sit down. We are watching everyone zip by running hard... but we're just too tired.... 

Then someone comes to sit beside us.... someone who is going to tell us that it's okay we chose to sit out... that someone is Satan.... 

Satan is the father of all lies... and so he will lie to you. He will even go as far as twisting the truth to make it fit what he is saying.... Satan will tell you that you have fought the good fight, but you're finished now, you've done your part and remained faithful so it's okay for you to sit down now...

It will make sense... so you'll believe him because... well quite honestly you want to believe him. You're just so tired.... Trust me, I understand.... I've been there and recently at that, but we can't trust him. As I said he is the father of all lies. Yes, the race isn't easy, but God can strengthen you. Yes, you are going to be overwhelmed with weariness but God can give you rest and replenish your energy. 

Getting Back Up Again

The longer you've sat the harder it is. When you are working on getting healthy it requires time, effort, exercise and eating right. If you do that for a while, your body will adjust to all of these things and they will become easier for you. However, while it takes time to become healthy it takes no time at all to get unhealthy. If you stop exercising and eat nothing but junk it will be incredibly difficult for you to get back into your healthy routine. It's the same with your spiritual health. If you sit down on the sideline and allow Satan to fill your heart with a bunch of junk, it's going to be harder than you imagined to start running again, and may even require some open heart surgery from God.

What is Spiritual Open Heart Surgery?

Spiritual open heart surgery, at least to me, is when you bring absolutely everything to the Lord without holding back. It's every secret, every lie, every bit of shame and guilt, every sin.... leaving nothing out even though He already knows.... Telling Him everything as if He didn't know. It's getting real with God and opening up your heart so that He can go in and do some surgery that is probably going to be very painful, but surgery that will be worth every bit of that pain. 

If a doctor told you that there was something wrong with your heart and said the only way to fix it.... the only way you would be able to continue living would be to have open heart surgery, you would probably take the surgery. It would be very painful, but it would be worth the pain. Why? Because the pain that you endure is only for a season, but the reward is for a lifetime. The same situation occurs here. A season of pain for an eternity of living.   

A Friend to Come Alongside You

Above I mentioned that when you sit down on the sideline the enemy comes to sit beside you. He sits down to fill your heart with all of that junk, but if you have a friend and accountability partner, a battle buddy to give you a hand up, you may be able to avoid the pain of this open heart surgery. 

"Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble." 

-Ecclesiastes 4:9 (NLT)

As you run the race there are going to be times where you trip or stumble and fall. During those times it's always good to have a friend to help you up. In the same way, if you run with a battle buddy and you keep an open line of communication between you and that person, that person can stop you from sitting down or pull you back up when you do. 

To be more clear here is the picture that comes to mind when I think about this. I'm running a race, I'm surrounded by people who love and care about me and I wear out, I fall back and then fall out, walking over and sitting on the side line. One of those people (if I have chosen to be open and honest with them) will more than likely jog to me and, in love, correct me while reaching their hand out to pull me back up. They come alongside me before the enemy has a chance to start filling my heart with junk.

If you read the blog that I posted a few days ago then you may be asking why there was no one to come alongside me.... Well there was, in fact I have plenty of people that (had I been open with them) would have surrounded me.... but I chose to keep everything locked up.... I didn't share how I was feeling and so now I am having to have that spiritual open heart surgery. The Lord's hands are deep at work in my heart trying to fix everything I let get so gunky. Had I kept that open line of communication with the amazing people God has placed in my life, I probably wouldn't have even leaned toward the sideline. In fact, I may not have even had the chance. So don't make the same mistake; be open with the people God has placed in your life and if you don't have that battle buddy, find someone. Pray and ask God to send someone. Just don't run alone.

Avoiding Spiritual Open Heart Surgery

• If you don't have a relationship with Jesus, get one. It's not rocket science. You need Him! Everyone needs Jesus!!! There isn't even a question. How?  Admit you are sinner, believe Christ died for your sins, and confess your sins to God bringing EVERYTHING to Him and leaving nothing out (remember, He already knows but still wants you to tell Him). 

"If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved." 

-Romans 10:9-10 (NLT)                                                                                                                    

• Get in the Word. Read, read, read your Bible. Some people tell you to start in the book of John. I've heard someone say that they found it easier to start in Corinthians 1 and 2. You may be different. Just read. Ask God to speak to you and then open His Word. 

• Pray! Communication with God is very important. He is always there, He is always ready to listen. Get on your knees until they are raw, cry out to God until you have no voice or maybe you just simply need to talk to Him. Prayers don't have to be elaborate monologues. Prayer is a conversation between you and God. Open up your heart be real with Him, and then be still and quite, allowing Him to speak to you. 

All of this being said it's always good to have a battle buddy. If you've just accepted Christ or even if you have been in a relationship with Christ, God never intended for you to go through life alone. He intended for us to have community with each other. We all need mentors, friends and accountability partners (which may be found in the mentors and friends) to help us as we run this race. A pastor I know once said that our mentors are like pace setters in a race. In a race you find a pace setter that is going at a pace you can handle and keep pace with them (I'm not a runner but it goes something like that). Anyway, the same works for a mentor. A mentor is your pace setter in the greatest race of all and the idea is that you keep pace with them, learning from them as you go. Not to mention keeping that open line of communication. Mentors pray for you and are there to help you stay the course. You are meant to surround yourself with people like this. Let me give you a couple of different translations of a verse that kind of clarifies what I am saying:

"Plans go wrong for lack of advice; many advisers bring success." - Proverbs 15:22 (NLT)

"Without counsel, plans go awry, But in the multitude of counselors they are established."

