Living Above the Sun Ministries

"Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. After he has suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities." -Isaiah 53 I have learned to pray in the midnight hour when plagued by my mind. Thoughts that trick me, anxieties that keep me knot...

 "Honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the first fruits of your increase; So your storehouses will be filled with plenty." - Proverbs 3:9 BLESSINGS ON OBEDIENCE: "The Lord will command the blessing on you in your storehouses and in all to which you set your hand, and He will bless you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you." -Deuteronomy 28:8  There is nothing I own in my life that God didn't give and provide for me.  All my life He has been faithful and has provided my every need and then some.  God blesses not only those who do good things, but He gives blessing to those who do bad things too...and not that it is deserved, but that God is good in who He is.  Where Jesus followers divide off is what we do with the possession, and not just merely thanking God, but giving Him glory in how it is used.  I have been convicted of this for several months now in my own life.  Have I used my apartment to the glory of God in who I have over...

 My life has felt like it's been spinning out of control for a few years now.  Maybe you feel that way too; still feeling the affects of the pandemic and how shaken up life became.  We've lost friends, family both through death and in the manner of politically not seeing eye to eye.  We fell out of church and away from church because it wasn't open, or other reasons which may also fall into the political spectrum.  Jobs changed.  Life just isn't the same.  We've endured a lot these past couple of years trying to pick up the pieces and rebuild from the wreckage.  The trauma of all we faced lead us to do some things we maybe would never do.  I found myself in that situation.  It's like one bad thing led to another bad thing and it was a snowball effect downhill.  How do we recover?   Maybe you're a perfect Christian and none of the past few years fazed you, in that case, that's wonderful for you.  In the case of myself ...

  We see the word, "believe" a lot in our culture.  We are encouraged by wooden frames, and art to "believe in ourselves."  In all actuality that is idolatry telling you to place your faith in yourself.  I don't know about you, but I have no idea how to direct my life other than to trouble.  Do we really want to lift ourselves higher than God?  That we are worthy within ourselves to reject God and trust ourselves instead?  I guess we have all walked that path at one time or another.  My existence outside of Jesus Christ and His Spirit in me amounts to nothing.  It begins and ends.  I live for myself, doing whatever I please, going wherever.  It may be attractive for a season, but in the end my life it isn't hinged on any meaning. In throwing the word, "believe" around so much it looses it's meaning almost like when we tell people we love them without thinking or feeling.  Believe is a key word to the Bible, especially the book ...

  I recently read an interesting quote, "The enemy thought he had taken "everything" from Job.  But Job's everything was God."   I've been pondering on this.  If your week has been anything like mine everything seems to have gone wrong.  All the rain and storms has brought flooding, knocked out power and puts us in gloomy moods.  The gloominess can dim our view of perspective and cheerfulness.  I sat down this morning and made a list of things that have gotten to me this week taking into thought this quote that my everything is God.  It looked a little like this: My everything isn't my car. My everything isn't my health or my weight. My everything isn't technology, or social media, or WiFi. My everything isn't lack of having a spouse or children. My everything isn't whether people like me. Job's words were "I know my Redeemer lives, though my flesh be destroyed, I will see Him in my flesh."  Nothing in life can happen to us ...

  "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful in teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." I remember memorizing this verse in 1st grade and it has stayed with me all these years.  I still have my first Bible with that verse highlighted in it. Over the past few years I have written that I believe this verse is the very crux of the Bible. Every verse we read in the Bible can be passed through this and asked questions.   What is being taught?   What is being called out?   Where is it showing work needs to be done?  What sin needs to be repented of? In this same God breath of ALL SCRIPTURE, are we reading all scripture?   One look at our churches today in America and I think the consensus is a resounding NO!  We are not reading our Bibles as a "training in doing right."  Nor are we reading to know the will of the Father in Heaven.  I'm the first to admit my guilt in this too.  While I may read a ver...

"For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the  Lord : I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.   And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the  Lord ,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the  Lord . For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more...I will sprinkle clean water on you and you shall be clean from all your uncleanlessness, and from your idols I will cleanse you.  And I will give you a new heart and a new spirit I will put within you." Jeremiah 31:33-34; Ezekiel 36:25-26 It is thought that John's practice of baptism may have originated with the Old Testament idea of purification.  There are two big things that come to mind when thinking of things that purify, water and fir...