Christmas..........

I have been thinking this week about that first Christmas, so long ago.

The people had been awaiting their Messiah for a very long time. It had been 400 years since God had spoken to His people.

On that first Christmas there must have been a great deal of stress. Imagine Joseph, all stressed out because he had to travel to Bethlehem with his very pregnant wife for the purposes of registering for a census. Having the government demand such a thing alone is enough to have someone all stressed out. Add to that the long journey, the fear of bandits, the fear of Mary delivering her child somewhere along the way, and then once they arrive, and they breathe a small breath of relief......more fear and stress, there is no room, no room anywhere, and frantically Joseph seeks somewhere, someplace for them to stay.

He finds a stable.

I think it might be fairly safe to assume that since Bethlehem was packed to the gills, the stable was pretty packed too. Oxen and donkeys most likely, as horses were not that common for the average person back then. The staff at the inn was probably stretched pretty thin, so the stable would be the last place to receive any attention. I imagine it smelled fairly ripe.

It is probably also safe to assume that the crowds of people, the innkeeper, the staff and pretty much everyone were living in a state of stress. There was a lot to do, the people visiting would be nervous, they traveled far, because their government demanded it, there would be uncertainty, there would be stress over money, people spending more than they could really afford, there would be people who had spent all and were now wondering how they were going to eat and of course the people who lived there would be thinking up every kind of scheme possible to make some cash off of all these people pouring in.

Into this mess of humanity, into a stinking stable, filled with livestock, came the Lord of everything.

He who created all things, steps into the clay He created, clothes Himself with flesh, steps away from majesty and glory, into abject mire and misery.

He comes not as a strong and mighty man, He comes not as a giant, He comes as a tiny helpless baby. He comes from the womb of a virgin girl. The first breath these lungs of flesh take in, filled with the reek of animal waste.

God became flesh. God became a man, fully God, fully man. He breathed, he hungered, he felt pain…….He was as you and as I. God did that! Why in the world would the eternal, majestic and holy God of all creation want to stoop down to our level?

The Bible tells us that God so loved us that He gave His only Son. He loved me and you enough to leave glory and walk in filth, to live amongst broken and sinful people, to die upon the most devious instrument of torture known to man, to endure the sins of the world, my sins and your sins, heaped upon His perfect soul.

  If He loved enough to do that, do you think He does not care for us now? Do you think He does not see our suffering, our sorrows, do you think He cares not for the things you endure here?

  Think about it……..the Lord of glory, the One who created all things, the One who created you, stepped out of glory into all our stinking mess, to redeem us! That’s how much we mean to Him.

  So no matter what is going on around you, no matter the sorrows your heart is carrying today, I say that if your heart belongs to Him, rejoice, rejoice, and rejoice. Cause everything is going to be okay…..in fact it’s gonna be more than okay.

My heart melts at the love of Jesus,
my brother, bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh,
married to me, dead for me, risen for me;
He is mine and I am His,
given to me as well as for me;
I am never so much mine as when I am His,
or so much lost to myself until lost in Him;
then I find my true self.
But my love is frost and cold, ice and snow;
Let His love warm me,
lighten my burden,
be my heaven;
May it be more revealed to me in all its influences
that my love to Him may be more fervent
and glowing;
Let the mighty tide of His everlasting love
cover the rocks of my sin and care;
Then let my spirit float above those things
which had else wrecked my life.
Make me fruitful by living to that love,
my character becoming more beautiful every day.
If traces of Christ’s love-artistry be upon me,
may He work on with His divine brush
until the complete image be obtained
and I be made a perfect copy of Him,
my Master.

 May your Christmas be blessed.  Hope has come, Peace has come, Joy has come, and Love has come. CHRIST HAS COME!

 

 

"It came without ribbons! It came without tags! It came without packages, boxes or bags!"... Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before! "Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas... perhaps... means a little bit more!" ~Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!”