-Proverbs 15:22 (NKJV)

Mentors, godly friends, and accountability partners are advisers. They are pace setters and we all need them. Even if you are someone's mentor you still need people to mentor you. 

This is not a one person job; it is a community effort. This faith, this race is a body of believers working together as one to keep each other going. To help each other remain spiritually healthy in order to avoid the pain of spiritual open heart surgery. 

May each and everyone of us run strong the race that is set before us, helping our brothers and sisters to stay the course as we go, so that at the end of this life, when we cross the finish line we can hear.... "Well done my good and faithful servant." 

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us." -Hebrews 12:1 (NLT)

May the Lord bless you all exceeding abundantly beyond all you could ever ask or imagine in Jesus' Name! :)

Hospitality

Over the next few weeks I would like anyone willing to chew on a word with me. The word is hospitality. I don't mean scratching the surface, I mean really digging deep.

As time goes on, I would like to ask that anything you'd like to share you message to us, or leave in the comments section:)

Just a quick little start, did you know that one of the greek meanings of the word hospitality is "love of strangers" or "love to strangers"?

May the Lord bless you richly:)

Lack of Devotionals

I know it has been a good while since I posted. Part of it is because I haven't had the time, and the other part is because it's kind of hard to post devotional when you haven't been digging into the word...

I always want to be honest with all of you. I have been so caught up with the  busyness of life that I have neglected my time with God. Don't get me wrong I know that there is no excuse and I have started working on a new routine to make sure that I am studying the Word regularly. Please pray that God would help me to make it a habit and that He would speak to me through my time with Him.

All of that being said, I would like to encourage all of you to make sure you make a habit of spending time with God. It is the most important part of anyone's day.

I look forward to seeing what God speaks to me during my time with Him but I am also looking forward to seeing what He speaks to me for Great News:)

May the Lord bless you all richly in Christ!

-Kelcy

I AM NOT GAY. A Public Service Announcement From the Founder of Great News

So for those of you who know me, you know that before I knew Jesus, I was with someone of the same sex. I was indeed gay. However, after April 4th of 2012, I met Jesus. My life was turned completely upside down, and though I struggled for a good while I can say with honesty that I have no attraction to girls now, WHATSOEVER. In fact, for those of you that are not aware, I am engaged (happily so) to an amazing guy, who I intend to marry at the end of this year.

For those of you from my past that think this is all my parents doing.... IT IS NOT. I have not been brainwashed, I have simply allowed God into my life to change EVERYTHING. In fact, I have a pretty great relationship with my parents now.

SO.... I want to repeat..... I. AM. NOT. GAY.

That is the end of this public service announcement. May God bless you all with a great day:)

Have You No Respect? Do You Not Tremble?

Jeremiah 5:22 (NLT)

"Have you no respect for me? Why don't you tremble in my presence? I, the Lord, define the ocean's sandy shoreline as an everlasting boundary that the waters cannot cross. The waves may toss and roar, but they can never pass the boundaries I set."

Where is our deep wholehearted, passionate respect of God? Do you tremble in His presence anymore? Have you forgotten who He is?? Have you forgotten that He is the God that literally defines the ocean's shoreline as an EVERLASTING boundary that the waters cannot cross??

He literally stops the ocean with an invisible line! No matter how rough the waters get, they can go no further than He says they can! That should be enough to make us tremble in His presence! SO WHY AREN'T WE???

Revelation 2:4-5a (NLT)

"But I have this complaint against you. You don't love me or each other as you did at first! Look how you have fallen! Turn back to me and do the works you did at first."

You need to return to your One True Love. Not that guy or that girl. Not that hobby or that activity. GOD. JESUS! Return your hearts to Him! Where they belong!

Galatians 3:3-4 (NLT)

"How foolish can you be? After starting your Christian lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? Have you experienced so much for nothing? Surely it was not in vain, was it?" 

Don't you realize that you can do NOTHING apart from Him? You can't change yourselves, you can't change hearts, you can't change the world... ONLY GOD CAN! He wants to do those things so much greater in and through you if you just let Him but you have to live for HIM first! YOU HAVE TO TURN BACK TO HIM FIRST! You have TASTED and SEEN how AWESOME the Lord is! Why have you turned away??? AND if you haven't tasted and seen, you've at least heard now the message of Christ, so what are you waiting for? What is stopping you my dear, sweet friend, from accepting the beautiful love that Christ has to offer? What's it going to take? You're not too far away, you are not so terrible of a person... I promise He loves YOU... I promise His arms are open and ready to receive you. Just give in sweet child. Please make Him Lord over your life... Please...

But to those who have turned away...who have strayed, who have gotten lost. Now is the time. Today is the day of salvation. Time is just about up. Don't be caught off guard. RETURN to Him! Stand in awe of His FORGIVING, REDEEMING, GRACE!! Tremble in His presence. Allow Him to put His fire in you and work in you. It's time... Fall madly, insanely, passionately in love with Jesus and don't ever look back. 

I love you my friend. My prayers are with you and I'm always here. Just shoot me an email or a Facebook message. Don't waste another minute. Another second... Another breath...

Your next breath could be your last... Church won't save you, small group won't save you, others' faith won't save you! ONLY JESUS CAN SAVE YOU. Now is the time. TODAY is THE day. 

