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turtletwo

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  1. @CaptWalker As someone who writes poetry, I wholeheartedly agree. Thanks for pointing out those scriptures (Lamentations 3:5-8) @Worship Warriors Isaiah 53:6...another good example! Yes, it does. And it is definitely cool, imo. God graciously gave me the gift of writing poetry back when I was age 11. (I did it on and off over the years. While raising a family, I was usually too busy.) The Lord got me back into it full swing last year at Worthy through the encouragement of my brothers and sisters here. Thanks, all.
  2. Thanks to you who participated in this thread. I was reading all of your posts and pondering on the new year/decade that we are now in. Suddenly it dawned on me that God graciously grants us a fresh new beginning every day. This beautiful scripture came to my mind: Lamentations 3:21-23 21 This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. 22 It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. 23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
  3. @marvelloustime Sure looking forward to that time when our work here has ended and we are with Him forever.
  4. Praise the Lord! A new year has begun. Would anyone like to share things that God has taught them in the year we've just exited? Or perspectives about the year that lies ahead? Maybe there is a new direction your life has taken. This could include a ministry God has laid on your heart. I would love to hear about it.
  5. @Willa Yes. I thought the same thing when I heard it.
  6. @B3L13v3R Thanks. I praise the Lord for helping me write it and for giving me a place here to post my poems.
  7. HAPPY NEW YEAR TO MY WORTHY BROTHERS AND SISTERS May 2020 be a wonderful, Christ-filled year for you all
  8. My Poem For 2020 As we leave behind an old year and we enter in a new Let us thank God for the gift of time and His longsuffering, too For He promised to be with us through the good times and the bad We can praise Him for His presence in the happy and the sad As a decade slips behind us and a new one now begins Let's rejoice in our dear Savior who has saved us from our sins May we keep our minds on things above and serve our Lord each day As we love with all our hearts and souls the Life, the Truth, the Way
  9. @BeauJangles I hope you enjoy this video. The group Zemer Levav, pronounced (ZEM-er Leh-VAHV), are the Hebrew words Song of the Heart. The group consists of 3 sisters who sing and play instruments. I believe there are others in the group related to them, too. They are Messianic Jews. In this song, there is a bit of Hebrew. The English meaning to that line (translation) is: "Magnified and sanctified be God's great Name"
  10. @BeauJangles Excellent harmonies. Acapella is hard to do. Especially with that type of song. I love Handel's Messiah.
  11. @Worship Warriors This is one of my very favorite scriptures. It is straight to the point. Practical and succinct. When we adhere to this as our guideline in life, we can't go wrong.
  12. @frienduff thaylorde @Worship Warriors Aww. It is nice to be missed, dear brother and sister. Thanks for your kindness and expressing your concern. I haven't been well. Please keep me in your prayers.
  13. Fulfilled Prophecies at the Birth of Christ Fulfilled Prophecies at the Birth of Christ by Tim Chaffey on December 24, 2012 The events associated with the birth of Jesus fulfilled numerous Old Testament prophecies given centuries before the events they described. Another Reason to Rejoice this Season Millions of Christians around the world choose to celebrate the birth of Jesus during this time of year—some on December 24 or 25 and others around January 7—while some choose not to celebrate at all. Whenever a Christian decides to celebrate, or if he elects not to celebrate His birth, we can all rejoice in the fact that, by putting on humanity, the Son of God became one of us to deal with our sin by dying in our place before conquering death when He rose from the dead. History in Advance The Gospel of Matthew gives us another reason to be thankful. The events associated with the birth of Jesus fulfilled numerous Old Testament prophecies given centuries before the events they described. Matthew 1:22 introduces a common statement in his work. He wrote, “So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet.”1 Since he used this phrasing in at least a dozen passages, Matthew knew it was important to point out to his readers that many of the events he described fulfilled specific prophecies. Let’s take a look at some of these ancient proclamations before explaining why these give us a cause to celebrate. The first use of the fulfillment phrase mentioned above introduces one of the best-known prophecies in the Bible. In reference to the birth of Jesus, Matthew cited a specific prophecy from Isaiah made more than 700 years earlier. Just as foretold, the virgin (Mary) indeed did conceive (Matthew 1:21) and bore a Son who is called Immanuel. This amazing event demonstrates God’s infinite knowledge and power. He is capable for foretelling the future with perfect precision, and He has the power to bring His prophecies to pass, even if that means a virgin would need to conceive and bear a Son.2 After Christ’s birth the magi arrived in Jerusalem. Herod gathered the chief priests and scribes and asked them where the Messiah was going to be born (Matthew 2:3). They responded by citing an Old Testament prophecy pinpointing Bethlehem as the birthplace of the Christ: Herod’s murderous response of slaughtering the young boys of Bethlehem led to the fulfillment of three more prophecies. First, this tragic massacre fulfilled the words of Jeremiah. The original context of this prophecy had to do with mothers in Israel lamenting the deportation of their sons to Babylon. These mothers were personified as “‘Rachel,’ the mother in the days of the patriarchs whose sons Joseph and Benjamin had also been threatened with being ‘no more’ (i.e., carried away into Egypt; cf. Gen. 42:36).”3 Ramah was a town close to Jerusalem and associated with Rachel’s tomb (1 Samuel 10:2–3). The second fulfilled prophecy resulting from Herod’s paranoiac rage took place after Joseph took Mary and Jesus to Egypt. Upon their return, God’s words to Hosea were fulfilled. This prophecy was originally made as a