“I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. ~Charles Dickens”

“Fail not to call to mind, in the course of the twenty-fifth of this month, that the Divinest Heart that ever walked the earth was born on that day; and then smile and enjoy yourselves for the rest of it; for mirth is also of Heaven's making. ~Leigh Hunt”

One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him,saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

  The Bible does not tell us who these men were, that hung on crosses next to our Lord, we know only that one now resides with Christ in paradise, and the other does not.

  Some people tend to have their opinions regarding who goes to heaven and who does not. I have heard callous and cruel people inform people that their loved ones now reside in hell. What a terrible thing to say to someone. My question to such people is "how do you know this?" "Do you claim to know the mind of God"?

 It would seem from the story of the thief on the cross that it is possible for someone to live a life of evil, and in their final moments God speaks, God moves, and their eyes are open and they believe. It is pretty obvious from the scriptures that this thief did not serve God, and upon believeing he had no oppurtunity to remedy that problem.

Today I was thinking about the loved ones of the repentant thief. Perhaps they were in the crowd watching the scene. I wonder about his mother, did she go to her grave thinking her son was lost forever, seeing him live his life apart from God, seeing him break the law day after day, until one day they came to her home, and took him out in chains.

 Did she watch her son as he stumbled along the road to Golgotha, her heart breaking? Or was she able to hear the words of the God man, whispered to her child......."Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise"? It is all specualtion but it is very possible that this man's loved ones had no evidence whatsoever of the final destination of their loved one.

 Maybe she did not even know about the death of her son until later, perhaps people came to her home and informed her that her child had been crucified a criminal. We can specualte that if she did not hear the words of the Lord to her son, she would have believed the worst for her own. He had broken God's commands and the commands of the state and died a sinners death on an instrument of torture.

 The story of the thief on the cross, and of his transformation from mocking thief to a believer in Christ, always gives me great hope. It does not matter how bad things may seem. Our God is a gracious God, slow to anger and abounding in mercy. If He reached out, in the midst of His own physical suffering that day, and granted eternal life to this man, this man who had never done anything of value that we are aware of, then we can have assurance that He still does so today to people that we love.

 

 Never give up hope, continue to pray always for those you love, even if they mock God, even if they mock you. God seems to enjoy delivering people like this........he delivered me!

Thief by Third Day

I am a thief, I am a murderer
Walking up this lonely hill
What have I done? I don't remember
No one knows just how I feel
and I know that my time is coming soon.
It's been so long. Oh, such a long time
Since I've lived with peace and rest
Now I am here, my destination
guess things work for the best
and I know that my time is coming soon
Who is this man? This man beside me

They call the King of the Jews
They don't believe that He's the Messiah
But, somehow I know it's true.
And they laugh at Him in mockery,
and beat Him till he bleeds
They nail Him to the rugged cross,
and raise Him, they raise Him up next to me
My time has come, I'm slowly fading
I deserve what I receive

Jesus when You are in Your kingdom
Could You please remember me
and He looks at me still holding on
the tears fall from His eyes
He says I tell the truth
Today, you will live with Me in paradise
and I know that my time is coming soon
and I know paradise is coming soon.

“Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart.”
― William Wordsworth

  I was not always as I am now. In truth I am nothing at all like I once was. Sometimes people need to hear that, else they place you upon some pedestal on which you are not worthy to stand.

 Today, as I write these words, I am a Christian, one who loves Christ, one who loves people, one that He has given the gift of mercy to, one that He on occasion uses to bless others, most especially those who are hurting.

 The irony of that does not escape me. That He would use ME for mercy? I sometimes roll upon the floor overcome with laughter at the thought of it. You see.......God has a sense of humor...........For I know who I once was.

 I grew up the daughter of a preacher. A poor man, a single father raising two children, working full time in a cotton mill, pastoring a church full time and always keeping some form of garden going,  he rarely had two nickels to rub together, nor much time. I fault him for nothing. He did a great job considering the hand he was dealt.

 Growing up, I wore hand me down clothes, some of them the most awful things you can imagine. I was teased a lot in school, never had many friends. Got into a lot of fights. And obviously as the daughter of a preacher, I went to church.....ALL THE TIME.

 While growing up in church I was allowed to witness the hypocrisy of people. I saw hate, I saw judgement, I saw people be downright mean....deacons, pillars of the church....a sham and a lie.

