It is Written – A Journey Through the New Testament

Posted on November 17, 2014 by Lynn

religious-christmas-graphics-0027Christmas…’tis the season to be frazzled!

But for the next six weeks, while you’re decking halls, shopping, baking, shopping, caroling, tree-trimming, shopping some more and getting more and more frazzled…take time to concentrate on the “Reason for the Season” and glean some much needed encouragement from Scripture.

Take a pre-Christmas journey with me through the New Testament.

It is Written

Matthew 5:13. “It is written” – I am the salt of the earth.

Matthew 5:14. “It is written” – I am the light of the world.

Matthew 21: 21-22. “It is written” – if I have faith and do not doubt I will not only wilt the fig as He did but I will also say to this mountain that is in my life: be removed and be cast into the sea, and it will be done, and whatever things I ask in prayer, believing, I will receive.

Mark 11:23-24. “It is written” – when I speak according to the word and will of God, Heaven responds.

Mark 16:15. “It is written” – I am to go into all the world and preach the gospel.

Luke 11:9-10. “It is written” – that whatever I ask it will be given to me, that whatever I seek I will find, that whenever I knock on the door it will be opened to me.

John 1:12. “It is written” – since I have received Him into my heart He has given me the right to become a child of God.

John 2:9,10,23. “It is written” – Signs and Miracles are to point to Christ so people will believe.

John 3:16. “It is written” – that He loves me so much that He gave His Son, Jesus Christ, to die as a sacrifice for all my sins so that I could live with Him for eternity.

John 3:18. “It is written” – if I believe in Him I am not condemned.

John 3:21. “It is written” – when I do what His truth says and come to Him who is light then I will escape darkness and condemnation.

John 3:36. “It is written” – I have eternal life.

John 4:50-53. “It is written” – when I believe, trust and obey Jesus’ word I will have what I ask for.

John 5:24. “It is written” – I have passed from death into life.

John 6:29. “It is written” – the work of God is that I believe on Jesus Christ, whom He sent.

John 6:46-51. “It is written” – Jesus is of God and has seen God and if I believe in Jesus I have everlasting life;  He is the bread of life, He is “out of” heaven and has come to earth to deliver me from eternal death.  He is the living bread – the One who gives life to me forever, and He gave His flesh on the cross for the life of the world.

John 7:38. “It is written” – out of my innermost being flows rivers of living water.

John 8:31-32. “It is written” – if I truly believe in Him and continue in His Word then I will know the truth and the truth will set me free.

John 9:7. “It is written” – if I will obey, I will receive.

John 14:12-14. “It is written” – that the works that Jesus did I will do also, and even greater works, because Jesus has gone to the Father and sent His Holy Spirit.

John 14:12-14. “It is written” – that if I ask anything in the name of Jesus that will bring glory to the Father, Jesus will do it.

John 14:12-14. “It is written” – Jesus wants me to do what He did and He has equipped me with his Holy Spirit to do just that.

John 14:20. “It is written” – I am in Christ, and Christ is in me.

John 14:23. “It is written” – if I love Him and keep His words then God will love me and the Father and Son in the Holy Spirit will dwell, remain and habitate with me.

John 14:27. “It is written” – I have peace in Christ.

John 15:9. “It is written” – I am loved by Jesus.

John 15:16. “It is written” – I am chosen and ordained by Jesus to go forth and to bear fruit – fruit that will last.

John 16:27. “It is written” – I am loved by the Father.

John 17:9. “It is written” – I belong to God, I am His.

John 17:13. “It is written” – I have the full joy of Jesus.

John 17:15. “It is written” – I am protected from the evil one.

John 17:18. “It is written” – I have been sent into the world.

