What is it about anyway?

December 21, 2025 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

Hell was already here. So many think that the devil comes when the apocalypse begins, but that is not the case. When God cast the devil out of Heaven he hit earth hard and left a crack. The devil claimed earth as his, remember Luke chapter 4?

Luke 4:5-8 NIV
[5] The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. [6] And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor; it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. [7] If you worship me, it will all be yours.” [8] Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’”

The devil isn’t coming, he’s already here. That’s why Christmas is so important. It does not matter when Jesus came, it matters THAT Jesus came. We celebrate His coming, if people want to complain and say He was born in June let them. We do not celebrate a date, we celebrate Jesus.
Christmas is important because the devil had dominion until that night in the manger. Revelation speaks of a great dragon that came and tried to devour Jesus as He came into this world. Revelation 12 is a vivid chapter. Here we see the whole of Jesus’s life from prophecy to fulfillment spread out in vivid images.
The devil knew he had lost when Jesus was born. He kept fighting right up till the cross. But he had lost to the Son of God the moment Mary saw the angel. Before that. The moment when the birth of Jesus was prophesied.
We were not simply living normal lives when suddenly Jesus was born and the war between God and one of His angels who had fallen broke out around us. The evil was already here. Festering. Growing. Manipulating. Then one night in a barn there was a baby’s cry and suddenly we had hope and the evil was afraid.
Jesus coming to save us. That is what we celebrate. That is what Christmas is all about.

Christianity · Christmas · dreams do come true · encouragement · free · guidance · holy spirit · Jesus · no longer lost · power of God · Prayer · searching · still fighting · The Bible · True Joy

I feel…. but.. it’s Christmas

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Dear friends. Christmas is a time when we feel all the feels, and I mean ALL! We feel happy and sad and stressed and at peace because Christmas reminds us of what we love and who we have lost over the years. Just now, I almost cried because an image of a dog came onto my phone, and it was one of my Nana’s favorite breeds, and suddenly, I missed her. Why am I saying this? Because it’s okay to feel. Feel all of it and then let it go. The thing that makes that tangible and important is making sure that you don’t feel alone. Feel those feelings with Jesus. Rest in His embrace and let Him heal you. Panic comes, but Jesus calms the storms. Pain happens, but our Lord is healer. We have lost… sometimes more than we can bear, but God has prepared a home in Heaven. We feel peace at Christmas because the light of the world came. His angel said, “Fear not.” Jesus said, “peace I leave with you.” Why? Because He knew who we are. It hurts sometimes. We see no light at the end of the tunnel. But God. It will always be Jesus who shows us the way. We may think we cannot do it. But all things are possible through Him. Don’t feel guilty about having all the Feelings at Christmas. Just make sure you leave those feelings in the hands of the Messiah.

Christianity · Christmas · Devotional

The prophets candle

November 24, 2024 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

Isaiah 9:2 ESV
[2] The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness on them has light shone.

Isaiah was only one of many prophets who spoke of the coming of the Messiah and how he would come to this earth. We have the song Oh come Oh come Emmanuel. The Jewish people in the days of Isaiah needed to know of the coming of the Messiah. They needed the promise of a savior. But when He came, they forgot the old prophesies, and they denied Him. But some knew. Some saw that He was the one they had waited for. The prophets did not let us down. They have us in the future a prophecy too, of when our savior returns. When He returns, no one will deny Him because He will return in His Heavenly glory surrounded by a multitude of warrior angels. In that day, will we know Him from before. Will we have met Him in our prayer and devotion? Will we know His face as the man of sorrows who was once a baby in a manger and is returning as a King?
Will we remember the prophecies?