 I watched my father, pour his heart and his soul into the church, and watched him often be judged wrongly for it. Although he demonstrated great faith to us growing up, for the most part it was just his faith and his faith alone, rarely did it encompass the masses who attended church and sat under his preaching. To be fair, there were one or two along the way who did in fact demonstrate the love of Christ.

 I grew up pretty mixed up, pretty messed up. Seeking something that I could never quite lay my hands on. And I grew up very angry at God. I was angry at God, but I downright hated Christians. I called myself an atheist, which is also sort of funny as when anything bad happened (and it happened a lot) I would shake my hands at the heavens and curse the God of which I did not believe existed.

 Being raised on the Bible I knew it pretty well. I learned how to twist it, how to use it against those who (Lord help them, Lord forgive me) had the courage to try and reach me with it.

 I never did this with my father, I think in my heart I had too much respect for all the things I had witnessed growing up, the hardships he endured, how he tried as best he could to make things right......but I in truth thought him to be an old fashioned, uneducated fool.....although one I loved very much. LOL I expect my children most likely think the same of me now. God sure does have a sense of humor!

 I lived my young adult life under the principals that you needed to do unto others before they could do unto you, because I believed for the most part that people and circumstances always let you down.

 I owned a green t-shirt that I loved, it declared Me to the world, it was how I defined myself......it said "Proud Bitch". (Hope I am not shocking you too much here).

 During my time in the Air Force, a young Christian lady, whose name I cannot recall but whose face I remember clearly, had the great misfortune of being randomly chosen to be my roommate. She was hardcore, she loved Jesus......and I hated her guts.

 She would always invite me to church and to Bible study, and looking back on it, I admire her for her efforts, she was no coward. I once threw her up against the wall and told her "I hate your Jesus and if you ever mention him to me again I will ________". (okay, pick yourself off the floor now, yes I was downright mean and hostile then.) She told me "I am praying for you".

 I have so often wished that I could remember her name, so I could find her somehow and tell her how things turned out.........but her name is lost to me. I think God has enabled me to clearly remember her face for a reason. I am going to recognize her in heaven, and be able to go up and say "Hey! I bet you never thought you would see ME here?" It should be a delightful conversation.

 I was an angry person, a bitter person, a rather sad person. I expected the worst in people, and therefore never bothered to look for anything good in them. I had no qualms about hurting someones feelings, and lost no sleep at all for those I did hurt. I rarely let anyone get too close to me, and if they did, I tended to pretend as if I did not care about them, and I fully expected them to hurt me. Sometimes I hurt them first just to get it out of the way and behind me.

 A lot of people prayed for me, a lot of people tried to reach me, but it was not really until I had children that my eyes begin to open. I did not think it possible to love someone as much as I did my children. I loved my husband, loved my father, loved my brother, but on the day I held my first born son (and it happened again when I held the second one) I knew that there was nothing I would not do for that child. I would die right there on the spot. I could attempt things that had always terrified me, I could endure any hardship, any pain, any suffering, if it was for their benefit or protection.

 So when my oldest was a little over one year old, God called me, He opened my eyes, I saw myself for what I was, He reached down, removed the heart of stone I had lived with for so very long, and He replaced it with a new heart. Learning how to live with that new heart has been a process, a journey upwards. Learning how to lay aside judgements and prejudices picked up over the years took time, (and I am still in the process) but that day, so long ago, was the day He changed me.

 I am no saint, I am no wonderful, loving,thoughtful, kind person. Or maybe a better way to put that is the me you see now is all Him. Before Him there was hardly any love in me for anyone other than my immediate family. Any kindness, any grace, any mercy that you might see in me, any blessing you receive from knowing me, from reading something I wrote, any help you might receive from my prayers........is ALL HIM.

 In His grace and in His mercy, He reached down, he took me who had done nothing but fight against Him, and spit on His people, and He changed me. By His grace and mercy (and I cannot help but think His sense of humor) He gifted me with a new heart, one of compassion, one of mercy, one that hurts and bleeds for others. He in His grace, allows me, from time to time, to be His hands, to be His feet, to be His voice.........it is an honor I often take for granted, and an honor I often fail at. Not a day goes by that I do not fail it in some fashion.