May the Lord take captive your heart and draw you away from this world into His presence. In Jesus' Name! 

-Kelcy

The Gift of Singleness

I'm going to be honest, as I sat down to write this I intended it to be, just as my other posts are, gender neutral. However God led me and when I got to the end I realized well this isn't really a post for guys so for the guys that like to read my blog... sorry. However by all means feel free to read through it any way.

  

"We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps." - Proverbs 16:9 (NLT)

"We may throw the dice but the Lord determines how they fall." - Proverbs 16:33 (NLT)

When I first read these verses studying through the book of Proverbs a while back the first thought to run through my head was that the Lord is the ultimate decider of all things, in fact I wrote it at the top of the page in my bible. So as I came across this verse once again while reading through a little bit of Proverbs, I thought of some girls I know. Some girls who are putting too much time and energy into finding the perfect guy and instead getting mixed up with the wrong guys. Some girls have taken God and put Him on the back-burner of their lives, who have barely touched their bible, and who hardly come to church anymore unless they have to. They are trying to do God's job for Him and instead, without even realizing it, they are destroying their lives.

What these girls don't understand is if they would take the energy and resources they are putting into finding the "perfect" man, and put them into serving God, their lives would be much better and God would take care of EVERYTHING!

The Bible says:
"And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?" - Luke 12:28 (NLT)

Why try so hard at finding this "perfect" guy only to end up miserable when you could trust God and be more than happy!

Let's all be honest, relying on ourselves is just dumb. Really it is. Just think about it for a second, we as humans are weak, unreliable and limited. God, in all His glory is more than able, strong, almighty, unlimited, and perfect in all of His ways. There are no words in our vocabulary to describe God's greatness, not even when put together, so who would you rather rely on? Yourself? Your friends? That guy? Or God? I feel like the answer should be pretty obvious.

So I want to challenge you... STOP! Give up this tiring search for a man (or woman if you are a guy that has made it this far in the post) that you will never find without the hand of God. Take ALL of that energy, ALL of that time, and ALL of those resources that you're putting into finding "the one" and starting putting them into serving and worshiping God!

Joshua Harris talks about the gift God has given you of singleness, in his book called "I Kissed Dating Goodbye"

"God doesn't use our singleness to punish us. He has created this season as an unparalleled opportunity for undistracted devotion to God. And as a time for growth and service that we shouldn't take for granted or allow to slip by." - Joshua Harris (I Kissed Dating Goodbye. pg. 80)

"While we're single, dating not only keeps us from preparing for marriage, but can also quite possible rob us of the gift of singleness. Dating can tie us down in a series of pseudo relationships, but God wants us to maximize our freedom and flexibility to serve Him. Any season of singleness, whether you're sixteen or fifty-six, is a gift. You just might do God a disservice by wasting its potential on a lifestyle of short-term dating." - Joshua Harris (I Kissed Dating Goodbye. pg. 80)

So you see, stop looking at your singleness as a burden and start recognizing it as the blessing and gift that it is. Use this time to serve God. In the words of Joshua in Joshua 24:15 "...choose today whom you will serve...", will it be relationships or will it be Him? His perfect way.... or your imperfect way? What's your choice?

May the Lord open your eyes in ways you have never imagined. May He bless you richly beyond measure today!

Jesus Watched Him Go...

Luke 18:24
"Jesus watched him go and then said to his disciples, 'How hard it is for rich people to get into the Kingdom of God!'"

First off I want everyone reading this to know that this post is NOT about money, in fact we are not even talking about the words that Jesus spoke in the verse above. Instead I want you to read the first four words of this verse, "Jesus watched him go...", it seems an interesting place to stop doesn't?  As I was studying this chapter those four words stopped me in my tracks. Some translations say "He saw this, and then said..." but to me it doesn't leave the same impression as this one does. He watched the rich man walk away. Jesus literally sat there and watched this man turn his back and walk away from him, and can you just imagine the pain that Jesus must have felt in His heart?

When I read the rest of the verse I stopped and allowed it to really sink in and this is what was in my head, let me just kind of paint a picture for you. Jesus has answered the rich man's question, now all is silent as the rich man turns and walks away, and just imagine Jesus probably watched this man, silently, until he disappeared from sight. His eyes probably filled with tears as His heart ached in His chest from heartbreak. Then he spoke to His disciples. I wonder if when the first few words of that sentence left His mouth, if maybe His voice cracked a little... if maybe as He spoke He kept His eyes fixed in the direction that the rich man had walked...

Now just think about it for a second... He has looked at each one of us the same way. When we lived for the world instead of Him, when we have went our way instead of listening to His voice, when we have strayed off, He watched us walk away each time.... and each and every time... he has stood there arms stretched wide....scars exposed on his hands.....waiting for us to run back to Him. So my question is, where are you? Is your back turned to Jesus? Is He watching you go your own way? If so then what are you waiting for? Run into the arms of Jesus, tell Him how sorry you are, and remember that His scars are there because He loves you more than words can explain so to show you He allowed nails to be driven through His hands and feet.... He poured out His blood, so that your sins could be forgiven and you could be washed whiter than snow.

I pray that this has touched your heart the way it touched mine when God spoke it to my heart. I love you all!!! May you be blessed so very richly this new year!