Christmas · Devotional · encouragement · free · guidance · Jesus · lent · Love

Feet part 2

March 6, 2024 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

‭‭John 13:8 NIV‬‬
[8] “No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.” ‭‭John 13:9 NIV‬‬

Peter thought it beneath Jesus to wash his feet. He did not want the one he knew to be the son of God, their long awaited king, the Messiah, kneeling at his feet and washing them. Jesus knew that Peter meant no offense in his statement but He needed all his deciples to understand that if he did not wash them clean they would have no part in Him. To this day we all must be washed by Jesus to share in His presence and glory. Of course, we mean washed spiritually by His blood. If we are not cleaned by the blood of Christ, if we have not made a statement of Faith and asked Him into our lives, then we are not shareholders in His reward. He must be part of us for us to be part of Him. Like Rev. Dr. L.H.VanBeek once said. His Spirit draws us to Him so He can give His Spirit to us. It’s such a profound thing. And something to be longed for and valued.

Christianity · Christmas · free · Jesus · power of God · still fighting · The Bible

Oh Holy night

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Oh Holy night

Fall on your knees, hear the angel’s voices.

Do we?
Here we are about to open gifts and sing Christmas songs, and yet so many don’t know what Christmas is all about. Even some who wear the badge of Christian don’t really get what it’s all about. Not the day, but the reason Jesus came to earth. It wasn’t just about Luke 2, or John 20, it’s also very much about Revelation 22.
Jesus came as a baby, He died as an man, He is returning as the King. And through all of it He is our Savior. He was our Savior while sleeping in the manger, He was our Savior while dying on the cross, He is our Savior as He lives in our hearts today, and He will be our Savior still the day He rides in with His armies to conquer all.
Fall on your knees and worship Him. Seek Him while He is still to be found. That line scares me, some of the modern prophets of the 50s would speak of a time when God would remove His Spirit from the world. We must run to Jesus while He is still to be found. Don’t wait. Don’t miss this.

Christianity · Christmas · Devotional · encouragement · guidance · holy spirit · Jesus · power of God · The Bible · True Joy

Prophesies

December 17, 2023 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

What child is this?

Prophesies. Prophesies ushered in the birth of Jesus. Prophesies helped people understand who He was. Prophesies told of His death and resurrection. Prophesies are in part why the Wise Men walked across the desert to find a baby. Prophesies, Prophesies and more Prophesies.

Yet not all believed the fulfillment of the Prophesies. Many still don’t. Even now as we look around our world we are seeing the answers and fulfillment of Prophesies from the Bible and from true God seeking men and women from a later date. But do we believe that they are happening? Don’t we mock when we hear someone shout ‘Repent! He is coming soon!’

So. What about those Prophesies?
What child is this reminds us of the fulfillment of Prophesies. We have seen time and again when God spoke and answered. If we are going according to the past then I would say we should be listening for the trumpet because the Prophesies are being fulfilled.

If we are going by modern thinking, then there are no Prophesies and we can live as we like. But people who say that are already deceived, there are too few Christians these days who stand strong and preach the gospel, too few who have faith enough to hear when the angels speak and say ‘I am the Lord’s servant.’ We want to be royals, not subjects, and do to this we fall into false truth and spread it to the masses.
We promote positive thinking and speaking your words to the air so the blessing returns to you. This is not Christian. We never remind people to Repent, or dare to mention that a second coming is true and that He is already on the move. If God fulfilled the Prophesies in Isaiah about a Virgin giving birth to God’s son, and about that son being slain for the sins of men and women, and then rising again to conquer death. Why do we doubt the prophet’s claims that Jesus will return with the armies of Heaven and vanquish all evil once and for all?

What child is this? He’s the perfect lamb, the conquering king, and my Savior.

