The Road of Resolution

 

  

It is good to make godly resolutions, and these steps will help you to keep on the right road with God through the year. . .

1.  RELATIONSHIP

Reaffirm your relationship with God.

He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God? ~Micah 6:8

2.  REVIEW

Look back on the past year and ask God to show you area of sin and weakness that might have hindered your spiritual growth.

Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. ~Psalm 139:23-24

3.  REPENT

Confess your sin and ask God to forgive you.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. ~1 John 1:9

4.  REFRESH

Ask God to refresh you and to give you a new vision for the year ahead. 

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. ~Jeremiah 29:11

5.  RENEW

Ask God to help you see your life from His perspective, and renew your commitment to His vision and purpose for your life.

And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. ~Romans 12:2

6.  RESOLVE

Resolve to be faithful to God's purpose in your life and to glorify Him in the areas that He has revealed to you as you have prayed to Him.

I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. ~Philippians 3:14

7.  RECORD

Write down the things that God has revealed to you in prayer, and review them frequently, remembering that it is only by His grace that you are able to grow in Him.

Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. ~Hebrews 4:16

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I hope this will be of help to you as go about making and keeping your godly New Year's resolutions. Feel free to copy and print. Keep this in a place where you will see it every day. If you falter, don't fret -- just start over again. As a matter of fact, start over as many times as necessary for you to make this part of your daily life and walk with the Lord.  God's mercies are new each morning (Lam. 3:22-23) and He is with you (Matt. 28:20)

As a Christian, your relationship with God is the most important one and will help you in all your other relationships. So my prayer for you is that by using these steps you will go farther, reach higher, look lower, love greater, for Jesus Christ as we draw nearer to His return!

May God bless you today over and above what you are able to receive! 

For His Glory, 

The Princess Warrior

Copyright Information

Copyright © 2009 The Princess Warrior Ministries. All articles are copyrighted on the date they are posted, unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. Permission granted for not-for-sale reproduction in exact form including copyright and web address. Other uses require written permission. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.

2012: New Beginnings for The Princess Warrior

With God as Your Guide!

A new year a new day...a day where we can put the past in the past and start fresh. I'm sure all across the nation people have resolved to start or stop something that will greatly impact their lives. Today, I want to share one of mine.

This is undoubtedly the number one resolution that is made every year - to LOSE WEIGHT. I have made this resolution many, many times in the past and each time failed after a couple of weeks. On top of that, in March 2008, I became mostly bedridden and house bound. Now, 60 lbs. overweight and with numerous health problems, I MUST lose weight if I am to have any quality of life.

To lose weight for real this time, I have, in my mind, revisited the resolutions made previously to see why I failed. I think the #1 reason is - I didn't hold myself accountable to anyone or anything. I made the resolution to myself and, unfortunately, I am very lenient with self. If I fail myself, it's no big deal. Yes, I feel guilty, but not enough to stop me in my tracks. Sooooo, this year, I am going to hold myself accountable. I am going to use tools and strengths that I have not used before. Here is a list of the ones I will be using:

1. I am going to ask God to help me to make my vessel a presentable vessel for Him. To help me lose weight so I can "be more" and "do more" for Him, my family, my church, my friends, and my future friends...(you maybe?) =) As a Christian, I know our days are limited. First, the Lord could come back this year to get His children and I want to be found living for Him in my greatest capacity. Also, this could be the year that I die and again I want to leave this life knowing that I have made the greatest impact on others for Christ...to my family first and then everyone else.
   
   
2. I am going to use an online tool that has been successful for a lot of Christians. It can be found at Setting Captives Free. Click on "Online Courses" and choose "Lord's Table" (this is a free course). Here is an excerpt from the course: Phase I: 60 lessons to help you gain control of your eating habits while learning to look to God for spiritual sustenance. FYI - they also have courses for other addictions as well.
   
   
3. I have joined TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) and will start going to local meetings on Tuesday evenings. There is a fee involved with this program, but it is less expensive than other similar programs out there. If you are interested in getting more info on this group please go to TOPS. The main reason I joined is: Friendly Environment – New members are welcomed to join the journey to better health and supported by other members sharing similar journeys. Accountability – Weekly, confidential weigh-ins provide personal accountability and a progress record.
   
