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When the word worship is mentioned in a Christian context I wonder if playing music and singing are the only things that come to mind. Of course there is a lot more to worship than music and singing. In addition to doxa referring to honour in Luke 14:10, five other Greek words used in the Bible variously translate into the English word worship as follows:

Hey Kristin, you may not have artistic talent but we all have, gifts or talents, for various things. Sometimes these are referred to as innate abilities. One such ability is to hear about a stranger's situation and intuitively know what's going on. Other people are said to be "good with children", these folks always seem able to get little kids to behave themselves even when the parents are at their wits end. I consider all these to be gifts from God.

I was referring to the US removal of troops triggering Ezekiel 38 because the US will not fight this war. God will intervene and fight for Israel. I think this war may be as close as 2019.

Christians don't hope to escape,we stand . I mean dang,scripture even shows you how. Ephesians 6:11 "Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." Does that verse say fly away?Not!!! Ephesians 6:12 "For we wrestle not against flesh ad blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." This battle we are going to fight against is not "flesh and blood", it is not people you see and hear, but it is against hidden and deceitful spiritual powers. Satan is the prince of darkness, and spiritually he controls the minds and actions of not only rulers of this earth, but all evil spirits in the heavenlies. These are the angelic beings in a fallen state. Are you prepared mentally to do battle with Them? This battle is not with guns and swords, but with words and doctrines; with concepts and ideas, and these are the "fiery darts" that Satan will conduct his warfare against you with. Daniel 8:23 will give us a view of what this ruler of darkness is like. "And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up." This king in the "latter time" is Satan, the Antichrist; he is the "king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences". In the Hebrew text it means that Satan is "skilled in dissimulation" of the truth of God's word. Satan knows all of God's word, and as such, he is the father of lies and deception. He will twist and turn the truth a little here and a little there, to make it an outright lie. Satan is the Antichrist on earth, and we must never forget it. Daniel 8:24 "And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power; and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practice, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy People." Ephesians 6:13 "Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God that ye may be able to with stand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." What day? The day that satan comes to earth.Now,why would you need the whole armour of God if you not gonna be here? Ephesians 6:14 "Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;" Your "girt" is your belt. That is what holds up your pants, and our spiritual "belt" is the truth of God's word; all of it. Like the belt, it also holds you together, and keeps you from going flying off in all directions. If you know what to expect you will not stray off into Satan's camp in ignorance. Our "breastplate of righteousness" is our justification, or authority for everything we say or do. That is the Word of God. It will protect you, but only if you are able to think for yourself, and the wisdom to direct our thinking can only come from God. Without that truth in your mind, you are spiritually naked, and defenseless against any spiritual battle. The world today is Biblically illiterate. Ephesians 6:15 "And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;" This is the kind of shoes that we all must have on. There is only one true peace, and that comes from Jesus Christ. The "gospel of peace" is the "good news of God's full plan". Your feet are used to walk with and get you around, while the shoes are for the protection of your feet. So we had better have the "gospel armor" on so when we move in these final days, we know exactly where to walk, and what to expect. There are no secrets for these days, as to how Satan's forces will move; for it is all written in God's Word [our Bible]. When we see the signs of the end times that are upon us, we had better understand what Satan will do; and then know what we had better do about it. Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 13 all tell us in detail what we are to do in that day. These are all part of our spiritual shoes, that will guide our feet to where they ought to take us. Ephesians 6:16 "Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked." Paul is telling us that this is the most important armor; "above all". When we put on our "shield of faith" we can quench [or snuff out] all of Satan's fiery darts. There is absolutely nothing Satan can send against you mentally, if you are filled with the seal of the living God. God even went far beyond that when He gave to Satan the keys of authority for his tribulation rule. God said in Revelation 9:4 "And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thin, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads." That seal of God is the Scriptures; all of it, and it had better be stored in your mind [that's your "forehead"]. The "shield" is our faith, or the certain knowledge that we know that when Satan comes against us, we will automatically be given the moves we are to take to shield ourselves form him. Whatever comes our way will be snuffed out today, tomorrow, and right into Christ's Millennium age. Your faith is not only your belief, but your acting on that belief; which is sustained by your confidence that God will perform that what He said He will do. All things will come to pass exactly as He said it would in His Word. Ephesians 6:17 "And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:" The "sword of the spirit" is the "Word of God". Revelation 1:16 tells us that the sword is a two edged sword that destroys all of Satan's lies and deceptions. It is the Word of God, from the mouth of God, and written for us in the Bible. Our head is the most vulnerable part of our body; Therefore our salvation had better be secure and sure in our mind. Our "salvation" is the most sure thing we can have, for it is Christ that does the saving, and it comes through our belief in Jesus Christ, and His work on the cross: His death and resurrection. All this was done by Him to pay the price for each and every sin that we have done. However, those sins are only forgiven by Him through our repentance to God, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. You run,I'll take that stand!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Where? I can answer... No where. When Paul says we are not to suffer wrath it doesn't equate to "The Tribulation Period", whatever that is. Iamlamad, there is no 'pre-tribulation rapture'. It's just a fantasy.

