1 Timothy 2:1-6 “1I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;

2For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.

3For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;

4Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

5For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

6Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.”

God wants “all men to be saved.” (verse 4 above)

I’d like to tell you how good God is, and maybe somebody will want to try Him for themselves. He will keep you from harm, (when you love Him in your heart), and will talk to you in your heart, through your ‘knowing’ inside you.

Some people call it their gut instinct, women call it women’s intuition, and some refer to it as their ‘knowing’, and some people just say “something told me”, and some people say “well, for some reason, I felt I should”.

It’s the unexplainable, unpractical, impossible ‘knowing’ that doesn’t make sense. The trick is discerning God’s voice. How does one know?

Deuteronomy 7:8-10 (Amplified Bible) “8But because the Lord loves you and because He would keep the oath which He had sworn to your fathers, the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.

9Know, recognize, and understand therefore that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God, Who keeps covenant and steadfast love and mercy with those who love Him and keep His commandments, to a thousand generations,

10And repays those who hate Him to their face, by destroying them; He will not be slack to him who hates Him, but will requite him to his face.”

We know by reading God’s Word, which says God is love, 1 John 4:8. God hates human sacrifices, Psalm 106, and God’s commandments state “Thou shalt not kill” Ex. 20:13, and “Thou shalt not lie” Ex. 20:16, and “Thou shalt not commit adultery” Ex. 20:14, etc.

So we know God would NOT tell us to kill someone, and He would NOT tell us to lie to someone, and He would NOT tell us to cheat on our husband, or ask someone to cheat on their spouse either. We know God is good, and Jesus said “be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect”, so that means He would never tell us to hurt someone.

Jesus said “The sheep that are My own hear and are listening to My voice; and I know them, and they follow Me.” John 10:27

Deuteronomy 13:3 “You shall not listen to the words of that prophet or to that dreamer of dreams. For the Lord your God is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your [mind and] heart and with your entire being.”

I wish I could tell those who have not had the pleasure of knowing God’s love and mercy, how wonderful He is. I grieve for those who do not know Him. How can we (the Church) tell them God loves them? How can we show them He will turn their sad, miserable lives into joy and peace, if they would leave their old ways and learn His?

My life was sad and miserable, and I did not want to live. My outlook was dismal, I expected only problems, and that’s all I had; problems! Even though I was a church-goer, and called myself a Christian, my expectations in life were of problems and hardships. It was a thought pattern that had somehow gotten set in my mind, and praise God it is now broken!

I encourage you to seek Him through prayer and reading His Word. I encourage you to leave behind people who are dragging you down in sin. I encourage you to stay away from men and women who like to bad mouth others, who complain all the time, who are never happy and are envious of others who are. I encourage you to be brave; lean on God; trust in Him, and make that move! Quit leaning on people for your happiness. Your happiness really is only skin deep. The skin gets cut and bleeds, and then you’re sad.

God’s happiness is different. It’s being happy with a small house that needs repair. It’s praising Him and thanking Him for that house! It’s being happy even if your house is not clean. It was a hard change, but there is contentment in imperfection!

Paul said “11Not that I am implying that I was in any personal want, for I have learned how to be content (satisfied to the point where I am not disturbed or disquieted) in whatever state I am.

12I know how to be abased and live humbly in straitened circumstances, and I know also how to enjoy plenty and live in abundance. I have learned in any and all circumstances the secret of facing every situation, whether well-fed or going hungry, having a sufficiency and enough to spare or going without and being in want.

13I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am [h]self-sufficient in Christ's sufficiency].” Phillipians 4:11-13

With God in my life I’m able to look at the other side of the coin, so instead of being angry and disgruntled that my house is still dirty (and that little house fairy hadn’t cleaned it while I was at work) I am happy that I made it home safely (RR 165 can be treacherous) and happy my husband is okay and that he’s there, too.

There are things I want, but you know what? I don’t need a thing. God has given me more than I need, and when I praise Him and thank Him, He gives me more! That’s how the blessings come!~ It’s by being truly happy for what you have, taking good care of what you have, thanking Him for it and praising God, no matter what happens to what you have, knowing it’s His anyway, and trusting Jesus for what He said.

Matthew 6:33

But seek ( aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness ( His way of doing and being right), and then all these things taken together will be given you besides.

Deuteronomy 30:20 "20 You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and committing yourself firmly to him. This[ is the key to your life. And if you love and obey the Lord, you will live long in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” (New Living Translation)