Christmas · Devotional · encouragement · Jesus · Love · power of God · True Joy

It so began

December 10, 2023 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

God rest ye merry gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember Christ our Savior
Was born on Christmas Day
To save us all from Satan’s pow’r
When we were gone astray
Oh tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
Oh tidings of comfort and joy

God rest ye merry gentlemen has been around for so long most of us can sing it by heart. But have we ever stopped to read the lyrics? Even the first verse on its own is so powerful. Christ was born to save us all from Satan’s power. It’s true, but we forget it. We get caught up in everything else that we forget why Jesus came. I forget which speaker said it, and if you remember feel free to let me know, but one minister said that the first great miracle was not at the cross, but in the manger. We did a play as children once where the angels were standing around taking about Jesus being born on earth, and the angels were saying, “but He will take His power with Him won’t He? He won’t be all human… right?”
And another angel said, “He is taking His power with Him, but yes He will be all human.”
“He will be all human… and all God?”
“Yes.”
“Wow!”
“Yes.”
The angels went on to discuss what Jesus would go through as a man on earth right up to His death. The angels were enraged that people would even think of killing the son of God. But then they also knew that it had to happen and that He would be coming back again.
All of it, from the wine at the wedding to the upper room, began in the Manger. So that we could all be saved from the claws of the devil. So God rest ye merry people, because Jesus has come to save us.

advent · Christianity · Christmas · Devotional · encouragement · free · guidance · holy spirit · Jesus · Love · The Bible · True Joy

Merry Christmas

December 24, 2022 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

Which is your favorite gift under the tree?
We all have that one gift. The one we have been eyeing that has our name on it. Be it big with a red bow, or small with sparkly paper, there is usually a single gift that stands out above the others. We don’t know why. It just speaks to us. Then the day comes when we open it and get to see what we have been dreaming of.
Jesus is the greatest gift from God. The only gift that came to us willingly and because He loves us. He’s not under a tree, He’s near our hearts, knocking and waiting for the door on them to be open. He’s the only gift that so many ignore and refuse to open. He’s the only gift that so many others cherish above all joys, friends, family and even life. Someday He will return and we who love Him will get to see whom we have been dreaming of. He came once to save us from our sins, that was Christmas and Easter. But He is coming again to redeem us from this world, that will be our Revelation.

Merry Christmas!

advent · Christianity · Christmas · Devotional · Jesus · searching · True Joy

I’d rather be in Bethlehem tonight

December 18, 2022 carriedinthecross1 Comment

As Connie Scott sings, I’d rather be in Bethlehem tonight, just to be one of the shepherds, just to hear the angels sing.
I’d rather be close to the baby. Draw me closer to Him. Do we long to be closer to the King? Would we give up our presents and decorations to be in Bethlehem? To be there to see the wonder of wonders? To hear the angels and see the star? Would we want to be shepherds just so we could be amung the few who witnessed the baby in the manger? Do you long to be in Bethlehem tonight?

advent · Christianity · Christmas · Devotional · encouragement · free · guidance · Jesus · power of God

There must be more

December 6, 2022 carriedinthecross1 Comment

There must be more to Christmas
I really think we’re missing something
There must be more to Christmas
But what?
-veggietales

Lights. Camera. Action.
Isn’t that how Christmas seems to go? And that’s fine. There is nothing wrong with fun and decorations and a little healthy gift wrapping. But. We can’t forget the reason for it all. Not just now, but all year. I know we talk a lot about how people have missed the true meaning of Christmas, but if we’re honest what people have missed is the true meaning of life. Jesus wasn’t meant to stay under our Christmas tree, He was meant to be a part of our day to day lives. In Evie’s song a Shepherd’s prayer, the little shepherd begs to be moved closer to the savior. He wants to touch Him, to hold His hand. He isn’t satisfied by looking at the baby from a distance. We need to be like that. Not satisfied with just a short service at Christmas to remember Jesus, but instead to be obsessed with being with Him. I know talking about obsession isn’t popluar, and being a fanatic is claimed as wrong, but to have a sole focus on Christ isn’t a bad thing, if He is all we see then we will live better and do better. There must be something more, but what?
It’s not what, it’s who.
Jesus is our something more. We need Him, but we forget that and only give Him what is basic. He didn’t forget us, and He gave us everything not even sparing His own life. There must be more to Christmas. There must be more to this life. And that more, is Jesus.