statement of history—God had called (and brought) Israel out of Egypt. Guided by the Holy Spirit, Matthew used these words to refer to the Messiah. The final prophecy discussed by Matthew pertaining to events in the early years of Jesus has to do with his boyhood home. God warned Joseph in a dream not to go back to Judea, so instead he took Mary and Jesus to Nazareth in Galilee, “that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, ‘He shall be called a Nazarene’” (Matthew 2:23). This statement has confused Christians because the Old Testament does not seem to make this specific prediction. Skeptics have jumped on this verse, claiming that it is a contradiction in Scripture. However, there are a few plausible solutions to this dilemma. Jesus fulfilled the requirements of the Old Testament Law and was like a Nazirite who vowed to separate himself to the Lord (Numbers 6:1–8). However this is an unlikely explanation since no record exists of Jesus making this vow, and if He did make one, He would have broken it when He drank wine or vinegar (Matthew 26:27–29; John 19:29). Also, even though the words Nazirite and Nazareth look and sound similar in English, they are unrelated in Hebrew. Nazareth comes from the root word netzer, which means branch, and multiple prophets spoke of the Messiah as the “Branch” (cf. Isaiah 11:1; Jeremiah 23:5; 33:15; Zechariah 3:8; 6:12). Nazareth was looked upon with scorn. Even Nathanael asked, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” (John 1:46). Several prophets revealed that the Messiah would be “despised and rejected of men” (Isaiah 53:3, cf. Psalm 22:6; Daniel 9:26; Zechariah 12:10). Matthew may have recorded an oral tradition handed down from the prophets that was not written in the Old Testament, or perhaps it was a prophecy recorded in a non-extant, non-canonical work familiar to Matthew.4 Also, notice that Matthew indicated that the “prophets” (plural) had spoken about this rather than simply indicating that one particular prophet mentioned these things. Whatever the proper solution is to this dilemma, it is clear that Matthew did not introduce a contradiction in the text. The Unique Savior While thinking about the circumstances surrounding Christ’s birth, Christians can rejoice that the Messiah has come to earth and dealt with our sin. We can praise God for fulfilling His promises. and we can have complete confidence that He will always be faithful to do what He has declared. Despite what many believe today, the religions and religious leaders of the world are not the same. Many people in our culture promote the ridiculous claim that Jesus was just another religious leader—a good person who tried to make life better for others—but Jesus is unique in so many respects. He alone was a “good person” since He lived a sinless life. Every other religious leader has been sinful and needed a Savior. But Jesus did not need a savior; He is the Savior. There are no prophecies foretelling details about the birth of other religious leaders. No prophecies alerted the world to the coming of Muhammad (Islam), Joseph Smith (Mormonism), David Koresh (Branch Davidians), Charles Taze Russell (Jehovah’s Witnesses), Siddhartha Gautama (Buddhism), or any other founder of the world’s religions. Yet the Old Testament pinpointed numerous details about the life of the Son of God and Savior of the world. So what do these prophecies tell us about Jesus? In just the first two chapters of Matthew, we see that God foretold the virginal conception of the Messiah, who would be born in Bethlehem, yet in some way would come out of Egypt and be called a Nazarene. We also see that bitter agony would grip the mothers in that area. In the genealogy recorded in Matthew’s first chapter, we discover the fulfillment of several other Old Testament prophecies. Jesus was from the line of Abraham (Genesis 12:3), Isaac (Genesis 26:4), Jacob (Genesis 28:14), Judah (Genesis 49:8–12), Jesse (Isaiah 11:1), and David (Isaiah 9:7). But that’s not all. A search through the rest of Scripture would reveal dozens of other details prophesied about the Messiah, including the following facts: He would enter Jerusalem on a donkey’s colt (Matthew 21:4–10; Zechariah 9:9). He would be betrayed by a friend (John 13:18; Psalm 41:9). The betrayal would be for 30 pieces of silver (Matthew 26:14–16; Zechariah 11:12). The money would be used to purchase the potter’s field (Matthew 27:3–10; Zechariah 11:13). The Messiah would die a sacrificial death for us (Matthew 27:50; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Daniel 9:26; Isaiah 53:8). He would die with criminals but His burial would be with the wealthy (Matthew 27:57–60;Luke 23:33; Isaiah 53:9). He would rise from the dead (Matthew 28:6; Psalm 16:8–11; Isaiah 53:10). He would say certain words on the Cross. He would be mocked, and people would gamble for His clothes (Psalm 22:1, 8, 18). Many other prophecies could be listed that were perfectly fulfilled in the life of Jesus Christ. These were not lucky guesses made by fraudulent prognosticators; they were precise predictions made by the all-knowing God of the Bible who repeatedly demonstrated that He has perfect knowledge of all past, present, and future events. Consequently, we can be completely confident that He will always make good on His promises and that those future events He has foretold will certainly come to pass. Conclusion About 2,000 years ago, Jesus came to earth in a humble manner. The Savior of the world and God of all creation put on humanity to die for our sins and conquer death, giving the hope of salvation to all who turn from their sin and believe on Him. One day, He will return in judgment, and He will not appear as a seemingly helpless baby, but as the risen, glorified, sovereign Lord and Judge. What will it be like for you when He returns? Will you be safe and secure because you have been saved by His amazing grace? Or will you tremble in fear before the holy and righteous God as you are condemned for rejecting His gracious offer of salvation (Revelation 20:11–15, cf. Philippians 2:9–11)? If you are currently an unbeliever, I urge you to turn from your sin and cry out to Jesus to save you from the eternal torment we all deserve for our rebellion against the infinitely holy Creator. I pray that you find the same joy shared by the shepherds who visited Jesus on the night He was born.