Hi Michael, What a great subject - to worship the Lord. And this can be done anywhere, anytime. Music can be a part but of itself it is not worship. Rather it is our heart attitude and voiced honour of our great saviour and Lord - who He is, His character, His great purposes, & what He has accomplished. I think of Adoration, Exaltation, Celebration and Declaration as aspects of our worship. Marilyn.

I understand how you feel. I don’t think I even have talent. But I think whatever we do, let’s do unto the Lord. We give him our best and take care of WHO He has given us. We put our trust in him and FEAR NOT. And when we fail, we just keep believing. What else can we do? Rest.

What God wants, is to have a personal relationship with with you. What one does or doesn’t do with their human abilities, have no standing before God. Either one has a personal relationship with Christ or not. Hopefully these words help you torward or with yours. Much love in Christ, Not me

As a Watchman for YHWH (God) I have had other Dreams, but this one makes a little more sense for the time period we are now living in. I have been praying about some answers to what this dream could mean. This dream happened back in Sept. 2008 some time before the Stock Markets greatest fall of 777.68 points on the eve of the Jewish feast of Rosh. Sept. 29th 2008. This was one of 3 dreams that I was given just before The Obama Election in November 2008. Now I had made up my mind I was not going to vote for him, as I was praying for our Country to recover from one of it’s greatest recessions in a long time. With many people having Obama as the coming Antichrist at that time with a 7 year Tribulation on the Horizon, things where not looking good for America. Dream 2008 I was standing on a cliff over looking the water below. It was a shear drop off high above the water. There was no turning back I new I had to jump to survive. I hit the water below sinking deeper and deeper it seem like a long time before hitting the bottom. Then I pushed hard with my feet off the bottom toward the surface of the water. On the way up I needed a breath of air I cried out Lord help me I don't want to drown as I reached the water surface I heard the Lord say in a loud voice 45 End of Dream. Could this be more about Trump sense he is the 45th President? We are now much closer to world Tribulation than other times in History. The entire world is in Financial trouble and a threat of economic failure with world Banks Possibly failing pretty soon. Could we all be facing a long period of Tribulation with the cliff being very High and the water very Deep as we all may be forced to JUMP very soon? Trust in the Lord with all your heart and not in your understanding and He will direct your path in the time of troubles. God Bless

I have chosen not to forgive. PLEASE do not quote any scripture warning me to choose otherwise, because I have already accepted my fate and I'm making arrangements to dull my feelings to where I don't care if I end up in Hell anymore.

I’m not sure how this site works. But here goes nothing. I’ve been feeling very alone and confused for some time now. I guess you could say I lost my way and looked up one day and lost more then just that. I grew up in the church and went every year for 29 years until I experienced a tragedy. Today was the first time in three years that I’ve been back in a church. I was strategic in my decision of where to go. I chose the biggest church I could find because I knew I would be invisible. I knew I could get in and out unnoticed. I suppose you could say I set myself up for to be disappointed and maybe in a way validate my reason for not going in so long. God is everywhere and I quit believing I needed to be in a church to have relationship with him. But when we have fellow believers in our lives we have accountability. I haven’t had this in a long time. I need a friend so desperately.

