Deals and Steals: Michaels Jewerly

And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. (Deut 6:5 and Matt 22:37)

The Creator commands us to love Him with everything in us a love that is so deep it surpasses the deepest depth of the ocean floor (36,000 feet) yet it continues to find ways to grow deeper each day He blesses us to remain in this life. What love? And yes this kind of love for God is possible and have been made possible through the death of Jesus Christ who so loved each and every one of us He gave His life (John 3:16) so we might feel this unconditional never ending kind of love that God has for us so we can in turn feel it back towards Him. So what are we called to love God with? According to this Scripture we are called to love Him with everything in us: Our thoughts, feelings and strength.
Why do you think God created us with a mind? So we could love Him with our mind with goodly and lovely thoughts about His love, grace and mercy. A heart? So we could feel for Him, want Him and love Him with thankfulness. Legs? So we can run towards His altar. Hands? So we can lend to others and reach for him? Knees? So we could bow down before Him in worship? Mouth? To praise Him and testify of His love.
God created us for His glory (Is 43: 6-7) and for the explicit purpose of us loving Him with our entire being. But if we are to love God with our mind, heart and might we can’t then use our mind, heart and strength to love the world and our flesh (which is our own way of thinking, feeling and doing). A choice must be made whom we will love. We can’t serve two masters.

God made it possible for us to love Him with everything we got. I’m not Keith Sweat but I do ask this question: How deep is your love - that is for God of course? Is your love for Him so deep you can drown in the depths of the excitement about seeking, serving and obeying Him? Or could it be your love for Him has no or little depth and is floating on the surface of excuses, denial, procrastination or ignorance? Take the challenge! Make a New Year’s resolution to love God with your mind by thinking of His ways and commandments, your heart by feeling the delight of love in serving Him and might by doing things that express your love for Him such as praying, reading His word, attending church, giving, forgiving, repenting, seeking, loving others and keeping his commandments.
Felecia

And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. De

Whew! Reading this Scripture yesterday, I knew the word spoke directly to my own experiences so I had to study it this morning and write my very own amplified version:
And you shall call to mind and never forget to speak of the journey of roads of tests and paths of afflictions the Lord Thy God navigated you down these 40 years in an strange unhabituated land with no natural maps or compasses for the purpose of manifesting what was in your heart through calculated trials of experience to see if your obedience to His commandments would take precedence over your flesh which is your own way of thinking, feeling, doing and not His.
Thank you Lord! We will all have a wilderness experience/s which is an experience of attacks, oppression, afflictions in the way of rejection, hurt, pain, anger, grief, lack, uncertainty, loss, abasement so forth. Some of these experiences may be shocking, embarrassing and may strike suddenly. Yet and still some of our roads of mental, emotional and physical uncertainty will be orchestrated by God Himself for the purpose of blessings us after the fact through the testing of our level of devotion, fidelity and faithfulness to His word in the face of our predestined and situational trials and tribulations. Does your heart testify that you are obedient to his word by keeping your body pure as he walks you down the road of singleness? What about the paths of unemployment, divorce, breakup and bankruptcy. Not to insinuate that God causes these things to happen but does your heart bear witness that your mouth still praises Him, your mind still thinks well of Him and that your actions still glorify Him.
The Lord wants us to call to remember our very own journey of wilderness experience because if we trust and obey Him - HE will surely bring us out and into our promised land of fulfilled dreams, goals reached, prophecies and desires. He never wants us to forget where He brought us from so we never have to go down those same roads again. Remember that Jesus was in the wilderness for 40 days and nights with the Devil but when His heart was found to withstand the temptations of the Devil the Lord God brought him out of the wilderness and into the land of fruitfulness walking in his calling winning souls. Jesus never had to go down that same road again with the Devil!
So if you’ve had a wilderness experience revisit it from time to time to keep it fresh in your spirit so you will stay humble and grateful. And for those of you who are traveling down your roads of testing now I don’t know how long your wilderness experience will last or what tests lay before you but I’m a witness that God will bring you out emotionally whole, mentally sound and spiritually full if you obey and keep his words. Remember that God will not put more testing on us than we can handle or allow us to be tempted beyond our capacity because He will always provide a way out (1 cor 10:13). Not a way out of the journey but a way out of the roads of demonic strongholds, depression and help and hopelessness.
Felecia

Guard your heart

Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life (KJV Pr. 4:23).