Merry Christmas!!! (2014)

He came into the world to bring GREAT joy for ALL people. He came, quite as a lamb, to bring hope. He came into the world as a tiny, little baby to heal the sick, and the wounded. He came so that the BLIND could SEE, the DEAF could HEAR, the LAME could LEAP, the DUMB could SPEAK, and so that the DEAD WOULD LIVE AGAIN! JESUS came into the world as a baby. Quite. Gentle. He came to set us FREE. And even though He came as a baby... He was still fully God. Even though, to most, He probably seemed just like any other baby, He was still the King of Kings. Most looked at Jesus, lying in His mothers arms, and didn't realize that one day He would die a painful death on the cross to save the world from sin. Because you see, that tiny, gentle baby... was holding a promise in His hand. A promise of salvation for ALL who would believe. For you and for me. THAT is why we celebrate Christmas. Because JESUS came.

Luke 2:11 (ESV)

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." 

May the Lord bless you and your family with a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year!! May He allow you time to sit and meditate on the REAL reason we celebrate Christmas!!! Love you all!!!! =D

Please enjoy the video below!

Behold Video « The Skit Guys

The Sovereign Word of God

The Word of God is sovereign, holy and to be taken seriously. My heart is broken at the number of people from different God believing religions who pick and choose what the want to follow or believe out of The Bible. This may be a longer devotional than usual but let's set things straight and if I offend you I am sure that you can find the "unfollow" button or simply stop typing in the URL, depending on where you are reading this. It won't hurt my feelings, I will pray for you, and we can remain friends.

As I was saying, to be clear. There are 66 books in the bible, there is an Old Testament and a New Testament. BOTH are equally important and NEITHER should EVER be forgotten or downgraded! The trinity is super important and yes, it does exist. (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). This is NOT to be mistaken as serving three separate gods. There is only one God, but three persons (that is my extent of explaining the trinity at this time). Jesus IS the Son of God. He is fully God and fully man but either way He was/is sinless. Jesus was NOT just some prophet claiming to be the Messiah, He IS the Messiah. There is a VERY REAL place called Heaven and PLEASE understand HELL IS REAL!! It's not a scary story for parents to get their kids to act right it is REAL!!!! I don't want to be too harsh about this but at the same time you need to understand if you don't get right with God you are looking at an eternity in hell... hell is not a place to party with all of your drinking buddies or do everything that you like to do up here now, you will suffer for eternity there.

The gospel can be put in many different ways (all meaning the same thing) but really at it's simplest form, it comes down to this:

Jesus came to earth and lived a sinless life.
Jesus died on the cross for our sins
Three days later Jesus rose from the dead
40 days after his resurrection Jesus ascended to the Father
and... Here is the big one... HE IS COMING BACK!

No matter what you believe grace is for EVERYONE!!! "God so loved the WORLD..." (John 3:16) that means me, you, the person holding a sign on the street, the person tending bar, your boss, your co-workers, and the list can go on and on and on. The fact is, at least before the rapture, there aren't just 144,000 of us going to heaven or "elect" ones, when the world comes to an end. Now just because God loves us does NOT mean that He loves our sin. You aren't supposed to be going out and getting drunk or even staying in and doing so. If you really want to get technical because your body is "the temple of the Holy Spirit..." (1 Corinthians 6:19) that means you shouldn't be putting ANY toxins in your body which means you shouldn't be smoking either. Let me take it just a step further here you shouldn't have obscene words coming out of your mouth either (Colossians 3:8). If you don't know what the word obscene means off the top of your head, it means profanity or cussing. My point?

STOP PICKING AND CHOOSING WHAT YOU WANT TO FOLLOW FROM THE WORD OF GOD AND START FOLLOWING THE WHOLE THING!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I will not apologize for my ranting here, or for offending you because I did it out of love. I love each and every last one of you because God loves you. I want you to see Heaven and ALL it's splendor.... I have brothers and sisters in different parts of the world who are dying because they REFUSE to deny Jesus.... They aren't backing down... so why in the world should I or any other Christian for that matter, back down?

May the Lord impress on your heart the seriousness of this devotional. I love you all so much with the love of Jesus. May the Lord bless and keep you.

It Matters

Romans 12:2 (ESV)

"Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." 

I know I am about to step on a lot of toes but that doesn't really bother me. Sometimes, toes need to be stepped on in order for hearts to be touched. Too many of us have become conformed to this world. We watch the entertainment that television networks have convinced us is okay, when in reality we are breaking God's heart. Too often I hear the words, "it doesn't matter what I watch, it doesn't matter what I listen to, it's not that big of a deal, it's just a show, it's just a book, it's just a movie..." All the while you are sinking deeper and deeper into one of the LARGEST sin industries in the world. IT DOES MATTER!!! IT'S NOT JUST A TV SHOW OR A BOOK OR A MOVIE!!!!! 

Philippians 4:8 (ESV)

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." 

Let me give you a few things that aren't true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent and most definitely NOT worthy of the praise that sadly they receive anyway:

1. 50 shades of gray (movie or book)

2. True Blood

3. The racy Hardee's commercial (yes, I went there)

4. Orange is the New Black

5. Family Guy

6. Addicted

7. Let's be Cops

Have I gone far enough? It's not just a funny show, it's not just a funny movie! You are filling your minds and your hearts full of filth and at the same time you are breaking God's heart!!!! DON'T YOU GET IT!!!! Tears are pouring down The Father's face, because you are allowing your heart to be entertained by a god of this world. PLEASE STOP!!!! I can not stress to you just how much it really does matter what you watch and listen to. Music is not much better, today it fills your head and your heart with words that should never come out of your mouth. It talks about pre-marital sex, one night stands, and gay relationships as if all of it is okay. It gives the message that it's okay to drink heavily, cuss heavily and if some drugs get involved what could it hurt right? WRONG. It's time to put an end to the profanity, the pornography, and the vulgar comedy. It's time to stop holding back to spare peoples feelings and start speaking out to save lives for the Kingdom of God! 