Christians seem to be of the mindset that it is impossible to keep from sin, but the scriptures tell us to do just that, has God set us an impossible task or are we enabled by him and given what we need to do just that

No that wouldn't disappoint the Lord at all. He is not really that concerned about our natural talents per se. In fact we often may be called to die to them or lay them on the altar. The "talents" in the parable is not speaking of natural abilities and gifts, it is speaking of the measure of faith that each one is given, including whatever spiritual gift they received from the Holy Spirit. Natural talents might be expedient in some ways, eg, to help someone make a living for example, or to use to help someone else, but from heaven's point of view the flesh profits nothing....it is the things of the Spirit that matter to God. He wants to see us investing our measure of faith....obeying Him, trusting Him, being led by the Spirit, using our spiritual gifts for His glory, etc.

Ezek. 29:9 “And the land of Egypt shall become desolate and waste... 12 I will make the land of Egypt desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate; and among the cities that are laid waste, her cities shall be desolate forty years; and I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them throughout the countries.” 13 ‘Yet, thus says the Lord GOD: “At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the peoples among whom they were scattered. 14 “I will bring back the captives of Egypt and cause them to return to the land of Pathros, to the land of their origin, and there they shall be a lowly kingdom. 15 “It shall be the lowliest of kingdoms; it shall never again exalt itself above the nations, for I will diminish them so that they will not rule over the nations anymore." At the cataclysmic destructions of the Sixth Seal = Matt. 24:29, when the Lord returns to take up his elect (:30-31), the earth will undergo great destructions from nature. Following that, at the Sixth Trumpet (Rev. 9:13ff.), a third of mankind will be killed, many of them in the proximity of the Middle East/the river Euphrates. The Gog-Magog war comes years after these things, when the people who remain alive in Israel will be living an old-fashioned pastoral life in villages, and the invaders will have gone back to wielding swords and spears. Anyone who does not read Ezekiel 38-39 with blinders on can see the truth of this. But most people read the passage through the lenses of their eschatologies that have been corrupted by the doctrines of men.

as another "Whore of Babylon" thread reaches the 250 post range with no consensus I'm reminded of why I stopped bothering with it.... LoL

Thank you, sincerely. Biblical faith/trust is relying on God for unseen things Biblical evidence is relying on God for seen things For example, because we can see a magnificent creation in us and all about us, we can trust God for the coming Kingdom Most Christians add very harmful jargon when presenting the gospel, making presenting the gospel scarier and more difficult than it should be: I never speak these jargon terms when sharing: faith, belief, repentance, repent, baptism, give Jesus your life, put Jesus in your heart, confess all your sins to Jesus, get right with God, make Jesus Lord, make Jesus your Savior… Healthy Terms to Share · Imperfection versus perfection · Trust yourself versus trust Jesus · Doing religious things versus receiving a free gift · The cross of Jesus Christ · Horrible death by torture, and resurrection · Trust Jesus · Jesus is trustworthy

I agree. 'Rapture' is made up. It's the 2nd coming and the gathering of the elect for which we are waiting and looking, and hoping.

Praising God Praising God is something We should do throughout each day Counting all the blessings That we find along the way Some we take for granted Like our breath, our voice, our rest Also the endurance which can Get us through each test Then there's friends and family We must treasure while they're here Showing them we love them so And telling them they're dear Thankful for protection And for healing as we mend Grateful for provisions That God faithfully will send Most of all, to praise Him For the wondrous plan He made When He sent down Jesus And the price for sin was paid

Yes, I believe we are worshipping God when we fellowship as members of the body of Christ in ways that glorify God. I like your list, Marilyn.

I'm sorry, I guess I didn't make myself clear, Yes I have three Passports, American, French and the Kingdom of Heaven, the only one that really counts in my life is the Kingdom to Heaven Passport, ...the other two are just a convenience for me to travel this planet and will soon be useless. Pay taxes, of course, we are to be examples to this dying word, Jesus and Peter paid taxes, but Jesus was certainly more a citizen of Heaven than this earth, Paul told us to obey the governments of the country we live in, ...Paul used his Roman citizenship to protect others, in Philippi Paul didn't expose his Roman Citizenship before they beat him, no, many were saved through his work in the prison, so he used it to protect the brothers there after he left. Acts 16:40 Born again Jews are just like you and me, new creations in Christ, ...they are just as much the Bride of Christ as the Gentiles. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. Gal 3:28 Lord bless

Hi Littlelambseativy, You are meaning the America`s troops I think. They are not part of the coming war against Israel and thus being removed. Now Iran is building up its position there along with Russia. Those are the armies along with Libya and Ethiopia who will go up to the mountains of Israel. This will be when God draws them down to be dealt with there. And I believe that time is very, very soon even as early as 2020. We will see. Marilyn.

the sabbath law was all about honouring God, for a jew this was one day a week but for Christian its everyday by what we do and say, its also about entering into Gods rest which we enter through Jesus, read hebrews, it talks about the sabbath rest for Gods people, that day being today.