 I confess that it bothers me sometimes, when people praise me, when someone says something positive about something I have written or something I have done. My heart screams at me......what about all the things you should have written and you didn't....what bout all the things you should have done and you failed to do them.......what about the old me that I still fight and struggle with at times !.....it's all Him or nothing at all. Only He makes it good. Only He can take a life that has nothing of value to offer to anyone, and turn it into something worthwhile. Everything else is vanity, everything else will pass away, only that which He does will last forever.

 Mind you I know people mean well. I know what they are trying to say, and it is appreciated. I just despise myself for any pride I feel towards anything I have done or accomplished.......because I recognize that without Him, I never would have made it this far. I would have been dead and in my grave long ago had He not had other plans for me. Had he not reached down and removed that stony old heart and replaced it with His.

 He can do that with you too, if you are willing. He can take all the hate, all the anger, all the judgements, all the hurt, all the sorrow, He can pluck a heart of stone right out of your chest and replace it with something wonderful. I pray that all who read this find the grace and the mercy that I have found.

 The song below is one that always, always, brings tears to my eyes. It is me. Like that old ugly green t-shirt that I used to love, the one that defined the old me, this song below defines the new me. I hope it defines you also, if not now, then one day, when He calls you.

"Redeemed"

Seems like all I could see was the struggle
Haunted by ghosts that lived in my past
Bound up in shackles of all my failures
Wondering how long is this gonna last
Then You look at this prisoner and say to me "son
Stop fighting a fight it's already been won"

I am redeemed, You set me free
So I'll shake off these heavy chains
Wipe away every stain, now I'm not who I used to be
I am redeemed, I'm redeemed

All my life I have been called unworthy
Named by the voice of my shame and regret
But when I hear You whisper, "Child lift up your head"
I remember, oh God, You're not done with me yet

I am redeemed, You set me free
So I'll shake off these heavy chains
Wipe away every stain, now I'm not who I used to be

Because I don't have to be the old man inside of me
'Cause his day is long dead and gone
Because I've got a new name, a new life, I'm not the same
And a hope that will carry me home

I am redeemed, You set me free
So I'll shake off these heavy chains
Wipe away every stain, 'cause I'm not who I used to be

I am redeemed, You set me free
So I'll shake off these heavy chains
Wipe away every stain, yeah, I'm not who I used to be
Oh, God, I'm not who I used to be
Jesus, I'm not who I used to be
'Cause I am redeemed
Thank God, redeemed

The longer I walk with Christ, the more I long to be with Him. This has not always been the case, in times past the promise of heaven was no more than the knowledge that when I die, I would go to there, but I did not long for it. I longed for Christ, longed for Him to save me from one trouble or another, longed for Him to grant me this job or that one, longed for Him to provide me with a house or a car, but looking back on those times (and I am not saying it is wrong to pray for such things) I really was not longing for Him, only His rescue, His provision, His blessing.

Now I long to see Him. To bask in His presence.To sit at His feet.

I long for heaven. These is so much beauty in this world, all of creation cries out glory to the Lord, and when I look on a beautiful scene, or an amazing creature, or when I see an act of kindness from one person to another. When fellowship with family and friends is just perfect and everyone is laughing and enjoying each other’s company.......during moments like these I think about what His word says.........

"But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him."

And I think WOW! Better than this right here Lord? This is GOOD!........but He says this is nothing, He says that I cannot even imagine how wonderful it is going to be.......WOW!

Better than this!

Better than this!

Better than this!

Better than this!

Better than this!

And that is just looking at a handful of beautiful places in the world, think of all the most beautiful wonderful places on this great planet Earth…..and then consider His word….. "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man” you cannot even imagine what He has prepared for those who love Him and are called by His name!