I am begging you, with all of my heart, please STOP BREAKING GOD'S HEART! Turn off the television when garbage comes on, don't keep watching the movie if it is impure. Turn the radio station... open your bible. I am praying for a MIGHTY move of God in America. Will you join me? Will you step up and remind our brothers and sisters that it DOES matter? Will you tell those who don't know, that there is hope? Or will you sit back, will you be quite, and spare the feelings... 

Matthew 10:33 (NIV)

"But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven." -

You don't have to speak to disown Him. You can stand by, and say nothing,and share nothing..... spare feelings and you are doing just as much harm. May God guide and direct you according to His will. May He pull your heart close to His so that your heart will break for the reasons His does and so that your heart will rejoice at what His does. I love you so much my sweet, wonderful brothers and sisters. 

I am Humbled.

I know that a lot of ya'll are waiting for that post that I've been working on and I want you to know that I am still working on it but almost finished. However, this post is a little different than most. Today I decided to take a look it at my audience that makes up the 1,721 views on Great News!!!!! What I saw took me by surprise a bit and I am humbled. This is what I saw:

United States: 1201
Russia: 252
France: 46
Malaysia: 28
China: 19
Germany: 17
United Kingdom: 14
Poland: 7
Romania: 6
Sweden: 6

To some of you this may not mean a whole lot but when I look at these numbers my heart is overjoyed to know that these people have come to my blog, my ministry for hope, love, peace, encouragement. To read my devotionals, and my other posts. I see these numbers and think about the countries on this list that are experiencing some seriously hard times, and persecution. Some of these viewers may very well be risking their safety just to read a blog with God's Word and they chose mine! This is only 1,596 of my readers, so I apologize for those that its not showing me but I want you to know that I love each and every one of you with the love of Christ, and I thank God for each of you. If you ever need prayer or need to talk please feel free to send me an email. Its under my profile. 

"May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace." -Numbers 6:24-26 (NLT)

"I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit." -Romans 15:13 (NLT)

"Dear brothers and sisters, we can't help but thank God for you, because your faith is flourishing and your love for one another is growing. We proudly tell God's other churches about your endurance and faithfulness in all the persecutions and hardships you are suffering. And God will use this persecution to show his justice and to make you worthy of his Kingdom, for which you are suffering. In his justice he will pay back those who persecute you." -2 Thessalonians 1:3-6 (NLT)

"The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure." -1 Corinthians 10:13 (NLT)

Thank you all some much. May God bless you:)

EASTER 2014

John 19:16-18 (NLT)
"So they took Jesus away. Carrying the cross by himself, he went to the place called Place of the Skull (in Hebrew, Golgotha.) There they nailed him to the cross. Two others were crucified with him, one on either side, with Jesus between them."

He was treated like a criminal. He was beaten beyond recognition, had a crown of thorns placed on his head, mocked and forced to carry the cross that they would later nail him to. A death I am almost certain none of us would WILLINGLY endure. But Jesus did. The cross he carried was ours. He wasn't just carrying the weight of a wooden cross, he was carrying the weight of every sin we would ever commit! OUR  sin nailed Him to that cross!!! But three days later=)...

Luke 24:1-7 (NLT)
"But very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. So they went in, but they didn't find the body of the Lord Jesus. As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes. The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Then the men asked 'Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? He isn't here! He is risen from the dead! Remember what he told you back in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would rise again on the third day.'"

HALLELUJAH!!! HE ISN'T DEAD!!! HE IS VERY MUCH ALIVE!!! The grave could NOT contain Him!!!

There is a song that we sing at my church called This Blood. It is such a beautiful song, and there is a part in the song that when we come to it, our screen puts in big bold letters:

BUT IN THREE DAYS=)

Every time I see this reminder my heart leaps for joy! Another wonderful song that is out there is one of the newest songs from Kari Jobe called forever. As you finish this post I want you to watch it (below) and just worship our amazing God! 

May you be blessed beyond measure this Easter as God reminds you that He is not dead He is ALIVE!!! God bless you with an AWESOME Easter in Him! I love you my sweet friend in Christ! =D

Here is the link to This Blood=)

http://youtu.be/DQLlW_Bl4BA

CHRISTmas 2013

Luke 2:9-12 (ESV)
"And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, 'Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.'" 

Merry CHRISTmas my family in Christ:) That sweet little baby lying in a manger so very long ago grew to become a man who died for OUR sins after living a sinless life. I am praying that each and every one of you are blessed with the most wonderful Christmas. I pray that your day has gone wonderfully and that as you wind down this afternoon you are filled with the most blessed peace. Thank you for all of the prayers that you contribute to this ministry and to myself. God has truly blessed me to be able to do this. I love each and every one of you with the love that Christ has given me to do so and will continue to pray for all of you. God bless you all and once again. Merry Christmas:)

Love in Christ,
Kelcy

This Is a Rebel Generation

Wow, isn't that the truth? Don't say no because you know, I know, and more importantly God knows that you would be lying. You see God spoke to me last night, calling me to open my Message bible. I didn't know why but I knew God would guide me. Eventually I wound up in Isaiah staring at a heading in chapter 30 which is what I put as the title of this post. I'm going to let you read what I read and then we're going to talk about it. 