Guard (stand alert at all times ready to defend, protect from intrusion) your heart (the place where feelings and emotions conceive) because the heart will give birth to every one of its feelings creating the issues and circumstances of life which in turn determines the kind of life you will have and experience.

Wow! I like this amplified version from the Lord. The Bible states to guard your heart and for good reason. Your heart is the womb that fertilizes and gives birth to every situation you will ever experience in life which is why it must guarded and protected. Think of the material things you guard and protect: Hair from the rain, new stilettos from mud, purse from thieves. Just like you guard and protect your hair, shoes and hand bag you must take the same care to guard your heart. Guard your heart from what? Satanic inspired and produced sights, smells, sounds tastes and touches.

The 5 senses are outlets that lead right to your heart. Whatever is successful at passing through these sensory mechanisms the heart converts into feeling that ultimately transform into emotional issues of life. And Jesus said from the heart comes every evil thing (Matt 15:19). Therefore, every image, scent, sound, taste and feeling should be frisked, screened and detained if necessary before they are allowed entry into your heart. Now this security measure might seem tedious and a bit drudgery but this is what you need to do if you are going to effectively guard your heart and experience the abundant emotional/physical life Christ has prepared for you.

You protect your heart by filtering what comes through the 5 senses.

Check out the heart sense "checkup" on the following page for preventative measures to protect your heart from fatal heart conditions such as heart breaks, aches, disease and failure.
GUARD YOUR HEART: HEART SENSE CHECK UP
1. WARNING SOUNDS: Deceptive words (spoken or written), music, voices. One of the easiest ways of letting down one's heart guard is through the hearing of words. Jesus said my sheep know my voice and will not follow another (John 10:27). Do not allow your heart to follow a voice or become under the influence of words (even your own) that do not align with the word of God and of a speaker who do not bear fruits of God whether it be a family member, friend, colleague, stranger, church member, minister or prophet.

Do a sound check of your heart. If you hear words that don't beat to the tune of God's voice you are at risk for heart failure. Guard and protect your heart NOW by allowing God to renew and revive your heart with the voice of His faithful and true words.

2. WARNING SIGHTS: Sexual visuals, pictures, magazines, television. If your eye offends you cut it out! Okay, not literally because many would be walking I mean falling around everywhere due to self-inflicted blindness.

It is possible, however, to train the heart to avoid ungodly sights and use the eyes for God's intended purpose: Keeping them on the prize and not on plump thighs and buff guys. Needless to say, pornography is one of many visuals to be avoided and not just by singles but married people alike. Pornography distorts and deceivingly "brightens" images just like cataracts distorts and illuminates sight making images seem brighter than what they really are. Pornographic images seduce and adulterate the heart producing unrealistic images and fabricated feelings/expectations. Once again, single and married people alike should avoid pornography. Just because the marrieds' bed is undefiled (us singles shouldn't even have a bed) that don't mean the married shouldn't censor what they watch and see. If you are married and need sex therapy the book store has a plethora of less offensive yet effective books that can assist.

Do a sight check of your heart and if you see pornographic images "laying or surfing" around you are at risk for heart break. Guard and protect your heart NOW by allowing Jesus to restore blinding cataracts with sight that flees filters and extinguishes the fiery, nasty, lustful rays of the Devil.

3. WARNING SMELLS: Cologne, perfume, candles, incense, food…..shoot even a box…never mind. Don't follow your nose because it doesn't always know. Recognize the thoughts and feelings that certain smells trigger or else you might find your heart in bed or back in bed with "brotha no good" or " sista feel good" all because you passed by a cologne or perfume booth in the mall.