  14. Just wondering if I'm the only one who does this? After December 25th has ended (it always zips by so quickly) I continue for the remainder of the month to celebrate Christ's coming in various ways. I listen to songs about His birth. I also watch holiday movies with a Christ-centered message. If any of you does this sort of thing, I have a few recommendations for you. "Evie - Come On Ring Those Bells (COMPLETE ALBUM)" is a beautiful classic you can find and listen to on YouTube. (It does have some crackles due to vinyl, though.) Movies that are family friendly include "Christmas Oranges" and "Mandie and The Forgotten Christmas." I watched these on Tubi TV. It is a free website which @Debp was kind enough to tell me about. Thanks, sis. If anyone out there wants to share Christmas albums or movies that have been a blessing to you, please do so in this thread. I will be happy to check them out personally. And anyone else like me may enjoy your suggestions, too. If anyone gets a chance to hear Evie's album through or watches the movies I mentioned, I'd love to know what you thought in this thread. Pms are welcome, too.
  15. @Figure of eighty I hope it's okay that I'm posting in your thread twice in a row. I just wanted to clarify a bit. I hope this helps you or someone who reads it. Even if one person re-thinks things, it will not be in vain. Though I know everyone is entitled to their own point of view. So this is not to argue. Just my thoughts and experiences-think of it as turtle sharing her heart. One nice thing about celebrating on the 25th is that we can witness to those who are celebrating on that same day... I've found that people are more willing to listen to me sharing the gospel then. Maybe because there are Nativity sets on display and Christmas hymns on the radio (subliminally causing people to think of Jesus. At least a little more than during the rest of the year. It's a start, anyway.) The scriptural account is an ice breaker to lead into witnessing. Starting with Christ's miraculous virgin birth and going into His atonement. I've written Christmas poems that include the gospel. Then I've had them distributed to people in nursing homes and enclosed them in Christmas cards. This time of year is conducive to explaining things and has been effective for me.
  16. @Figure of eighty You're right. Arguing does not lift up the name of Jesus. You know I love you and Sydney. So I say this in a loving and respectful way. I, too once believed that the pagan stuff connected to it rendered Christmas a no-can-celebrate day. For awhile I tried hard to refrain from the 25th. But the Lord touched my heart and showed me that what Satan may want for himself is no cause to throw up my arms and let him win (claim the 25th for his own.) In reality, God owns time and that includes Dec 25th. If we were to abstain from ALL things with pagan roots we would have to no longer function in the real world. Literally. We would have to toss out our calendars which are pagan. The names of the months. And every time we say SUNday we are alluding to the worship of the 'sun god' and acknowledging it. So this is simply not practical. God told me to take the day back from the devil, so to speak... by honoring Christ and witnessing to the lost. This is a rare time of year and a golden opportunity to do so. I have had better reception sharing the gospel at this time than any other. I hope I can show you an alternate perspective. It is another way of looking at things. I put a lot of trust in scripture and Romans 8:28 says God works all things together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. The way I see it, even questionable holidays can be used to glorify God and help others. Btw, I hope you are feeling better and that you were put on an antibiotic that finally worked. I have been praying for you. God bless.
  17. God looks upon the heart. He knows why we do what we do. I am thankful we have a righteous, yet merciful Judge. In the end, it won't really matter what others think of us...only Christ alone. He delights in our exalting Him. He inhabits the praises of His people.
  18. Hope was born into our world on that blessed night so many years ago. I'm so glad we could celebrate this together... Rejoicing with grateful hearts. Pondering onJesus Christ's unique and miraculous birth.
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