Isaiah 30:8-11 (MSG)

So, go now and write all this down. 

    Put it in a book

So that the record will be there

    to instruct the coming generation,

Because this is a rebel generation,

    a people who lie,

A people unwilling to listen

    to anything God tells them.

They tell their spiritual leaders, 

    "Don't bother us with irrelevancies."

They tell their preachers,

    "Don't waste our time on impracticalities.

Tell us what makes us feel better.

    Don't bore us with obsolete religion.

That stuff means nothing to us.

    Quit hounding us with The Holy of Israel."

I have underlined the same things here as I did in my bible. It is so obvious that we are a, if not the rebellious generation that Isaiah spoke of here in chapter 30. Not only are we a generation that rebels, we always want everything right now. Not later, NOW. Let's even stop calling it our generation and start calling it what it is, a rebellious culture. Not just one generation but everyone. We refuse to look at the bigger picture. Verse 10 says this:

Isaiah 30:10 (MSG)

They tell their spiritual leaders,

   "Don't bother us with irrelevancies."

They tell their preachers,

   "Don't waste our time on impracticalities.

Tell us what makes us feel better.

"Tell us what makes us feel better." That's us. Sin and the ways of this world are nothing but a drug waiting to take us captive by the lies and deceit they produce. Getting us hooked with empty promises of a "fix" that'll finally take, that will satisfy our wants and needs and desires, that will fulfill our every dream. They are a drug that Satan deals telling us what we want to hear so that we'll buy in. Promising us immediate effects. Let's look at the same verse in the New Living Translation.

Isaiah 30:10 (NLT)

They tell the seers, 

  "Stop seeing visions!"

They tell the prophets,

  "Don't tell us what is right.

Tell us nice things.

  Tell us lies. 

I want to really focus on just the last part of that verse. "Tell us nice things. Tell us lies." Sound familiar? More often that not in this day and age though people say they want the truth and your "honest opinion" they want you to lie. Because, the truth hurts, and sometimes, quite often actually, the truth tends to be ugly. Therefore we want to be told nice things. It's exactly as verse 11 says.

Isaiah 30:11 (NLT)

Forget all this gloom.

  Get off your narrow path.

Stop telling us about your 

  'Holy One of Israel.' "

Too many people want off the narrow path. Even more want to knock those who are on it off. They want to forget all of the horrible stuff around them, they want to ignore it. They even say "Stop telling us about your 'Holy One of Israel.' " But look at the response in verses 12 and 13

Isaiah 30:12-13

This is the reply of the Holy One of Israel:

   "Because you despise what I tell you and trust instead in oppression and lies,

calamity will come upon you suddenly 

    like a bulging wall that bursts and falls.

In an instant it will collapse 

     and come crashing down."

See what we want is to "Trust instead in oppression and lies." The message says "preferring to live by injustice and shape your lives on lies..." You see, you want to be fed the lies, you want to be told the "nice things" that will make you "feel better", preferably NOW. But, the problem is all your doing is buying the drug and getting your fix for now. It isn't a permanent fix. So you'll just keep going back, over and over, every time you stop "feeling better", a vicious little cycle.

Let's look at the big picture, take a little reality check if you will.

The "feel good" junkies. The ones who want the lies to make em' feel good now, caution to the wind, they want their fix and they want it now. Here is your reality check. Sure you feel good now. Your still riding a high from a fix the world has given you. Before long you'll be looking for more, shoving off what you need to hear for what you want to hear. Overall you are still living in a miserable, depressing state. Here is what's going to happen. You'll keep getting your fix until one day your sentenced to an eternity with fire, no peace, no happiness, no love, no compassion, and no more "feel good" fixes.

Now, lets look at the alternative Life with God. A life that though it isn't perfect is filled with love in even the darkest of times. Where the aforementioned 'feel good junkie' falls and has no strength to get up we find strength in Jehovah Jireh the Lord our provider. We have a God that will never make a promise that He doesn't intend to keep. Life with a God who speaks to us out of the storm (Job 38:1). A God who can satisfy our needs, and even fulfill our dreams if they are in line with His will. No, life isn't going to be constantly happy, sunshine and rainbows. In fact, I've got news for you, It has to RAIN before you see the RAINbow. Yes, you have to listen to the truth, which isn't always going to be pretty. But this is what happens in the end. Your given the gift of eternal life, eternity with God, the ONE TRUE KING. In a place where you reunite with lost loved ones. Where there is light, a peace that surpasses all understanding, unspeakable joy, and amazing love. I don't even know what else, I can't even begin to imagine how great it is going to be, how AWESOME it is going to be. No more pain, no more suffering... 

So which would you rather have? I've chosen mine.

Isaiah 30:15 (MSG)

God, the Master, The Holy of Israel, has this solemn counsel: "Your salvation requires you to turn back to me and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves. Your strength will come from settling down in complete dependence on me    The very thing you've been unwilling to do"

Stop being unwilling!! Turn back to God! For some, you need to turn to Him for the first time. Stop trying to save yourselves because it's not possible!! Settle down in complete dependence on God. I promise you will not regret it. Just talk to Him. 

I'm praying for you friend...unceasingly praying. May God bless you and yours exceeding abundantly. Love you today in Jesus my friend:)

Isaiah 30:18 (NLT)

So the Lord must wait for you to come to him

   so he can show you his love and compassion.

For the Lord is a faithful God.