That makes my heart sing! That excites me, that fills me with hope!……and on top of everything......... He will be the light of that place…..” And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light”

And then I begin to consider all the wonderful creatures God has made. He gave me a love for animals, since I was a tiny child I was always drawn to any animal I saw. Still am at 53 years of age. I love animals. I marvel at them. When He makes all things new, His word tells me this; “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them.” And I think WOW! I am going to be able to see all the animals and spend time with all the animals………..but in reality it will be more! I can imagine spending time with all His creatures in a beautiful place where He is the light……He says it’s going to be MORE than I can imagine, He says my eye has not seen anything like it, my ears have heard nothing like it, the thought of it has never entered my heart.

And I say WOW again!

I love many different types of music, and I believe that music touches the soul. Beautiful music calms the soul, brings peace to the heart. I can think of several pieces of classical music that are simply amazing, The place that He has prepared is going to have music! Music like we have never heard before. "nor ear heard"  It will make Schubert’s - Symphony No. 9 in C major seem dull and lifeless.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87QwOIPQPr0

Franz Schubert - Symphony No. 9 in C major

And last, but my no means least, I think of relationships. How often have you banged your head against a wall trying to understand someone you love, or trying to get them to understand you? And doesn’t everyone treasure the really special moments, the ones where everything clicks just right, everyone is happy, there is laughter and closeness and you just wish you could stop time in its tracks and stay there forever. Those moments don’t come that often, there are far more of the ones where you are longing for something more, wishing to understand or be understood, longing to communicate on a higher level.

Relationships are going to be perfect there, we will walk with God and with each other, no sorrow, no tears, no ranting and raving and angry faces. It will be such a perfect time of fellowship that I cannot even imagine how good it will be.

And people we love who have crossed over will be there. We will have all the time we want to visit with them, to walk with them, to delight in their company, and I pray that all those I love will be there, to be able to simply fellowship in perfect accord with family and friends all the time is an awesome thought!

And He will be there, fellowshipping with us, and the relationship enjoyed with Him will be the greatest relationship of all, for we will see Him face to face. I cannot wait for that, I yearn for that.

I Can Only Imagine

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fb_vRkDBUB4

To close I want to reassure everyone that in my yearning to be with Him, I am by no means suicidal, nor am I gazing at the heavens and therefore serving no earthly good. I intend to remain and press on until such time as He is ready to call me home. I will fight the good fight, I will finish the race, I pray by His grace to finish it well!

But I am ready to go…….

Even so, come Lord Jesus

 I watched the Billy Graham special today and I was blessed by the testimony of the young rapper ( Lecrae), and by the young lady singer (Lacey Sturm). The entire video was a blessing but two things were said that really struck me.

 The young man mentioned the preacher that first spoke the gospel to his heart, and how that preacher looked out across a room of young gangster, ex-cons and told them, "How dare you tough guys call my Jesus a wimp!" and then proceeded to tell them the things our Lord endured on their behalf. Things most of us would not be able to endure, and that we certainly would not endure for others, most especially others who turned against us, spat on us and mocked us.

 Too many people, especially younger people, and those who think themselves to be tough, think Jesus was some kind of meek and mild man, they see Him as weak. Those who hold this view have not read the scriptures well and have looked at too many pictures of our Lord depicted as a nice looking guy holding a lamb. Jesus is a warrior king, all one has to do is read the description given of Him in the book of Revelation to know that He is by no means a wimp.

"Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. ..............Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: King of Kings and Lord of Lords."

  The punishment that He endured up to and including His crucifixion also demonstrate the strength and endurance of Our Lord.He was scourged before he endured the cross, which was basically a whipping with a special whip, used by the Romans for such punishment. Typically the whip had several lashes on it, and each lash would be tipped with bits of metal or bone. These bits of metal or bone would rend the flesh of the person being whipped.