Thank you for the encouragement by the way. I truly appreaciate it. ???

To be honest, I have already made a lot of mistakes in leading the worship service whether be in words that I speak or my voice.. I always give room for improvement and I thank God He helped me improved a lot. There are just a lot of signs that He gave me for something else for the advancement of His Kingdom whether it be in a dream or in a situation. Before I became a worship leader I believe and I know that I am called for something else and I wont tell you yet (?)

Just stick close to what is written. Use common sense. If a verse makes sense in a literal sense, don't look for any other sense; take it literally. I learned something from an older bible college professor: God is a self revealing God and if He had not revealed anything, we would know NOTHING about Him. But over time He has revealed more and more, and later revelations are much clearer and easier to understand. Therefore common sense dictates that to form doctrine, we find the latest revelation on a subject, and / or the most complete, and form our doctrine there - filling in missing pieces from the minor scriptures. Many Old Testament verses are like a telescopic view, where we see only the highlights. New Testament scriptures on the same subject may be a microscopic view. For example, Daniel covered the 70th week in ONE VERSE in chapter 9, but John wrote 9 chapters of Revelation on the 70th week. Then one must learn to look to WHOM a scripture is pointed. In the end times there is the church, Israel, and the nations or the Gentiles. If one takes a scripture pointed to Israel and says it is for the church, then confusion reigns. God back and look in Dan. 9. He told us the 70th week is for HIS people: Israel. Why then do people try to take verses about the 70th week and make them for the church? It just makes more confusion. Finally, it is good to read over some end time passage maybe a hundred times, NOT trying to understand it, just depositing it in your spirit. Then THINK about it during the day. Sleep on it at night. It will not be long before God will begin revealing HIS INTENT in that passage. He is always faithful. If someone is ignorant of these things, the end times can look very very difficult. Always remember, Revelation is a revealing, not a hiding. The simplest idea of what a verse is saying is probably the best idea. I would say the "Id_o_t" is one who is so sure they are right, they are no longer open to learning.

Hi Melinda, All good intentions, however....as you listen to the Holy Spirit He will bring forth the life of Christ within and that is life that will grow you and affect others. All our efforts of our own makings become burdensome and are not life giving. Instead of `to do ` seek to `become more like Christ` as He guides you. Let Him be Lord and for us to be obedient. Learning to listen to that `still small voice,` is the key, then `trust and obey.` Marilyn.

Thanks Word, I enjoyed those. I've have learned that I, as a grafted on branch, am sorta worthless, cannot bear any fruit myself, unless attached to that true vine. And the less of me deciding my 'walk' through my own reasoning/understanding, the more fruit to bear from the vine. Not I, but Christ in me......

Exactly!!! I have human friends that I trust in, but some times they let me down, due to circumstances beyond their control, however, my Faith is in my God, ... He has never let me down, never failed to be there when I needed Him, never broken one of His promises written in His Word... God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent: hath He said, and shall He not do it? or hath He spoken, and shall He not make it good? Num 23:19

We can observe a believer's (or unbeliever's) works to get a good concept regarding their lifestyle, but works are neither required for receiving salvation nor for keeping it. Consider carefully how Romans 4 teaches clearly that zero works are required for salvation (verses 1-5).

All born agains adhere to Jesus since they receive the Holy Spirit, permanently forever, as a deposit of their trust in Christ (Ephesians 1). Faith and belief are best understood as "trust".

God says there are TWO.......the Rapture before the 70th week and the Saints raised after we return are all the FIRST RESURRECTION of the living. The 2nd Resurrection happens 1000 years later, and it's the Resurrection of THE DEAD or the Wicked.

u never read about the manna in the desert or how elijah got fed by ravens at the ravine

Hi, No I am not, but have a great time with it for yourself! May the effort be a great blessing from God to you. As for me I find I need renewal most every day I awake. For that I don't find a calendar especially useful, nor do I find reading through the Bible in a year to be something for me. It's really nice, many do it, but it is not helpful for me as much as is a much slower manner of being led to reading- praying - thinking, and trying to apply the word of God in all that I may do. My own capacity to handle subjects is rather limited I guess. The lead from church worship and study lessons and activities force me into more study than I can utilize already. I need daily renewal just for that. May God bless your endeavor .

