Stand Firm

 
Based on 1 Peter 5:8-9 Resist the devil who prowls around like a lion. #StandFirm #FaithOverFear #StayAlert #ResistTheDevil #SpiritualWarfare #BibleRap #1Peter5 #ChristIsKing #ChristianRap

Be sober‑minded, keep your focus in the fight,
Darkness prowlin’ in the shadows, lookin’ for a bite.
Lion in the tall grass, rumblin’ in the night,
But the Word is my weapon and the Lord is my light.

I’m watchful, posted, feet planted on the Rock,
Enemy circlin’, but he flinches when I walk.
Faith like steel, and the armor never drops,
I resist, stand firm — every scheme gets blocked.

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Hold the line, don’t fold, don’t bend,
This battle’s real, but the victory’s been penned.
All around the world, every sister, every friend,
We endure, stand strong — faithful to the end.

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Stand firm in the faith, don’t run, don’t hide,
We resist, we rise, with the Spirit inside.
Yeah, the lion may roar, but the King’s on our side,
So we stand, so we stand — and the darkness divides.

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Pressure on my shoulders, but I’m anchored in His grace,
Trials hit hard, but they never take His place.
Suffering ain’t new — the whole world’s in the race,
But the Shepherd holds the flock, every tribe, every face.

I’m steady in the storm, even when the winds shake,
Faith ain’t fragile — nah, this faith won’t break.
Devil tries to sift, but the Lord won’t forsake,
I resist, stand firm — every step that I take.

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Hold fast — you’re not alone in the fire,
Worldwide saints liftin’ up the same choir.
Stand strong — let the Word take you higher,
Faith under pressure turns coal into fire.

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Stand firm in the faith, don’t run, don’t hide,
We resist, we rise, with the Spirit inside.
Yeah, the lion may roar, but the King’s on our side,
So we stand, so we stand — and the darkness divides.

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Is it OK to be mad at God?

When something bad happens in your life, do you get mad at God and shake your fist at him? If you do, then consider what Jesus said about being angry with your brother.

But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment (Matt 5:22).

I’ve met a few people who say they are mad at God. Jesus says it is not possible for me to escape judgment for being angry with another person. What makes me think that it is OK to be angry with God and think it is OK? It seems ludicrous to me to think it is OK to be mad at God because “he can take it,” as some say.

Is it possible to say that I love God and be angry with him? 1 John 4:20 says, “If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar.” How much crazier is it to say I love God but be mad at him. It just shows that I’m a liar.

God will not be mocked. He is also patient with us, but being angry with God is the same as hating him and there will be consequences and they usually show up in this life. 

#Faith #Judgment #Honesty #SpiritualLife #Accountability #madatgod #hategod #hateothers #lovegod #loveothers

 

Exalting and Praising God

 1 I will exalt you, my God the King;
I will praise your name for ever and ever.
2 Every day I will praise you
and extol your name for ever and ever. (Ps 145:1-2)

Exalt = to raise someone or something to a higher rank or position; to praise or glorify highly; to hold in very high regard. 

How many times do I come to God the King of the universe and say I will exalt Him without even understanding what the word means? He is already King, Creator, and infinite in every way. There is no way I can raise Him to a higher rank or position because there is no higher, no greater position. It is also very self-exalting to think that I have any ability to bestow any higher glory to Him. I can’t even understand how I can hold Him in high regard because whatever elevation I can imagine is still finite and He is infinite. What I can do is praise Him. 

Praise= the act of expressing approval, admiration, or worship toward someone or something, often through words or songs. 

Even in my praise, I must be careful. If I use that worldly definition, then expressing my approval smacks of judging Him. What a blasphemous idea! Admiration doesn’t even cut it even though it is necessary. Worship is the only thing that comes close to what my praise must be about. My worship in word or songs is woefully inadequate for my God. But that shall not stop me from coming to Him through Jesus Christ. Because it is only by being in Christ that my worship and praise and exaltation is acceptable to Him.

Thank you, Jesus, for enabling me to exalt and praise Father, Son and Holy Spirit forever.

My Mind

Prov 29:11 "A fool gives full vent to his spirit, but a wise man quietly holds it back" (ESV). 

"A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control" (NIV).

This is always a good reminder. While the NIV, NAS, and NLT talk about anger. The NAS footnote says, “literally, ‘sends forth all his spirit’”. The NKJV says feelings, the KJV says the fool utters all his mind. The Message says the fool lets it all hang out.

I learned the NIV and it has served me well in regard to anger. But these other versions opens up more than just anger. I looked up the word for anger and it is ruwach. Literally – wind. The pronunciation even sounds like wind. Gen 1:2 uses it for the Spirit. All of these variations are listed in the concordances.

With all this, I can see how all these versions are attempting to get at the idea that when I don’t control my emotional outbursts, I’m a fool. Those outbursts could also be something other than anger. That might be what the Message is hinting at or the KJV when it says he utters all his mind. I don’t want everyone know everything that is in my mind. It will only prove me a fool.

Lord, give me self-control because my mind is still subject to depravity.