  Blessed are those who wait for his help.

Can You Ever Forgive Yourself?

I want you all to consider something. It's not something hard or even something new, in fact it's something that most, if not all of you have heard throughout your lives. God forgives. If you will sincerely ask, and if you will humble yourself and ask for Him to have mercy and forgive you, He will!

1 John 1:9 (NIV)
"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." 

In fact! His word tells us that He not only forgives the sin He 'blots out our sin, and remembers it no more'

Isaiah 43:25 (NASB)
"I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake, And I will not remember your sins."

Hebrews 10:17 (NASB)
"AND THEIR SINS AND THEIR LAWLESS DEEDS I WILL REMEMBER NO MORE."

I'm reading a book right now called 'Holiness, Truth, and the Presence of GOD' by Francis Frangipane. It's a great book and I encourage you all to read it but I want to put something that I read in here. 

**"Let me share an experience. A certain man of God had been gifted with revelatory insight into people's lives. During an evening service he ministered to a Presbyterian pastor and his wife. By the gift of the Spirit, he revealed the couple's past, uncovered their present situation, and then disclosed to them what was to come. This work of God greatly impressed the couple, and as the prophecies were fulfilled, one month later the Presbyterian minister brought two other pastors, each with their wives, to another service for personal ministry.   The word of knowledge was exceptionally sure that night, and the second minister and his wife marveled at the accuracy and truth in the prophetic word. The third couple stepped forward for ministry, and again the word of knowledge was present. The prophet spoke to the husband, revealing his past, present, and insight into his future. Then the man of God turned to this third minister's wife. As he began to speak of her past, suddenly he stopped. 'There was a very serious sin in your past.' The woman, with her worst fear upon her, turned pale and closed her eyes. The congregation hushed and moved to the edge of their seats.    The prophet continued, 'And I asked the Lord, 'What was this sin that she committed ' And the Lord answered, 'I do not remember!'''**

How awesome is that?!? He doesn't remember your sin!!! Some of you need to go back and read that a few thousand times, just that one sentence. Go ahead, I promise you won't miss anything, I'll wait...... Some of you need to take that into your heart and hold it their.

The enemy is called the great accuser for a reason. He will bring up something that is buried so deep in your past it shouldn't even be in your memory bank. God has already forgiven you, and yet when Satan brings up your sin he makes sure to fill you with guilt and shame, chaining that sin to you so that it drags you down.

I want you to imagine, just for a minute Jesus looking at you with tear filled eyes, pain stricken across his face and saying "can you ever, forgive yourself?" STOP!!!! Go ahead and go back, because some of you assumed and skipped over that last part. NOT 'forgive me.' but 'forgive yourself' How can God forgive and forget our sin if you don't put it behind you and accept and embrace His forgiveness? Now imagine Him again, the same look of pain except this time I want you to do something that might be quite hard for some of you, I want you to imagine the crown of thorns on His head, the blood running down His face, imagine Him, just for a moment, beaten beyond recognition. Now, imagine Him saying "I died so that my father could forgive you. He sent me to save you. PLEASE accept His forgiveness." It hurts doesn't it. You can almost hear the hammer hitting the nails. Some of you may say this is too far, but that image, is what happened to our savior so that we could be saved!! What is the truth even worth if we water it down or make it 'pretty'. The answer is NOTHING! Watered down truth is nothing but a lie.

I want to do something a little different to close this post. Below I have typed two prayers one is for believers/followers you can put it any way you want, this is just to give you can idea, this is my prayer. The second prayer is for the non-believers, the non followers who want to trust God and follow Him. For those who want to accept and embrace the fathers forgiveness. You may know it well because it is the prayer of salvation.

Believers/followers prayer:
God I'm so sorry. You have so willingly forgiven me and yet I allow the enemy to convict me of my past sins, I allow him to chain me to it and drag me down. Forgive me, not just for my sins but for taking what your son did for granted. You sent Him to pour out His blood, to be brutally beaten, and nailed to a cross so that we could be saved! I love you Lord. I am so thankful that you love me enough to blot out my sins. Help me to never again take for granted what you did for us. In your sons most precious, beautiful, MIGHTY name I pray, Amen. 

Prayer of salvation (if you need to reaffirm your faith as a believer that's okay too:))
Dear Jesus, I know that I am a sinner. I believe that you died on the cross for my sins, and right now, I want to turn from my sins and open my heart and life toward you and accept you as my personal Lord and Savior. Thank you Jesus for saving me. 

I want to personally welcome you to the family of Christ!! This really truly is the best decision you will ever make. Please understand that because you have made this decision does not mean that life is going to be easy. The enemy fights what he doesn't like and he really doesn't like what you just did. But trust in the father and He will give you a strength unlike any other! I want to encourage you to get plugged in with a church that is available to you, sometimes you may not feel comfortable in that church and you may want to try a different church and that's okay. You may like the first church you go to and feel at home there, don't give up. Let God lead you. Listen to the still small voice within you, He will make sure you are where He wants you. Don't just profess your faith friend live it!! He loves you unlike any other:) I'm praying for you, and if you'd like feel free to contact me (info in announcement section) I'm always willing to pray with you. 

I want to leave you with this verse that I find very encouraging and I hope you will find it encouraging as well:

Joshua 1:9
"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."

May our father bless you with peace, strength, courage, and boldness! I love you in Jesus today friend!!!! =)




 *Please excuse any typos that may be in the bit from 'Holiness, Truth, and the Presence of GOD' the bit comes from page(s) 34 starting in the second paragraph and ending on page 35 with the first two lines of the page. 