I think this Facebook poster you've quoted missed it. Jesus felt a lot of things on this earth during his three year ministry: [1] Deep sorrow and grief: In the Garden of Gethsemane, he sweat drops of blood in asking God THREE times to take this away from him. He almost died in the garden the Bible says - assumingly from anxiety and sorrow. When he came into Jerusalem, he cried aloud in sorrow that he wanted to take them in under his wing like a mother hen, but they would not allow it. [2] Frustration: He said to the disciples who couldn't rebuke a demon from a child, "Oh, perverse and unbelieving generation....how long am I going to have to put up with you?" [Something to that effect.] [3] Compassion: In don't know how many times the Bible says that Jesus "had compassion on the people" because there were like a sheep without a shepherd. There's more - a lot more. Of course he felt anger - a righteous wrath. He is God. His Temple was being defiled and corrupted. Did he beat - as in abuse people and animals in driving them out and overturning tables? No. But was he displaying the wrath of God over what the devil had turned the Temple into via these hypocrites? Yes, indeed. Jesus was definitely mad. But he did not sin. And you can better believe it got the people's attention. Jesus was not this pale-faced, milquetoast, namby-pamby Messiah who didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings. His was and is meek, by his own admission, but meekness is NOT weakness. People's eternal souls were at stake. This was a spiritual battle that the devil was waging and temporarily winning in the hearts of those money-changers. Wrath - and holy and righteous wrath HAD to be displayed. He was also merciful in not striking them all dead. They had no idea what they had done. He had to set it right.

Two observations: 1) Although it's clear that Jesus didn't 'lose His temper', how can it be assumed that He didn't have an emotional reaction of any kind? He wasn't a Vulcan (as in Star Trek); but His emotions were under His control. 2) God does get angry at some things - and I don't say that because I have any "vested interest in the idea of an angry God" but because the Bible speaks in many places of God's wrath. Including the New Testament... So... does the author have his own "prejudices and misunderstandings" that he's reading into the text?

Do not stop waiting for the rapture. Do not be fooled by what others say. Read the Bible it is your only guide book. The instant the rapture occurs Satan is in control and total chaos occurs on earth as it did in the flood...there is a time when we meet our Lord in the air, do not miss that ‘twinkle of the eye’ moment.

1 Thessalonians 4:17 should help. I am on my iPad and would find it easy to place scriptures in on my computer but have not after years mastered that here...really have not tried?

Gog, is the angel in charge of Magog seen as either Turkey by some scholars or Russia by others.

At the end of Revelation Chapter 3 there is no mention of the Church. Chapter 1-3 Christ is talking and telling the different churches what they are doing good and what He hates. Chapter 3 is the end of the Church age that is where in ch 3 v 20-22 Jesus says “Behold I stand at the door and knock....he who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” Before it’s too late. If the church was still on earth during the tribulation, they would be ministering and be killed for their ministry. This is not what our Lord wants of the faithful in Him. Chapter 4, at this point there is no longer the Church, the Bride of Christ on Earth. Our Lord has redeemed us and removed us from harms way as He did with Noah and Lot’s family...they are a pre- example of what will happen to the Bride. That is why we have no part in the Tribulation.

Two separate magog wars. One thousand and seven years apart In Christ Montana Marv

Oh my friend, you are not reading Revelation as you should. I told you before, after Revelation chapter 3 the church is not mentioned because we are not on earth we have been raptured, or as some prefer caught up, to meet Jesus in the air. You cannot read Revelation without first reading the other prophetic books. They are so important. Daniel was given by God a timeline of past, present and future in the statue. But, Ezekiel was given a message about the current time when the dry bones are revived and they are living in prosperity and relative peace. They are thriving. Their enemies, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Turkey etc are envious of their prosperity and hence, Ezekiel 38. Not.. Revelation because the church is still here.