"For scourging, the man was stripped of his clothing, and his hands were tied to an upright post.  The back, buttocks, and legs were flogged either by two soldiers (lictors) or by one who alternated positions.  The severity of the scourging depended on the disposition of the lictors and was intended to weaken the victim to a state just short of collapse or death.  As the Roman soldiers repeatedly struck the victim’s back with full force, the iron balls would cause deep contusions, and the leather thongs and sheep bones would cut into the skin and subcutaneous tissues.  Then, as the flogging continued, the lacerations would tear into the underlying skeletal muscles and produce quivering ribbons of bleeding flesh.  Pain and blood loss generally set the stage for circulatory shock.  The extent of blood loss may well have determined how long the victim would survive on the cross. "

 Needless to say the scourging our Lord endured was brutal, and terribly painful. Yet He endured it willingly, and went on to carry his own cross, atop his ripped flesh, to Golgotha, where He was nailed to it, the torn flesh of His back pressed up against the rough and brutal wood of the cross. Wimps would have died before they ever got to Golgotha.

 Which leads me to the second thing that was said that struck me, "He lived the life that I cannot live. He died the death that I should die." Mr Graham spoke about how people do not like to hear this truth. They do not like to hear that they are worthy of God's condemnation. But truth is truth whether one wants to believe it or not. Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, came down to this dirty disgusting sin ravished world, walked as a mere man, preached to the people, healed the people, fed the people, set captives free and raised the dead, then delivered Himself up to be crucified and killed.

 Because all throughout the scriptures God had taught His people that sin requires a sacrifice to atone. But there was never anyone or anything worthy to pay the debt once and for all. Until Christ came. He the perfect sinless man, died in our place, on a Roman cross that our sins might be paid for. And then He, the perfect God, rose from the dead that we might not have to die.

 Because of Him, our sins are paid in full. He is willing to give us a new name. We no longer have to be called, liar, cheater, thief, murderer, rapist, adulterer,coveter, blasphemer, whore, whore-monger, deceiver, coward, idolator nor any other name by which you may call yourself or that God almighty knows you to be. The blood of Christ is able to wash all that away.

 As Mr Graham said, people do not like to be told they are sinners. You basically have two types in the world, for the most part. Those who truly think they are pretty decent people and those who know they are not. The first will die without a Savior because they do not believe they need one, the second will die without a Savior because they think their sins to grievous for God to ever forgive. Both are wrong.

 All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, all are condemned because of that sin. None have the power within themselves to be decent human beings who keep God's commandments. In order to stand before God righteous on your own power you must faithfully and always, never failing even once, keep each of God's commandments. Not one of us can even keep the 1st one, let alone the other nine.

 And if you add to that, the words our Lord spoke when He walked this earth, you are even more utterly doomed. Jesus said that if we call our brother fool we are guilty of murder, and if we look at someone in lust we are guilty of adultery. That right there takes out everyone, for rarely does a day pass that we do not call someone a fool, and lust is everywhere. The porn industry alone sees to that.

 So the truth of the matter is simple. It was you and me that rightly should be nailed to a cross. We are guilty. We are deserving of God's wrath and His judgement. When that thief, crucified next to our Lord spoke, he in truth spoke for you and for me. "And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong."

 Our sins, the sins of the entire world, were poured upon Jesus on the cross. Ever dark and nasty deed, every murder, every rape, every lie and theft and deceit. My sins, your sins, and the sins of all those who came before us and all who will come after, poured out upon the Lamb of God, that He might die under them, and thereby atone for them.

 And in so doing, He made a way for us, that despite our unworthiness and our inability to do what is right and what is required by God, He in His great mercy, made a way for us to stand before Him. Those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord, can stand in the very presence of God, for when He looks down upon you, He sees the righteousness of Christ, not the filthy dirty clothes you wear. He sees the perfect sinless life of the god-man Jesus, and not your countless sins. He gives you a new name.

No longer are you Murderer, no longer are you Deceiver, no longer are you ________, but you are now a child of the King, clothed in His righteousness, destined for glory......go and sin no more!

 

I wholeheartedly recommend Mr. Graham's final message to America, the video is only about 28 minutes long. It has some wonderful testimony's in it, and you can watch it in it's entirety here:

 And I also recommend the below link. Here you can learn more about the things our Lord endured on your behalf.

 http://cbcg.org/scourging_crucifixion.htm

 Here is the link to the song sung in the video, called Mercy Tree sung by Lacey Sturm.



 And here is the link to the song "Tell the World" sung by Lecrae