Short FB Post

Some of you may have already seen this on my facebook, but I wanted to post it on here as well because I want more than just the friends on my facebook to see it. I want everyone no matter who to be able to see it, and I pray that it will touch someones heart. It's a very short post but here you go:


SO happy and blessed! I just wanted to share that even if you aren't rich, even if you don't live in a three story house with a huge amount of land and even if you don't have the most amazing things, God gave you breath every single time you drew breath in today. That's him!! (Job 34:14-15) Look around you, there are tiny blessings that you may have missed today! Don't take them for granted because even the smallest blessing from God, is   H-U-G-E!! I have an amazing family that I live with, family that God has blessed me with all around, I have a worship ministry family, even if I don't know all of them, an amazing family in Sunday school. Just because you don't know them that well doesn't mean they aren't your family. We are all family through God! I got to go and worship with family today!!! In my heavenly fathers house at that!!! NOT EVERYONE IS ABLE TO ENJOY THAT BLESSING!!! BE THANKFUL. He has given me more joy then I can contain and I am so blessed to be able to say that! May He bless you all exceeding abundantly as well:) Praise God He has given you another day:)


May our almighty father bless you exceeding abundantly. And may you put your trust in Him, today and everyday! =)

Christ Is Risen - Death: His Sting & Defeat (Feat. Spoken Word Poet Davi...

I just wanted to share this video and though some of you may not like it I found it to be a moving video. Though the song itself is good it's not the same without the pause for the poetry. Hope it blesses you the way it did me. :)

Merry CHRISTmas!!!!

I just wanted to take the time on this beautifully rainy Christmas evening to say merry CHRISTmas!! Not, Happy Holidays or Seasons Greetings but Merry CHRISTmas my dear sweet friend!! Because without Christ there is no Christmas. That is what this whole season is about friends. i pray that as you spend time eating and possibly exchanging any remaining gifts that you will also remember the true meaning of Christmas. I'd like to share some scripture with you about the season and following in the spirit of it, starting with one that truly fires me up.

Isaiah 9:6
"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders, and he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." 

Does that not fire you up to read those names. Our God is not just our father He's also a wonderful counselor!! A MIGHTY GOD! He's not just our heavenly father He's our Everlasting Father, and PTL our Prince of Peace!!!! Such wonderful names to hear, so encouraging to know that he's all that and more!!!! Infinitely more!!!

Matthew 1:23
"The virgin will be with child and will giver birth to a son and they will call him Immanuel" -which means, "God with us."

Wow!! Isn't that awesome?? God with us!! He is an omnipresent God!! That means that He is always present, ALWAYS!!! Even if you can't feel his presence He is ALWAYS there!

Omnipresent - present everywhere at the same time. Example: The omnipresent God.

Praise God He is omnipresent!!!

Of coarse there is no way I can go without putting this verse up on Christmas!:

Luke 2:10-12
"But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you. You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

Can you just imagine...just for a second what those shepherds must have felt? I mean fear aside, that had to be an awesome experience. An angle of the Lord appearing to tell you that Christ the savior has been born!! Just think how they must have felt in that very moment.

Luke 2:14
"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."

John 14:27
"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid."

Catch that last part there "...Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid." Can I just tell you that there is no trouble, worry, or fear that our Mighty God can't handle. He is bigger than all of them. Nothing can defeat our Mighty God!!

A very smart lady once told me that when you get in a situation of temptation you should say aloud to the devil to leave you alone (you have to say it aloud because the devil can't read your thoughts) , you have to tell him that he has no power over you for you are a child of God. The way I look at it, is Satan is powerless, for even he has to ask the Lords permission to test us therefore he is still under the power of the Almighty. HE CAN'T CONTROL YOU IF YOU DON'T LET HIM!!!!!!!

1 John 4:9-11
"This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another."

Can you grab a hold of that today? I believe that I put a piece of scripture about loving each other in a previous post. He so loved US!! Friend I hope our fathers words encourage you the way they encourage me.

Luke 2:11
"Today in the Town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord."

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! May the greatest gift of all be welcome in your homes tonight.

2 Thessalonians 3:16
"Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you."

I would like to leave you with this last bit of scripture not really in the spirit of Christmas but in the spirit of the weather. I hope it blesses you as it does me, and gives you a new outlook on the weather this evening and every evening.

Job 37:1-13
“My heart pounds as I think of this. It trembles within me. Listen carefully to the thunder of God’s voice as it rolls from his mouth. It rolls across the heavens, and his lightning flashes in every direction. Then comes the roaring of the thunder—the tremendous voice of his majesty. He does not restrain it when he speaks. God’s voice is glorious in the thunder. We can’t even imagine the greatness of his power. “He directs the snow to fall on the earth and tells the rain to pour down. Then everyone stops working so they can watch his power. The wild animals take cover and stay inside their dens. The stormy wind comes from its chamber, and the driving winds bring the cold. God’s breath sends the ice, freezing wide expanses of water. He loads the clouds with moisture, and they flash with his lightning. The clouds churn about at his direction. They do whatever he commands throughout the earth. He makes these things happen either to punish people or to show his unfailing love.

May our Wonderful Counselor, our Mighty God, our Everlasting Father, our Prince of Peace, our Immanuel, our very best gift, the Lord and Savior bless you and yours exceeding abundantly on this very Merry Christmas!