   
4. I'm going to get the word out to all my friends on Facebook (and other social networks I subscribe to) about my weight loss journey in hopes of getting their encouragement and prayers. Purdy pleeeeease! =)
   
   
5. I am going to join other support groups which are tied into my reason for being overweight in the first place. I have fibromyalgia (FMS), chronic fatigue (CFS), severe arthritis, back and neck problems (some issues came from a car accident), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), and Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder (OCPD), and possibly Bipolar Disorder, etc. just to name a few (hope I didn't leave anything out...Lol). Some of my family and friends are going to say, "I had no idea" and others will say "Well, that explains it". Lol! Anyway, although I will try to post on a regular basis it may take me all day (sometimes) to put my thoughts together and some days I may be doing this from bed or the couch, but it is what it is. In addition to my normal posts, I will include how I cope with these disorders and will also report to you about the support groups I visit, but at the same time giving God all the glory because I would not even think about taking this journey without Him.
   
   
6. And, this is the worst one - sometime, in the future, I will post a picture of me at my lowest point in life and also a picture of me on the first day of my weight loss journey. Yes, these will be very embarrassing photos, but if I can help someone else it will be worth it to me. I would love to show someone else there is hope and help. 
   
   
7. And last, but not least, through blogging...putting myself out there before the world. I want to get encouragement from you, the reader, and I want to be an encouragement to others who may be looking for a way to "keep" a resolution to lose weight for the first time.

On Monday, January 9th, 2012, I will start my weight loss journey and will let you know how it goes. Why Monday? Well, to me, Monday is the start of the week and since I have ODC I have to do things in order. That's just the way I roll! Lol! I hope you'll go with me on the journey...I need you! =)

May God bless you today over and above what you are able to receive!

Much Love,

Wanda (AKA: The Princess Warrior, Mom, Mama Wanda, Madre, Jim's wife, Wanda Woman, Wunder Woman, Babe, Hey You, Wicked Wanda - though saved by the grace of God, Suzy or Suzy Q, Weenie Wanda, Buttons - thanks Danielle, Wa Wa - thanks Hudson)

P.S. Sure, I am only human and I know I will stumble along the way, but this time I won't stay down...I WILL, by the grace of God, get back up! Oh, and I will also share some of my other resolutions in the next few days.

P.P.S. There is one other important thing I want to mention: I don't want to call this a diet.  I want to start a new way of life! ;-D

The Princess Warrior

Copyright Information

Copyright © 2009 The Princess Warrior Ministries. All articles are copyrighted on the date they are posted, unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. Permission granted for not-for-sale reproduction in exact form including copyright and web address. Other uses require written permission. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.

Strengthen Yourself in the Lord

What I am sharing with you below was written in response to a loved one who asked for prayer and just needed someone to talk to. God prompted me to share this with you as well, but I am keeping it confidential and by no means demeaning my love and concern for who it was shared with first. It came from my heart to that person and is now being passed on as a help to someone else who may need to hear this as well. 

Dear Friend,

I'm sorry to hear that you are stressed. I hope you know that you can call me any time, day or night, to talk. I know how it is to need someone to talk to, but sometimes it just isn't possible. It is in those situations we can ALWAYS talk to the Lord. Jesus is our dearest friend and IS there for us every second of every hour of every day. Since He is the best friend any of us can have we can talk to Him just like we would a best friend. Through faith, we know He is listening.

King David knew stress -- he ran from king Saul for years, fearing for his life. He had to leave family and friends. He had to live in caves and rely on people he encountered to feed him. He had to fight battles against enemies that tried to defeat Israel. His child died. One of his older children tried to dethrone and kill him. Some of us can only imagine what his life was like, but even imagining, we could not begin to understand. When I think of how life has been hard on me...I think of David. 

God called David a man after His own heart. When considering the psalms we see David's heart. He talked to God like He was his best friend. He was so truthful with his thoughts before God because he knew God was aware of them anyway. So, he wasn't afraid to ask God why He had forsaken him (of course, God hadn't, but that was the way he felt at the time). He wasn't afraid to tell God his most intimate feelings whether they were good or bad.

David wrote the majority of the psalms and in most of them you can see his fear, sorrow, or shame at the beginning of each one and as he cried out to God you then see a change of tone. His whole thought process would change from complaining to praising. I can relate to that. When I am under great distress and pray and cry out to God there comes an inner calming of my spirit that I can't explain. When I choose to handle things on my own I continue to be in distress. 

In surfing the web the other day I came across this verse -- "Then David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God." (1 Samuel 30:6) I wondered to myself...how did David strengthen himself in the Lord? What did he do? Then, God brought a thought and the following verses to my mind: 

Like I mentioned above, David was honest before God about his feelings and sought His comfort, but also David remembered how God was there for him in the past. While David watched his father's flock of sheep, lions and bears would try to attack, but David slew them and protected the flock. He had victory over these ferocious predators. He knew God had helped him. So, when David went up against Goliath, he had courage because he trusted God and remembered how the Lord had been with him before. Here are his words to king Saul, "Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God. David said moreover, The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, He will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the LORD be with thee." (1 Samuel 17:36-37)  

We will do well to always let David be our example and do as he did in times of stress -- cry out to God and admit our inability to handle a situation and remember that God has been there for us before. With Jesus as our best friend and God as our loving Father we will get through anything satan throws at us! Greater is He (God) who is in us than he (satan) who is in the world. (Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world. ~1 John 4:4) 

Goliath is a perfect picture of satan and satan was no match for David's God -- the same God we serve. God is no respecter of persons, so we are just as special to God as David was.

I will be praying that you will seek comfort in the Lord and you will feel His presence. And again, please know you can call me any time.

May God bless you today over and above what you are able to receive! 

With Much Love, 

The Princess Warrior

Copyright Information

Copyright © 2009 The Princess Warrior Ministries. All articles are copyrighted on the date they are posted, unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. Permission granted for not-for-sale reproduction in exact form including copyright and web address. Other uses require written permission. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.

The Purpose of The Princess Warrior Ministries

Women Helping Women! This is the purpose of The Princess Warrior Ministries. After all, we as Christians, are His princess warriors! Daughters of the king; warriors in His great army.

In this day and age Christian women need other Christian women. We need to stand together and love and pray for one another. And here is why: Time is closing in on us -- that time in history when Christians will be persecuted in America.

It is all too real -- God and Christianity are being pushed aside. They are considered archaic, old fashioned, out-of-date, intolerant, and narrow-minded. That which is good is considered evil and evil considered good. Morality is being thrown out the window. The more I see the more it weighs heavily on my heart.  

None of this should catch us (Christians) by surprise though. God, through His Holy Word, has warned us about the end times. Now, more than ever before, Christians have to make a stand in what they believe and in Whom they believe. I'm afraid that the soft cushion of the church pew is a symbol of the condition of our walk with Christ. We have become comfortable and complacent. 

Right now, we need to be digging deep into the Word of God, we should be found in our prayer closets daily -- crying out to God to give us wisdom, strength, a supernatural love for our husbands, children, and family, compassion for the lost, and a resolve like steel for what we believe.

Family life today has become too busy. We go from ballgame to ballgame, dance recitals, music lessons, meetings, and on and on and try to squeeze God in there somewhere and, oftentimes, having to leave Him off the schedule completely because there was just no time to spend with Him. Meanwhile, our children are being indoctrinated by the world and we think just because we have them in church every time the doors are open or even a Christian school that that is enough. Hear me please! It is NOT! I know!

Our children need to see in "us" that God is number one in our lives. That we make time for Him first and ALL else is second. We need to not only teach them about God, but to teach them about their enemy, Satan. We need to warn them about who he is, what he is, and what he is capable of. When we are in a war, and yes, we are in one, we don't just get orders from the Commanding Officer and carry them out -- we also study our enemy. We have to know what his tactics are so we don't fall into his trap. Once we are in his trap he will do his best to torture and kill us! Why? Because he hates God. He cannot destroy God so he does the next best thing -- he goes after His children.

Discouragement, depression, anxiety, isolation, loneliness, fear, anger, jealousy, etc. are his weapons and he knows how to use them. God has given us the armor to protect and defend ourselves from his attack and He has given us the best state-of-the-art weapon to fight back -- His Word -- but, they are useless if we leave them laying aside only to be used in times of fatal attacks. If we wait to use them only in dire situations we will have two problems: 1) We will not know how to use them because they haven't been practiced over and over. 2) We will be so weakened from the every day attacks that we will have little strength to even use the armor and Sword.

To disarm Satan we MUST stay close to the only One who can defeat him. We MUST make Him our priority. We must DAILY (and better, hourly) put into practice God's commands. We must talk to Him and most importantly...LISTEN. We must serve Him out of love and not for duty's sake. We must love people --- all people -- and love to tell others about Him. We must lock arm in arm with fellow Christians because we are so much stronger in numbers. And for our children to have hope they must see all these things in us. We ARE their role models of how life is to be lived for Jesus. To have a life that pleases Him. To have a life that is protected against the Devil and his antics.

While writing this God reminded me of a verse that contained the command to tell our children about Him, but after reading the chapter I was reminded that it contains so much more. So to draw this to a close I leave you with a prescription from the Great Physician Himself. A prescription that will bring about great spiritual health for us and our families. A "shot in the arm" so to speak of a potent substance that will keep us well during the most violent outbreaks of spiritual disease.

Here is the prescription for 1) Long life, 2) Our well-being, 3) Our increase, 4) God's provision, 5) God's protection from our enemies, 6) Our good, 7) Our preservation, 8) Our righteousness:

Deuteronomy 6:1-25 -- Now these are the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments, which the LORD your God commanded to teach you, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go to possess it: That thou mightest fear the LORD thy God, to keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son, and thy son's son, all the days of thy life; and that thy days may be prolonged. Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe to do it; that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase mightily, as the LORD God of thy fathers hath promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey. Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates. And it shall be, when the LORD thy God shall have brought thee into the land which he sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give thee great and goodly cities, which thou buildedst not, And houses full of all good things, which thou filledst not, and wells digged, which thou diggedst not, vineyards and olive trees, which thou plantedst not; when thou shalt have eaten and be full; Then beware lest thou forget the LORD, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God, and serve him, and shalt swear by his name. Ye shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the people which are round about you; (For the LORD thy God is a jealous God among you) lest the anger of the LORD thy God be kindled against thee, and destroy thee from off the face of the earth. Ye shall not tempt the LORD your God, as ye tempted him in Massah. Ye shall diligently keep the commandments of the LORD your God, and his testimonies, and his statutes, which he hath commanded thee. And thou shalt do that which is right and good in the sight of the LORD: that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest go in and possess the good land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers. To cast out all thine enemies from before thee, as the LORD hath spoken. And when thy son asketh thee in time to come, saying, What mean the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgments, which the LORD our God hath commanded you? Then thou shalt say unto thy son, We were Pharaoh's bondmen in Egypt; and the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand: And the LORD shewed signs and wonders, great and sore, upon Egypt, upon Pharaoh, and upon all his household, before our eyes: And he brought us out from thence, that he might bring us in, to give us the land which he sware unto our fathers. And the LORD commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as it is at this day. And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the LORD our God, as he hath commanded us.

We all need to examine our own hearts to see if we are doing our part as a Christian in this country, in our state, but most importantly, in our realm of existence. The place that God inserted us to live out our lives. As this world waxes worse and worse I don't want it to be said of me that I didn't go out fighting for what and Whom I believed in!

I pray that God will bless you over and above what you are able to receive!

In His Service,

The Princess Warrior 

Copyright Information 

All blog entries are copyright by The Princess Warrior Ministries on the date they are posted, unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.

Another Christmas Without My Daughter

This will be the 7th Christmas without my daughter. No, she is not dead, but it seems like it because she is not in my life and she is no longer the person I used to know. I have mourned her loss like a death, but it's like a death that never ends...a death without closure.

I am a Christian mother. I raised my son and daughter in church. I prayed with them. I helped them learn scripture in AWANA club (which stands for Approved Workman Are Not Ashamed) , but one day Satan had victory. He had victory because I didn't tell them about their enemy. They knew a lot about God, but not about the one who despised them. He had subtly wormed his way into their hearts and minds and took over.

I'm not exactly sure which one lost their desire for God and church and fell prey to the devil first. I do know that my son's heart had already strayed far from God while he was still at home (he's the oldest). My daughter had started to become rebellious in how she dressed, talked, etc. She is a very gifted writer, but she was writing some very dark stuff. We tried to persuade her to put her talents to work for the Lord, but they fell on deaf ears. I know now that it was because she did not know God at all.

Then one day she was gone. She left to go visit her father for what I thought would be a 2 week vacation, but she never came back. A plan had been devised to whisk her away. Even though she was going through that rebellious stage that all teenagers go through I don't think she remembers how close we were.

When my daughter left, my son had been thinking about going out on his own, but stayed with me and his step-father for another year because he was so worried about me. I would lie on my bed and cry for days at a time. I even had to go to an outpatient clinic for severe depression during that time.

I finally told my son to go. I didn't want to hold him back. He was old enough to try it on his own, but he didn't realize, and I never told him, that I sank into an even deeper depression after he left. But, I want to stop right now and thank him. I want to thank him for trying his best to fill the gap. I love you for that, son. You are my heart and I couldn't ask for a better son!

Anyway, when my daughter left, my son held back his pain and helped me instead. He did break down one time and told me that he had already lost his family once when his dad and I divorced and now he had lost it all over again. We held each other and cried. How in the world could a father, in good conscience, think it best to separate his children like this.

When my son finally went out on his own he stopped going to church all together. He drank occasionally and played violent video games until the early hours of the morning. He continued to gain weight as he stuffed himself with comfort food to try and fill the void in his life. He didn't have God and He and his sister had once been very close…or so he thought.

My son and I kept in contact with each other though. We would talk on the phone and he and I would have lunch together and go to an occasional movie.

During this time I prayed for my children, clinging to God's Word, that if I trained my children in the way that is right that when they are older they will not depart from it. God never said they wouldn't stray. I would always tell my son that I was praying for him and I told him I missed him at church, but I knew, at the time, that it was falling on deaf ears as well.

One night I had a dream, actually a horrible nightmare. It was the most real dream I have ever experienced. I saw my son in a coffin. In my dream I could feel all the emotions a mother would feel knowing that death had taken their child. It happened by accident. He had bought a gun for protection and was showing a friend when it accidentally went off killing him instantly. In this dream I cried out to God…"WHY?! Why, did you take my son?!" and God answered, “Your son was never going to live for me. Your daughter is not mine and in order to save her I had to take your son to bring her to me.”

I awoke in a cold sweat. The immense sorrow I felt in the dream because of my son’s death still felt so real and it stayed with me all day. When I got out of bed I immediately called him to see if he was okay. I didn’t tell him about the dream.

A few days later we went to lunch together and I shared the dream with him. He looked startled and then said something that gave me goose bumps. He said, “Mom, I had just recently planned to buy a gun.”

It was shortly thereafter that my son started back to church. He heard our pastor talk about true and false conversion and about men putting away childish things (1 Cor. 13:11) (video games came to mind). That day he made his way to the altar during the invitation and gave his heart and life over to Christ and has been at church ever since. He gave up his video games, sold his system and games and even stopped working at a place that sold them. He was a “Game Manager” at a popular video store.

I thank God everyday that my son returned to the things he had been taught, but I still have another child out there, one that has completely turned against God and me. She is so bitter and angry even though she claims she is not.

Satan has had his victories, but he WILL lose the ultimate battle. My God is greater than he and I still cling to my Lord’s promises. He is not willing that any should perish. I keep asking in Jesus’ name, the name above all names, to save my daughter. I know He will…in His time. The greater His story...the greater His glory! In Him I have hope and in Him I have what I need to carry on.

I will not stop praying until my prodigal has come home...

Waiting on God,

The Princess Warrior

P.S. If you are a Christian mother or father, please, please, please:

1) Talk with your children (no matter how old) about their salvation. Don't just assume they are saved. Make sure you see evidence of God in their heart. Just because they said a prayer at the altar does not guarantee that they believed "on" the Lord Jesus Christ. Many believe "in" the Lord -- even satan and his unholy angels believe (James 2:19). A saving faith is when we believe "on" the Lord, putting our complete trust in Christ's finished work at the cross (plus nothing else) to gain access to God and His grace and mercy. A saving faith brings repentance. A saving faith produces fruit in any believer...young or old. Do you see any fruit? Is their character changing for the better? Are they reading their Bible and praying without having to be told. Do you see a real love for God, for God's ways, for God's house, the preaching of the Word, and for God's people. Would they still live for God if you were no longer in their lives?

And 2) While teaching them about God, also warn them about their enemy -- the one who wants to steal, kill, and destroy -- the one who will use many tactics to trip them up and cause them to fall -- the one who walks about like a roaring lion seeking whom he can devour (1 Peter 5:8). This enemy's name is satan (I don't even capitalize his name lest I give him any honor). Your children can have victory over him, but only through the power of God in their hearts and daily walking close to Him. They NEED your daily prayers! This world and the things of it are one giant lure for satan's kingdom.

If you are wondering what are some of the proofs of salvation in your children's lives, or even in your own life, please take a look at both of the following blog posts:

Put on the Parachute by The Princess Warrior

Proofs of Genuine Salvation Trisha Ramos Website (Fish with Trish)

Copyright Information 

Copyright © 2009 The Princess Warrior Ministries. All articles are copyrighted on the date they are posted, unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. Permission granted for not-for-sale reproduction in exact form including copyright and web address. Other uses require written permission. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.

MY FIRST POST - Telling "My Story"

Hello, I have something very important to share with you. So important in fact, that it means the difference between LIFE and DEATH.

MY STORY starts here....

When I was six years old, my hero, my oldest brother John, was drafted into the Army during wartime.  I couldn't understand and was very upset that he had to leave, but I reluctantly gave him one of my first grade school pictures to take with him.  He said it would be with him at all times.

About a month after his departure to Vietnam two Army officers arrived at our home very late one night in January, 1969.  When my mother opened the door she fainted.  I didn’t understand what was going on, but mama knew exactly why they had come.  Later, when she told me that my brother was killed in action, as a six year old child I had to wrap my mind around the fact that John would not be coming home….ever. 

For months I had dreams that I could see my brother in an Army jeep, driving down a dusty dirt road trying to get home, but then I would awaken to the grim realization that it was only a dream.  With these dreams I had an increasing fear of death and wondered what happened to my brother when he died….then, I wondered, what would happen to me if I closed my eyes for the last time?

This one question began to burden me so badly that I started asking my family members about life after death.  The main response I got was this, "If you're good you'll go to heaven, if you're bad you'll go to hell."  But, this only troubled me more because how would I ever know if I was good enough.

As fate would have it, about a week later on a Saturday morning, a couple of Sunday School teachers from a little Baptist church in Landrum, SC (that had brought food to us during my family's bereavement) asked me and my cousins if we would like to be picked up for church.  The next day one cousin and I went to church for the very first time. 

It was there, in that little Baptist church, that I finally heard the truth.  The truth was that I could never be good enough to go to heaven on my own.  I found out that according to God's Word I was a sinner on my way to hell, not heaven.

The Bible says in Romans 3:10, "As it is written, there is none righteous, no not one" and Romans 3:23 says, "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God". 

I also heard about God's moral law.  It's called the "Ten Commandments".  On judgment day God will measure us by this standard.  I had considered myself to be a good person, and most people do, but in light of Gods law we all fall short. For example, "Have you ever told a lie?"  Yes, of course, we all have. So what does that make you? 

Yeah, you can say it.  It makes you a liar.  Did you know that the Bible tells us in Revelation 21:8 that all liars will have their part in the lake of fire?  Have you ever stolen anything - no matter what the size or value?  If you take a one dollar bill from someone's wallet without asking, it is stealing just the same as if it were a one hundred dollar bill.  So what does that make you?  It makes you a thief.  If you just said that you haven't stolen anything please remember that you just admitted to being a liar.

Friend, have you ever used God's name as a curse word?  When you use God's name in vain it's called blasphemy.  Here's another question, "Have you ever looked at someone with lust?"  A lot of people have done this. Maybe, you have.  Be honest because God knows about it anyway.  Jesus said in Matthew 5:28 that if you look at someone with lust you have committed adultery in your heart with that person.

One more question, "Have you ever hated someone?"  1 John 3:15 says, "Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him". So by your own admission, if you're honest, you're a liar, a thief, a blasphemer, an adulterer, and a murderer.  You have broken five of the commandments and we haven't even looked at the other ones yet.  

So now do you see why the Bible says there is none righteous and we all have fallen short? It makes you and I sound pretty hopeless right?

God has said that there must be a payment for the sins we have committed (a murderer is always a murderer so a liar is always a liar, etc).  The first part of Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death (this is eternal separation from God in hell)…"

To get into heaven we must be holy and righteous, sinless. Can we get into heaven by keeping the Ten Commandments?  Do you think you can live the next 10, 20, 30 years and not ever tell another lie or break any of the other commandments? This still sounds pretty hopeless doesn't it?  But wait, we do have hope.  Take a look at the second part of Romans 6:23, "…but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our LORD."  Do you see it?  God has given us a gift.  What is this gift?  Eternal life!!

God loves you so much that He gave His only Son, Jesus, to die because of YOUR sins…taking your punishment and death FOR YOU.  Jesus paid such a high price for your sins.  This was God's greatest gift to mankind.  So how do you get this gift?  You get it just like any other gift – you receive it!

Do you know that Jesus Christ is God come to earth as flesh and blood?  …God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.  ~1 Timothy 3:16

Have you placed your trust in Jesus Christ to save you from God’s wrath to come?  Do you believe that Christ died for YOU and took your punishment upon Himself?  Do you know that Jesus rose from the grave and conquered death and hell FOR YOU? 

Have you realized that you are a sinner and will go to hell if you die right now without confessing your sins and believing with your whole heart that He did this just FOR YOU?  If not, I invite you right now to get down on your knees and cry out in faith for Jesus to forgive you of your sins and to save you from their consequences and then to turn from those sins (Luke 13:3).  He will hear your prayer of repentance.  I promise on the authority of God's Word.

The Bible says in Romans 10:13, "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." (Also see Psalm 86:5).  

If you just accepted Christ as your Savior there is one last thing I want to say to you my dear friend because I don't want to stop here.  I want you to have the assurance, according to God's Word, that you are eternally saved.  Do you think God would allow His Son to suffer a death as cruel as Jesus did just to let us have doubts as to whether we are really His child or not….to constantly question whether we will be with Him forever.  As a parent I would not do that to my own children.  

I have asked many people the question, "If you were to die right now where would you spend eternity?" only to have them respond, "Well, I hope that I will go to heaven!"  My dear friend, the Bible says WE CAN KNOW…without a doubt!!  1 John 5:13 says, These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

Dear one, I have written this out of a great love and concern for your soul.  I would love to meet you, your family and friends in heaven one day.  What a day that will be!!!

May God bless you over and above what you are able to receive! 

With Much Love,

The Princess Warrior

P.S.  As a former Marine, "Semper Fi" to all you devil dogs!!  OOH RAH!

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The Princess Warrior Ministries ©2009

http://theprincesswarriorministries.blogspot.com

ADDITIONAL HELPS FOR YOU

"I've already said a prayer in the past to be saved"

Dear one please let me say this gently, yet firmly – If you said a prayer to be saved and there was no change in your life or you soon went back to your old ways then you ARE NOT a member of God's family. 

"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new".  ~ II Corinthians 5:17

Salvation comes from a heart knowledge, not a head knowledge of Jesus Christ. A head knowledge does not have the power to change you, but a heart knowledge does through the power of the Holy Spirit!

"Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble".  ~James 2:19

"That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation".  ~Romans 10:9-10

You say there is no God! Dear friend have you ever in your life been mistaken about something.  Could this be the biggest mistake you have ever made!!

“The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God”.  ~Psalm 14:1

“But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him”.  ~Hebrews 11:16

Copyright Information

All blog entries are copyright by The Princess Warrior Ministries on the date they are posted, unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.