For some reason when I read your question I misunderstood talents to mean spiritual gifts even thee gifts of preaching and teaching. I think God won't be pleased if we ignore these. But I don't think talents like painting, sculpting, driving racing cars, swimming, or anything like this matters much to God. Especially if doing them interferes with earning a living and/or supporting children you were blessed with. As for wondering if God has a special work for you, we all need to know. I think things like this can change as you go through life. You may not yet have reached the point in your life where you will be given your individual task. But I found it usually comes through as an inclination or a feeling to do something. Not really in words, I only know of 1 man who said he heard words. Consider the spiritual gifts you were given when praying about God's will for your life. Although it can also be to take care of your family if God gives you one. I knew a man who abandoned his family to seek a different mission in this life. He didn't find one and he came to a sad ending. This is actually what Jesus referred to as being a good steward of what you were given. Be sure you do this first because you won't be given anything else if you fail at this. Sorry this got so long. In closing I'll repeat God won't be upset with you for not painting or drawing.

Today's word is not Hebrew or Greek, it's Eskimo! The word is issumagijoujunnainermik. When missionaries first shared the gospel with the Eskimos, they couldn't find any word in the Eskimo language for forgiveness. So, they took a number of Eskimo words and joined them to form a new word -- Issu-magi-jou-jun-nai-ner-mik -- and it became the Eskimo word for forgiveness. The individual words are "Not-being-able-to-think-about-it-anymore." The post Issumagijoujunnainermik! appeared first on Worthy Christian Devotional - Daily Devotions. Read the entire devotional.

Hi. It just depends reading the Bible is great that keeps you knowing what to do or least we can forget and the Lord can even lead you to scripture that helps you know what to do. Praying as well.

It took me over 30 years to figure it out. I'm still working on explaining it clearly. As Christians, we are all new creations in Christ. There are things that are the same for all of us. We are adopted as children. The Holy Spirit dwells in us. The fruit of the Spirit (see Gal 5:22-23, things such as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness) are meant to become defining characteristics of our lives. However, we all still retain our individual differences which reflect that God created us each to be unique individuals. Becoming a Christian is not about losing our God-given uniqueness but rather seeing that uniqueness redeemed and restored into what God intended it to be. Some aspects of our lives as Christians will be the same as other Christians. However, some aspects of our lives will reflect the uniqueness God created us with.

Many Christians seem to get caught up in trying to figure out what God wants us to do rather than who God wants us to be. We become focused on seeking to better know God's to-do list for our lives so we can check off all of the items on it. We rarely slow down from this and ask *who* is it that God created me to be? We start to come to see our value as Christians by how much we accomplish for God rather than in becoming who God made us to be. In the long run, we will accomplish much more in being the person God created us to be than trying to do as much as we possibly can. I spent over 30 years as a Christian with this mindset that what I was supposed to do as a Christian defined who I was. It was about maximizing the use of my gifts and talents and pouring as much time and effort into ministry as I could to bear as much good spiritual fruit as I could. I was defining myself by striving to be the best Christian, the best husband, the best father, the best employee, the best fill-in-the-blank I could be. Over a period of about 6 months to a year, God forced me to slow down and put me in front of a mirror and forced me to look long and hard and I realized I had no clue who God made me to be. All I could see was the roles, tasks, gifts, talents, and efforts I had been putting into things. Over the next year, God started working on me to show me who He had created me to be. He started healing things that had been shackles and chains on my natural personality. My gifts, talents, and experience became *tools* for me to use rather than my identity. One of the biggest changes is that I now find what I do tends to be much more natural and just flows rather than being something I have to work at. There are of course many things we all have in common as Christians that describe our lives. But then there is the uniqueness about each of us that is meant to reflect God's glory to the world in a way unique to us. It is not that we have particular gifts and talents that makes us unique, but there is something about each one of us that is a special treasure and work of art of God. Until we can look in the mirror and start to see that unique work of art God is creating and rejoice in that, we'll be trying on our own strength to do what we and others think God wants us to do. There are many painters and illustrators in the world with a range of abilities and skills. However, there is only one you that is a unique work of art of God. As you learn who God is making you to be and come to rejoice and be comfortable in being that person, your gifts and talents will become tools that you can use to express and communicate things in ways that will go well beyond the ability to paint or illustrate. You may also find that what you like about drawing might be used or expressed in ways other than drawing as well.

We do not worship angels so there is no need to have songs about only angels.