Do a scent test of your heart and if you sense the stinky stench of fornication you are at risk for a heart disease. Guard and protect your heart NOW by allowing God to clean the air of your heart from all flesh borne pollutants, toxins and poisons so you can become a sweet, soothing fragrance acceptable in His presence.

WARNING TASTES: Everything that taste good don't mean it's good for the heart and eating the wrong foods can lead to a premature death. Some things you just have no business tasting like the seemingly innocent kisses and flirtations of a married man or woman. These types of calories turns into fat that clog, saturate and chokes the heart then spreads throughout the body affecting every member of the body and household. Of all the weight you carry and try to lose you do not want to carry the weight of adultery for its weight is very difficult to lose and more than not takes a life time to burn off.

Adultery may taste sweet but this dessert leaves a bitter after taste. Do a taste test of your heart. If you taste desserts from someone else's dinner plate you are at risk for a sudden triple drive by I mean by pass heart ache attack. Guard and protect your heart NOW by changing your diet from the forbidden fruit to manna from heaven and you will taste and see that God's goodness is sweeter and healthier than the any of the devil's food cakes.

5. TOUCH WARNINGS: Provocative, suggestive, flirtatious touches, caresses and strokes. You remember the good touch bad touch lessons from grade school? Well, that lesson was for children but the concept is useful for adults as well. Unless you are touched by an angel, The Holy Ghost, your spouse, a chiropractic or a certified massage therapist (and I mean certified degree and all) you have no business receiving (or giving) questionable touches from anyone. And for you singles, I know R Kelly wrote the song "I don't see nothing wrong with a little bump and grind" but God sees a lot wrong with it. If adultery can be committed with mere thoughts (Matt 5:27) it stands to reason sexual sin is committed with bumping and grinding which is a lot more than your thinking.

Check your heart for illegitimate touches. If you feel unlawful fingers creeping up your heart you are at risk of having your heart violated and stolen. Guard and protect your heart NOW by allowing God to wash your body with the touch of His presence and then He will guard, protect and cover your heart with His breast plate of righteousness.

God has provided a way of escape for every "sinseful" and senseless temptation which means you can effectively guard your heart. But it is only done when you use your senses to hear, see, touch, smell and eat His word on a daily basis.
A publication by the singing crafter

© 02/10

DISTRESSED HEART

THE season of love is upon us and Valentine Day is just 12 days away. While many will be dancing and dining on cloud nine even more will be morning and fasting on planet earth. Why, because of a distressed heart.

Does the thought of Valentine's Day make your heart cringe with stress and anxiety because you have no love? Or perhaps your heart beats tense because you want a new love. Maybe your heart is distressed because you lost a love.

For whatever the reasons of your distressed heart just know when you are distressed God is concered for He cares for you. Jesus told His disciples to let not their hearts be troubled or distressed (John 14:1). In today's time of death, divorce, heart break, and heartache one may wonder if having a distressed free heart is even possible. But if Jesus said it is then it is. So no matter how you may feel on that day, just know that God is thinking about you and the Holy Spirit is praying and making intercession for you (Rom 8:26). So if you have no one to bring you flowers on Valentine's then take a walk in the park with God and pick all your heart desires. If no one brings you chocolate covered hearts then take a bite of God's goodness and taste and see that nothing is as sweet as His love. If no one offers to take you to dinner remember you can take the Lord's Supper and dine with him. If no one sends you a card well God has thought of that too and prepared a greeting for you in His word. And if no one calls you on the phone, remember that God will call you and you will answer His call when you open your eyes to another day of His love, protection and provision (If He be willing).

If you think on the truth that you are blessed - I promise you- your heart won't feel so distressed.

How to make Distressed heart. The Lovestruck cartridge along with cooredination's cardstock was used. I cut out heart 9 and also made a shadow of heart 9 (cut out in black) using the design studio's hide feature (I hid all the inner parts leaving only the outline of heart). I distressed the pink cardstock with a sanding block then rubbed on grey rub on transfer color (EK success) at random throughout the heart creating the distressed look.

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