John 17:22. “It is written” – I have God’s glory.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

Posted in 25 Encouraging Bible Verses - Topical, Inspiration & Devotion, Proverbs 16:9 - Journey Thoughts, Scripture Study | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Limitless Possibilities

Posted on November 15, 2014 by Lynn

NanowrimoMy creative writing class is in the middle of NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) with a goal per student of writing 20,000 words or more.  For Junior High School students that is an amazing accomplishment!  As their teacher, I am mostly a spectator/encourager this month as my twenty students spend their class time on  computers tapping out stories, each of them immersed in their own “dream” world.  One student loves poetry and blogging so she is making a compilation work of her poetry and blog posts.  Confined to a wheelchair and blind after a freak complication left her with a brain injury after a routine tonsillectomy three years ago, Hope is an inspiration to me as well as the rest of the class.  I listen to her narrate her poems to Dawn, her teaching aid and “scribe” and I am blown away by her creativity and passion for writing.  They are the only two voices I hear in the classroom.  The only other sound is the tapping of fingers on keyboards, as my young writers determinedly write their own stories.  Once in a while a student will giggle or gasp depending on the plot line they have masterminded.  A student will quickly turn to another student and ask hurriedly, “I need a word!  How do I say….?”  A brief discussion will follow and the tapping will continue.  It’s brilliant!

As a teacher, it’s wonderful to see my students engaged enthusiastically about something in the classroom.  As a writer, my heart is full to see students who love to write!

At the end of the class, I can’t help but eavesdrop at their conversations as they put away their computers.  They share what their fictional characters are about to do next, or how they wrestled with a villain or discovered a secret passage, or had a heart wrenching breakup…bits and pieces of plotlines that pique my interest.  They are future authors, one and all!

Hope passes me and smiles widely as her assistant pushes her wheelchair from the classroom.  “I wrote another poem about horses!” she says.  Writing transports her from the confines of that chair and into a world of limitless possibilities and endless imagination.  I can’t help but feel that I am watching a miracle develop in front of my eyes and I humbly thank God for allowing me the opportunity to witness it first-hand!

Posted in Inspiration & Devotion, Proverbs 16:9 - Journey Thoughts, Teach on, Teacher! | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Bullycide

Posted on November 1, 2014 by Lynn

In 2011, a family in Pickering, Ontario, Canada was grieving the loss of their child, a victim of “bullycide”.  If you haven’t heard ofJoshua the word, it is because it is relatively new term coined in recent years that describes the act of children who commit suicide because they are bullied.  Mitchell Wilson, an eleven year old boy with muscular dystrophy, suffocated himself after being attacked by a twelve-year-old boy from his school.  The twelve-year-old was arrested for jumping Mitchell while he was out walking and smashing his face and teeth into the pavement and then stealing his iPhone.  Although the boy was charged and removed from the school, Mitchell, according to his father, never fully recovered from the attack.  Apparently Mitchell had been bullied before and this latest attack just made him even more nervous and stressed.

But there is more to this story.  Mitchell lost his mother to skin cancer,and Mitchell, having been diagnosed with muscular dystrophy, found that walking was a means of helping him fight his disease.  Unfortunately after the attack, Mitchell did not feel safe enough to walk outside anymore and when he was scheduled to testify against his attacker in court, family members believe that he just couldn’t handle the stress of the trial and wished to avoid facing his attacker in court.

This should raise the ire of anyone who has children and teenagers, or who works closely with youth.  Bullying is insidious and it is not something that will just go away.  It’s not something one grows out of, adults are bullied or grow up to be bullies.  It must be stopped and one way to do that is to raise awareness against bullying and in this case: bullycide.

My young adult Trilogy: Shoot the Wounded, Heal the Wounded and Love the Wounded addresses bullying and all three books are listed as resources on http://www.bullying.org, one of the largest anti-bullying websites in the world.  For more information on how you can combat bullying and to learn more please refer to another one of my other blog posts: Parenting 101 – What to Do If Your Child is Being Bullied or Help Stop Bullying.

To raise awareness to combat bullying I invite parents, students, teachers and administrators to participate in Bullying Awareness Week, November 16-22.  I am doing my part by blogging about this information and I invite my readers to share this blog and information by reblogging this post and sharing it on Twitter, Facebook, and other social networking sites.

If you are a victim of bullying: Tell a trusted adult and then hide this verse in your heart:

“Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”   (Deuteronomy 31:6)

 

 

Posted in Family Life, Proverbs 16:9 - Journey Thoughts | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment