DO YOU KNOW GOD? 12/27/15

MANY SERMONS, bible studies and even Sunday School lessons have been written so that we may know God.   Every Theologian has studied this subject and walked away still scratching their heads.   Faith is the key to every aspect of God.    Faith is the key to every aspect in knowing His Son, Jesus!
WHEN I MARRIED Jim, I did not know him!    My Mother said you never know a man until you are married to him!    Of course that has merit, because until we live with someone day in and day out we would never get to know their behavioral patterns, or their temperament.  Their real likes and dislikes.   During the courtship smiling days we both were on our best behavior.   However, thru the years, we began to know each other very well.   But even today, Jim surprises me and I realize there is still a lot of things about him that I do not know.  
PAUL ADDRESSES the Saints in Rome with a prayer of thanksgiving for them, and then lays it upon them, that all gentiles are guilty before God.   “For what can be known about God, is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.   Ever since the creation of the world His invisible nature, namely, His eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made.”    Romans 1:19-20     If I can still be learning about my husband after 54 years of marriage, everyday I can still seek to know more about God!
GOD has many names and each name tells something about Him.   The world has no respect or even fear of God.   They use His name to damn other’s and they use His name to show disgust and even hatefulness.   They are quick to swear by the name of God when they want others to believe them!  They have no clue as to the importance of His name!    They do the same with His Son’s name!  They use His name with guile.  They are not respectful nor concerned about what His desires are.   I believe the world is in for a rude awakening!   All will be face with the reality of God and His Son.   All will be face with Gods power, His glory and His promises!
IN THE STORY where Moses is confronted by the burning bush and is given his walking papers to return to Egypt, Moses asks God; “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘what is his name?  What shall I say to them?”  Exodus 3:13    Remember the Israelites were afraid to call God by His name.   They would call Him; Yahweh or Jehovah!    The following verse is one of my favorites!    “I AM, WHO I AM!”  God gave this name to Himself!    This name tells us that He is all and in all!    Makes me quiver inside!   Sets my pulses racing!   Makes me ask the question; “who am I that God should send His Son to save my soul?”
WHEN we are one with Him, we have all we need!   Yet we search to know more and more!   Paul did also!   He wanted to know God not only in big happenings in his life,  but in the small things also.    The interesting thing is that God wants to know us also, not only in our big accomplishments but also in the small things.   He desires intimacy with us!  
DOES GOD bring about coincidences in our lives or does He respond and answer our prayers?   Do we live by chance or does God come to our aide?    I can not tell you how many times God has helped me to find that which was lost.   When I needed to know if I was on the right track, God provided me with evidence that caused me to give sighs of relief.   Because we know the name of God and we know of His power and might, along with His intimate knowledge of us, we know that God always keeps His promises, and is there even in our darkest hour!
“AND THEREFORE, I suffer as I do, But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am sure that He is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me.”
2 Timothy 1:12     Hell shudders at the name of Jesus!   Jesus is what He is!   He will be what He will be!   God has said; “I AM, WHO I AM!”   Do not be afraid!   Jane Ann Crenshaw 12/26/15

FIRSTS! 12/20/15

IN OUR LIFE time we have experienced many firsts, haven’t we?   First birthdays; first day of school; first day on the job; first in line; first tooth; first pair of glasses; first time behind the wheel; first bank account; first child and the list goes on and on and on!    Coming from a large family of 14 children, each time I lose a sibling, it is like the first time because each one of them were unique.   They came packaged entirely different in every way!  This last year I lost my oldest sister Jean.   She would have been 92 this month!
MOST TIMES we are only concerned with how we feel the first time we experience Christmas without someone, whom we have cherished and loved.  Most times we feel their absence more during the Christmas celebration than we thought we would.  When considering the promises of God, we should  feel a little excitement about the possibility, of their first Christmas in heaven!
I HAVE TO ADMIT I never thought of my loved ones spending Christmas in heaven.   I just knew they experienced their first day in heaven!    Could there be any difference?   Since there is no morning or night; everyday in God’s presence seemed good enough to me.   To ponder Christmas in Heaven caused me to look on the internet.   Many others thought about this and even wrote about it.   One was by a 13 year old boy named Ben who died from a brain tumor in 1997.   The other was by Anonymous who obviously was a seasoned Christian with maturity.  Both were filled with glorious insights into the promises of God.
IT IS ALMOST SIX years since my brother Lynn passed away.   At  that time I asked Jim to write something that I could use in my blog; this is what he wrote:
                                                       CHRISTMAS IN HEAVEN!
“There’s a birthday party in the heavenly realms, where the saints of God and the angels dwell. They’ve gathered around the King of Kings where they listen to the heavenly choir sing.
They sing the songs about the birth of Christ, they sing the songs about eternal life and the message they sing is one of love; that is sent from God above.
They celebrate the birthday of the Son of God, the day they call Christmas, where He once trod. Merry Christmas they say on the earth below, but they’ve seen nothing till they see the show, when the angels sing and choir joins in for the One who saves mankind from sin.
It’s Christmas in heaven and for some it’s the first; who recently lived their last day on earth. What a joy for them, they’ve been set free; to dwell with Jesus eternally.  Along with Him, there’s Peter and Paul and John and James, and that’s not all; there’s brothers and sisters who’ve gone before; also husbands, wives, Moms and Dads, who’ve entered the door.
What a joy for them, those newly arrived; to sing to Him who gave them life.  And best of all, they’ve all been given, the joy of their first Christmas in heaven!”
“HE WILL WIPE away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away.  And He who sat upon the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.”  Revelation 21:4-5a
I read a commentary at the end of this passage; “The Bible opens with man in the Garden of Eden in happiness and contentment.  It ends with man in the new Jerusalem where he is again happy and content!  
WE WEEP because we love; we sob because we miss; we look toward  the heavens in anticipation; because we know we will meet again!   Meanwhile, let’s remember to enjoy those who still surround us with their love.  Let’s remember Christ did not come to cause us sorrow, but to bring us happiness from above.  God bless you all as you remember the birth of our Lord!
Jane Ann Crenshaw (Blog from 12/17/10 updated ) 12-7/15

"O CHRISTMAS TREE!" 12/13/15

CHRISTMAS carols; Christmas classics’ and Christmas bells are ringing.   Most are taking part this season, singing, chanting, playing instruments or ringing the bells.   Can’t help but stop to listen or to take part in this joyous time of the year by filling the halls, and the night air, with Christmas music.   I love it; don’t you?
MY SISTER Joyce, was born in the early part of January 1941; just after Christmas.    My mother use to sing a Christmas carol that both Joyce and I remember but can not find it, even on the internet.   We always imagined Mom gave her the middle name of Carol because of this little song.   It goes like this; “Carol O Carol, Christmas is here; gladdest of birthdays of all the year; gladdest of birthdays of all the year!”    Funny how songs and music helps to remember seasons; times; celebrations and especially Christmas!
WE PICKED UP our tree this afternoon.    I like a flocked tree!   Helps to manage the needles.   We thought about buying a manufactured tree, but finding a flocked commercial one is hard!   They look so fake!   I know there is one out there, so we will just keep looking.  Perhaps one is waiting just for us,and it will be on sale next month.
SOME YEARS AGO a discussion came up as to whether we should put a tree up in the Church.   We all had trees in our home, but in the Church it would be sacrilege.   In the 700's, a monk named Boniface wanted to prove, the belief that oak trees were sacred or magical was not true.  He wanted people to understand that the creator of trees was to be worshiped, not the tree!
ONE CHRISTMAS, Boniface became frustrated with the pagan rituals and so he went out and chopped a large oak tree down in his anger.  The mighty oak fell and crushed everything in its path except for a tiny fir tree.   Boniface felt it was a miracle that the baby tree survived.   Many years after that the people planted little saplings to celebrate Christmas, eventually decorations were added.  Traditions followed with taking the trees indoors and even putting candles on them, which is also an interesting story how lights came about at Christmas time.  
I CAN”T HELP being excited about the gaudiness of Christmas.   Even just a little bit sets me off, but when it is out of the box, oh how my heart responds!     The Christmas Tree song, “O Tannenbaum”, that we sing during this season, came out of Germany by an unknown composer.  The melody is an old folk song.   When it was translated into English it became known as “O Christmas Tree”.    Did you know that the Fir Tree branches are unchanging?
THE SECOND verse says; “Christmas tree, O Christmas tree, you fill all hearts with gaiety.  Christmas tree, O Christmas tree, you fill all hearts with gaiety.  On Christmas Day you stand so tall, affording joy to one and all.  O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree, you fill all hearts with gaiety.”   No two Christmas trees are alike!   A decoration?  Absolutely!
WHILE SHEPHERDS were tending their sheep at night a miraculous event happened.  “An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone over them.  They were terribly afraid, but the angel said to them Don’t be afraid!  I am here with good news for you which will bring great joy to all the people.   This very day in David’s town your Savior was born - Christ the Lord!  What will prove it to you is this; you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”   Luke 2:8-12   Talk about extravaganza happenings!    We decorate to the hilt and God fills the skies with angels and choirs and music to bring us news of great joy!
          WE CONTINUE to celebrate Christ’s birth even today - the announcement the Angel gave,  is still being given to all, except the child grew to be a man.  He is no longer in the manger but fulfilled His mission bringing us the good news.   His death, His burial and His resurrection!    Thanks be to God I can still celebrate my Savior’s birth by giving Him the honor, the glory and all the praise that is due Him!   Jane Ann Crenshaw 12/12/15

SHOPPING, SHOPPING, SHOPPING! 12/6/15

SHOPPING is not one of my forte’s!   Don’t get me wrong I love buying gifts for others and preparing for festive gatherings.   But to always have something in mind to buy is hard to do!   I do love to window shop and when I spy something I think someone would like to have, I usually don’t have any money on me to buy; not even the window!   Now my Jennifer listens and looks for things that she thinks the person she is buying for, would really like.   She starts early and this year has been wrapping and checking her list.   However, she gets right into giving.   Not only family, but children from the Christmas tree at the bank.   The shoe boxes that are filled and sent to third world countries!
JIM and I sang in the Chorale a few years back for a Christmas concert.   One song that I would love to say Jim loved, but actually he didn’t, but remembers well.    One line that the base sang along with the whole choir; “shopping, shopping, shopping ‘but don’t forget the cinnamon’!”   We still laugh about that!   I remember, it was a fun song to sing!   So when we are shopping I never forget the cinnamon.   I have three small bottles on the shelf!
BELIEVE it or not; I am almost done with my shopping.    I did start wrapping but haven’t kept up with it.   It looms over me like a black ugly cloud.   I know I need to do it!   I know it needs to get done!    I know that I still have time!   Tomorrow is always there!   But today, I am decorating.   I am putting old decorations into new places, since we have moved from where we were to where we are now.    Happy days are here again!  Life is good!  Christmas is coming and the Christmas CD’s have been dusted and set out.
MUSIC has always been an important part of our lives!    We have Christmas CD’s galore, and usually don’t have time to listen to them except when decorating the tree.   This year we have been listening to Christmas music in the car, in our living room, and it thrills me!    Yesterday I dusted off a huge book called “Readers Digest” Merry Christmas Songbook, that  Jennifer gave to me many years ago, and I played out of it for the first time!   So much fun!
I THANK GOD for Christmas and I thank Him for His Son of whom the day is named after; and the story of His birth!    Without Jesus, the Christ child,  this day would never have occurred!   Without Jesus we would not be remembering the babe in the manger!   Without Jesus we would not have heard the story of the shepherds or the wise men coming from the East!   There would not have been the star, the innkeeper, the story of the Angel Gabriel or have heard about John the Baptist!   We would never know how courageous Mary and Joseph were and how much Jesus loves His Father and how much they both love us!
I OFTEN THINK about those who shared Jesus with me when I was a child and about those who have taught me thru the years.   Where would I be today if they had not loved me enough to teach me of His saving grace.   Where would I be today if I had not been encouraged to study His Word and to teach others.   It is thru others that I met Jesus, where would I be without Him!   I hate to think about the alternatives because the evidence surrounds all of us!
MY LIFE AND YOURS would be completely different.   We would be products of the world filled with envy, strife, anger, bitterness, evil desires, filthy words, hate and the list goes on and on.    We love to quote Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil to give you a future and a hope.”   Israel’s exile was brought about because of sin, but when sin was forsaken by the people, God’s purposes in mercy would then be realized.   Even in days of old when God’s people sought Him whole-heartedly, they would find him.  So it is with us today; “seek Him with all your heart and He promises you will find Him!”   His plan for us is set, it is up to us to continually seek Him!    I belong to Jesus, He has set me free; PRAISE GOD, He belongs to me!    Jane Ann Crenshaw 12/5/15

FOLLOW THE LEADER! 11/29/15

AS A YOUNG MAN Jim never sang in public but always in the shower.  He was a man of few words.  He hardly ever spoke unless it was to say something profound.   He thought that when he grew up he was going to be a great 3rd baseman for the Yankee’s.  When he was in his 30's he read the Bible cover to cover and was convicted that God is Lord and that changed everything for him.
AFTER COLLEGE and marriage he became a part of the Apollo Space Program back in the 60's.  He worked on the Lunar Excursion Module (the LEM).  He was part of the program working on the system that controlled the descent rate of the LEM.  He was employed by TRW Systems until he moved to Oregon in 1970.  Watching the movie “Apollo 13" was like reliving the first landing on the moon all over again for him; and the part the LEM played in the heroic effort and miracle of using it for what it was not created for.
WHEN JIM found himself among God’s people he was determined that when he retired he would  live near the church and teach God’s word until he died.   It looked like he wasn’t going to be able to do that until about 8 months after we began attending SWCC.  He began teaching a Sunday School class once again.  In giving his report at a Sunday School Teachers meeting, he said; “I probably would have ended up in the corner crying, if I couldn’t teach again.”   When you give God control that is what can happen!   When you begin to follow God, you find that giving Him first place can change everything.  That is when your walk is personal!
I REMEMBER as a child playing follow the leader.  Remember following the leader and you had to do everything he did or drop out?   The person behind you would move up and take your place following the leader.   Not very creative but a lot of fun, especially if you had a crush on the one in front of you.  You got to hold onto his waist as you followed him.  Sounds like I was aggressive.  I wasn’t speaking from experience but perhaps wishful thinking!
“FOR TO THIS you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His steps.” 1 Peter 2:21    So many times we feel it is ominous to assume we can be like Christ but that is exactly what the Apostles and the early disciples did.   Paul was so bold as to say; “I urge you then, be imitators of me, as I imitate Christ.”  1 Corinthians 4:16    Later on, he writes; “So that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”  Hebrew 6:12   The only way we can be imitators of those who led the church from it’s infancy, is by reading God’s word.  We see their faithfulness and their dedication unto death.
“REMEMBER your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God; consider the outcome of their life and imitate their faith.  Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.”  Hebrews 12:7-8    Paul is talking to us today!   Listen to those who have assumed the rolls of Christian leadership within your church body.  Check their actions and faith against those who teach us through the scriptures.   “Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings; for it is well that the heart be strengthened by grace, not by foods which have no beneficial strength.”  Hebrews 13:9   Be careful who you have allowed to lead you in the ways of God.  Look at their lives and listen intently to the things they say.
“BELOVED, do not imitate evil but imitate good.  He who does good is of God; he who does evil has not seen God.”  3 John 11    Jim and I spend a lot of time in God’s word.   What I don’t understand he clarifies for me.  When he wants a better understanding, he asks me.  We have grown closer together than most, because of our desires to know our Lord and to follow Him wherever He leads.  Get on board and follow the leader, and see just how God can change your life; see how lives can be changed thru your walk!   Jane Ann Crenshaw 4/13/10 (update 11/5/15)

THANKS BE TO GOD! 11/22/15

HERE WE ARE once again planning our National day of “THANKSGIVING!”    Many need to stop and think of what they are thankful for.   Usually when sitting around the table with my family, we are asked to share one thing we are thankful for.    One thing!   Now that is hard.   However, since these past few weeks, Morning  Glory has been on the subject of abortions, I know what I am thankful for.   MY CHILDREN;    God’s blessing to Jim and me!   What a joy they have been, even before and after the teen years, especially 16!
WHEN MY children were beginning their double digits, and even while we thought they were above reproach, we were told; “just wait until they are 16!”    We waited and nothing happened!   Don’t get me wrong, our kids weren’t perfect but we never experienced anything like what is described in books; the news on TV and in the papers; nor what seems to come down the pike as stereotypes.   Sassy?   Absolutely!    Bossy?    Sometimes!   Wanting to wear designer clothes?   Right on!    Kept their rooms picked up and clean?   Never experienced that!    We loved them and gave them a safe place to live.    We weathered the storms and they became exceptional and deserving adults!   Deserving children makes a parent happy, and pleases God!
WE NEVER experienced the drug scene, alcohol, promiscuity, deceitfulness, and trouble with the law.   Jim and I would like to take the credit, but the credit belongs to our Savior!        He not only saves our souls but He also gives us an identity in Him, which saves us from the world!    God made it easy with our children, and we thank Him every day!   “But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart, to the standard of teaching to which you were committed.”  Romans 6:17
I LOVE THANKSGIVING DAY!   I am thankful that those in power so many years ago set a day aside for the whole country to give thanks to our God!   What an amazing time that must have been!   Today, many would like to do away with it; even though so many other countries,  have adopted a day of their own to give thanks.   Amazing how the world view changes when new people move up the ladder.    But even though many hearts change, those who are faithful will continue to receive God’s blessing!   “O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His steadfast love endures for ever!”   Psalms 107:1
SINCE THE DAYS began when Jim and I realized we were reaching that stage of maturity whereby our bodies didn’t want to go when we did, and didn’t want to stop when we thought it should; we have been so thankful and blessed in walking with the Lord.  Our walk together began when we were young, married, and with children.    We have to admit that it has been like a roller coaster ride, you know; with all the ups and downs, but oh what a ride!
“THANKS BE TO GOD who in Christ, always leads us in triumph, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of Him everywhere.  For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved, and among those who are perishing.  To one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life.  Who is sufficient for these things?
We are not like so many peddlers of God’s word; but as men of sincerity.  For we are  commissioned by God, in the sight of God; to speak of Christ.”  2 Corinthians 2:14-17
TO THOSE who have chosen Christ as their Savior I say; “Thanks be to God!”   To those who have not chosen Christ as their Savior I say;  “If you want to be happy; choose Christ!
If you want to be a winner; choose Christ!  If you want to live life to the fullest; choose Christ!  
“Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you; He exalts Himself to show mercy to you.  For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all who come to Him!  Isaiah 30:18     I am pleased that I can say ‘Thanks be to God’ for saving my soul!   Jane Ann Crenshaw 10/26/15

ABORT OR NOT ABORT! 11/15/15

THERE ARE many different ways that are used to abort.  I am not going into all of them but there are a couple of particularly repugnant methods of abortion, one of which is referred to as “partial birth abortion” and it goes like this.  The Doctor reaches into the womb and turns the full term baby around.  Then he proceeds with a breach birth.  However, when the baby is all the way out except for the head, the doctor stops the birthing process.  He then uses a pair of scissors to open a hole in the back of the baby’s head.  He then inserts a tube through the hole into the baby’s brain.  He then vacuums the baby’s brain out through this tube which of course, produces the desired result...a dead baby!
THIS ABOMINATION has been approved by some of the very highest officials of our land!   I heard of another method a few years ago which I also want to share.  I heard a young woman talk about her experience at the age of 14.  She went to a clinic for 5 days when she was about 20 weeks along.  She went through a preparation process, beginning with the first day by inserting a device in the birth canal to start the uterus to dilate, which ended on the fifth day.  Then the Doctor inserted a saline solution into the embryonic sac, which caused the baby to suffocate and burn.  Then she was instructed to sit upon a toilet where she aborted the baby.  After the Doctor removed the after birth and cleaned her out, she was sent to a hotel for the night and then home.  Mentally and physically she had never recovered!
INTERESTINGLY there are many birth control methods on the market.  Some like the IUD, or the morning after pill, which aborts the fertilized egg.  The pill, patch, the catchers mitt, micro chips under the skin, condoms and probably more, since I did my research.    The IUD,  is a coil that is wrapped around the wall of the uterus so that the fertilized egg has no place to land.   I suppose that is a nice way to abort your baby!  But it is still a way to abort!    God created this process to give life!   And who are we to kill it, but murderers!
IN A STAGE production called “Quilters”, in one scene there is a woman, who does not want another baby as this would be her 12th, and her last one laid her up for two months.  As the women stand around her telling about all the babies they gave birth to, the Doctor is telling her that there was nothing he could do.  Most of them had many with the highest number being 19.    I suppose that is about the era that the formula appeared.  
I OFTEN wondered why so many women of long ago had such large families!   My mother told me that she used everything in the book to keep from getting pregnant, which made me wonder what books she read.    I don’t know what I would have done without all of my siblings.  Each one was unique in themselves and brought much love and pleasure to me.  I could not imagine my life without them.  I know that most of Mom’s pregnancies were a surprise.  I heard her say once that if she lost one, she knew the Lord would give her another.   However, when that happened; she said;   “God knows best;” because she couldn’t have anymore babies!
TODAY Planned Parenthood Clinic’s, besides assisting in abortions, began a more lucrative side to their services, by harvesting the body parts.   Their methods have changed;  they wait for the baby to die in the womb or they remove the baby and leave it to die, so that things will be intact for experimental purposes. “To the woman He said, I will greatly multiply your pain in childbirth; in pain you will deliver, yet your desire shall be for your husband.  Genesis 3:16     God tells Eve that her sorrow will be multiplied and she would conceive in sorrow.  She would have pain!   It matters not how we become pregnant, the results are the same.    Those who are more blessed are those who know the Lord and do His will.   Use your common sense in all instances.  Mistakes and/or crimes are not the fault of the child!  Your parents gave you life; give your baby a chance to live, and give God all the Glory and Honor!  Jane Ann Crenshaw 10/22/15

NOT A MORAL ISSUE? 11/8/15

I DON”T usually start out with scriptures but this Morning Glory screams for God’s Word!    Jeremiah 7:31; Jeremiah 19:5 and Jeremiah 32:35 all say; “And they have built the high place of Topheth, or the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire; which I did not command, nor did it come into my mind.”    WOW!   “I did not command!”   Human sacrifice such as that practiced at Hinnom was explicitly contrary to God’s command.  Note:  nor did it come into His mind!  
AS YOU CAN SEE in regards to Baal worship and sacrificing baby boys and girls to their god Molech, God’s anger was kindled!   Notice that this is written three times in Jeremiah; He mentions it over and over again.   Many pagan religions were fertility gods, and also gods who required living sacrifices.  God’s command to His people was to not intermarry or become involved with these pagan practices.   They disobeyed!
WE KNOW THAT aborting babies is wrong, but you may not know that many people in the world, and some of the Christian community, do it not for sacrificing to a pagan god Molech, but to their god of convenience; embarrassment and for financial reasons.  Actually that was the exact reason the people of biblical times sacrificed their baby’s.  They sacrificed to their fertility god so that their crops would be abundant.  However, today, some have chosen to abort from the womb because our laws say that is not murder.  A murder charge is no longer given when killed outside of the womb (full term abortions), but is given when birthing is over and the baby is noted as a living breathing child, no longer a baby!   Our laws have given women choice and many choose to abort instead of giving life!    God’s command is for life!
WHEN YOU read the scriptures following the ones noted here, you will see just how disappointed God was with His people and how He brings down Tophet, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom.   Later He called this place the valley of slaughter.   Eventually the valley became the continually burning refuse dump for Jerusalem.  In the New Testament it is referred to as Gehenna (or Hell), because it had the appearance of a “lake of fire.”
I LOVE the passage that reads; “For thou did form my inward parts, thou did knit me together in my mother’s womb.  I praise thee, for thou art fearful and wonderful!  Wonderful are your works!  You know me right well; for my frame was not hidden from you when I was being made in secret, intricately made, in the depths of the earth.  Your eyes beheld my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”   Psalms 139:13-16   This passage describes how God created the process for re-creating His creation of man.   It shows how even when we were mere substance, or mere egg and sperm that just collided, we were in motion with soul and spirit, which needed this process to give us a body.   Most commentators don’t comment on the how many days, but I believe this is referring to the gestation period before birth!  
IT BEGINS at conception!   That could be through a sound marriage of love or through rape, incest, promiscuity.  To kill that baby is murder!  Just because at conception it looks like a piece of liver, it’s genetic code already exists, and it is completely different from the mother.  At 11 weeks (the first trimester) the baby is formed, it’s organ systems are complete and functioning.  He/she from this point on, grows only in size.  Today you can actually see that baby in the womb and are able to give it a name.   Why would you want to kill it!
IF WE truly believe that God is....then we will want to keep His commandments no matter how inconvenient it is...God loves us and wants us to be happy...we can only be happy if we do what is right, that is how through Christ, we can put on His righteousness!   Think about what is happening and choose life!     Jane Ann Crenshaw 10/22/15

WHAT NEVER ENTERED GOD'S MIND? 11/1/15

THERE HAS been a plague sweeping over the face of the earth for many years now.   It has killed more people than all of the wars ever fought, heart attacks, disease and pestilence.  The victims are children!  Children who are living in the most dangerous place on earth....the womb of their mother!
WHEN I FIRST prepared this lesson for a ladies class, in the late 90's, the information I had, said that in the United States alone, fifty four million babies had been aborted since 1970!   “Abortion or pregnancy terminations” are just polite names for killing unborn children.  One of the arguments in favor of abortion was; “a fetus is not a living person and has no rights”.   I believe this argument, thru the years for the most part, have concluded the fetus is a living person and so they came up with other reasons that abortion should be legal.    Eventually Planned Parenthood and other clinics with bogus treatments to be available to women was really a “cider house” fantasy.   They have become butcher shops, even to selling the body parts of these un-suspecting babies.   Our dollars are used to funds them and we allow it!     How sad for us!
YEARS AGO an elderly lady , age 84, came to me and asked to speak privately.  She has long since passed away so I think I can share her story.   When she was a young woman and before she met Jesus she had an abortion.  She already had two children!  Her husband didn’t have a “real” job and so she didn’t tell her husband, but confided in a neighbor lady and together they decided to abort the baby and no one would be the wiser.  She was to drink some kind of liquid and the neighbor had a coat hanger handy, if that didn’t work.  My friend was very ill afterwards and her husband never knew.   She knew in her heart that she had done the right thing! Later she became pregnant again but their circumstances were better and she gave birth to her youngest daughter, whom she loved very much.  She was telling me this story because she still felt that she did the right thing, but knew that she needed to ask God for forgiveness, she wanted to continue feeling justified.  I encouraged her to keep talking this out with God and that the Holy Spirit would convict her of her guilt, because I knew she was telling me about this in hopes I would condone her actions, and assure her that she had done the right thing, and then she could be vindicated.  Doing something that is wrong certainly does not make it right, even in the long run.  I know when we come to Christ, all is made new but in her heart she had not repented of her actions.  Even after we prayed I was sad for her, but felt this was between her and God!
MY MOTHER had fourteen children.   All single births, and five miscarriages.   Even though the Doctor would warn her about having anymore babies, she still carried them to term and loved us all.   She was a no nonsense Mom and we never felt unloved, and even though means were meager she still managed to raise us.   It can be done, and so when I hear stories, like my friend, I question; “couldn’t there have been another way?”
WHEN Jim and I moved with our children in 1970 to Oregon; and had been in our rental for only a couple of weeks, we were visited by two hippy like young women who heard from the neighbors that we would be interested in their services.   They were from an early form of Planned Parenthood!   This was new to us!    And who were they, that could advise us about planning our family?   We told them NO thank you!   We had a license that says we could do that on our own!   I didn’t have a clue as to who they were but I knew I wanted no part of them.
IT AMAZES me that our world allows decisions to be made to placate the whims of those not wanting to face a situation or because of how it may look to others. In the mind of many women, and because it is their body, it is their decision of choice, as to whether they should carry the child or not.  To them it is not a moral issue!    I believe abortion is one of those places where God says; “It never entered my mind!"      Jane Ann Crenshaw   10/20/15

DOES GOD CHOOSE TO KNOW EVERYTHING? 10/25/15

NOW THAT is a question to ponder!   I have heard many say that God knows everything about us; from what we are going to do, to our every thought.   I question that idea because of what I have read in God’s Word.    Several passages come to mind; “And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and it grieved Him to His heart.  So the Lord said; “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the ground, man and beast and creeping things and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.”  Genesis 6:6-7      Remember when Samuel confronted King Saul and the King confessed he had sinned against God’s commandments?  The scriptures then say; “And Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul.  And the Lord repented He had made Saul king over Israel!”  1 Sam.15:35  Interesting huh!
HOW MANY times was “the anger of the Lord kindled?”   Why did God get so angry with the Israelites if He already knew what they were going to do, and what their thoughts were?   Remember the time that Moses intercedes for sinful Israel?   God was pretty angry because of their sinful ways; “And the Lord said to Moses;  “Go down; for our people whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves!”   Exodus 32:7    God was so angry that He told Moses that His anger was burning hot against them, and He was ready to consume them; but from Moses, He would make a great nation.   (Read about it in verse 10)
MOSES WAS GOD’S servant during the travels of the Israelites and was able to converse with Him in a way that no one else ever did, or has ever done since.   “But Moses besought the Lord his God, and said; “O Lord, why does your anger burn hot against your people, whom you have brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand?  Why should the Egyptians say “with evil intent did He bring them forth, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’?  Turn from your fierce anger and repent of this evil against your people!”   Exodus 32:11-12
WHAT ABOUT Jesus going into the temple and upsetting the money changers by breaking and tossing things; letting the birds and animals to run free .   “And He told those who sold the pigeons, “Take these things away; you shall not make my Father’s house, a house of trade!”   John 2:16    This was at the beginning of His ministry and His disciples remembered that it was written “Zeal for thy house will consume me!”   Right after the triumphal entry they went again to the temple, and this time He again overturned the tables of the money-changers and; “He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer; but you make it a den of robbers!”  Matthew 21:13     Didn’t Jesus know what they would be doing?
WHEN GOD was ready to destroy all from the face of the earth His Word says; “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord!”   Genesis 6:8      When God was ready to give up on the Israelites, He stopped and listened to His servant Moses and changed His mind once again.   And it saddened God to have given up on king Saul for He had chosen him, and even gave him a new heart.   But God was ready to move on, and He had already made plans for David.    
I WRITE these things because our community is in the midst of a special time of prayer to end abortion!   It doesn’t mention abortions in the Word per se’, but the people sacrificed their baby’s, sons and daughters to a god called Molech.   “They built the high places of Baal in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to offer up their sons and daughters to Molech, though I did not command them, nor did it enter into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.”  Jeremiah 32:35    It didn’t enter God’s mind!   I believe abortion is an act that never entered God’s mind!    What God knows is that man is evil!   Our evil acts do not surprise Him, and yet He waits for us to repent, and to come to Him!     Jane Ann Crenshaw 10/19/15  

WHERE ARE YOU IN THE RACE? 10/18/15

ONE MORNING years ago when I was in my teens, my brother Lloyd asked me as I was heading off to school;   “Are you ready for the race?”   As usual, I fell for his question; “What race!”   He replied; “The human race!” With a sigh I went on my way.   However, his question is always there in front of me;  Am I ready for the race!
I KNOW, you dear readers, are wishing I would let sleeping dogs lie.  But I also know
the idea of our making our own decisions as to how we live our lives, is foreign to those who believe that God will ultimately achieve His plans for us, without our having to do anything. God’s will for us is to live for Him, but while we are living our lives, where is He in our plans?
GOD’S WORD gives us illustrations after illustrations, but my favorites are Paul’s
running the race; fighting the good  fight, and to not conform to this world.    I am sure you have
favorites also, and I suggest you read and re-read them again, so it can help to transform your mind into allowing the Holy Spirit to enable you to become all that God has created you to be.
“SURELY YOU know that in a race all the runners take part in it, but only one of them wins the prize.  Run, then, in such a way as to win the prize.  Every athlete in training submits to strict discipline; he does so in order to be crowned with a wreath that will not last; but we do it for one that will last forever.  That is why I run straight for the finish line; that is why I am like a boxer, who does not waste his punches.  1 Corinthians 9:24-26   Paul encourages us to run the race to win.   In the Christian race, the success of one does not disqualify the others.   We all win!
HOWEVER, if you wish to win in the Christian race,  you must go into training to develop and strengthen your body, mind and soul.  You are not running to win a prize that will wither and die, you are running to win a crown that is eternal which is God’s will for you.  That is why we must have a definite goal.   Run straight for the finish line and ignore everything else!
“AS FOR US, we have this large crowd of witnesses around us.  Let us rid ourselves, then of everything that gets in the way, and the sin which holds onto us so tightly, and let us run with determination the race that lies before us. Keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus!”  Heb. 12:1-2a
To win the Christian race we must get rid of worldly  hopes, and fears, obligations, and friendships, and anything else that would slow us down in our race.   Jesus is our example!  Our faith depends upon Him.  He broke the trail for us by going on ahead of us!   If you feel discouraged, think about what He has done for us.
“FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT of the faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.   1 Timothy 6:12     To fight, to run your best, is a slogan we were taught to live by.   Do your best; keep trying; don’t give up.   Paul encourages Timothy, to keep fighting in His faith; His life’s work, and in his life.   The goal is eternal life, so don’t give up but keep keeping on!
“DO NOT CONFORM outwardly to the standards of this world, but let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind.   Then you will be able to know the will of God - what is good, and is pleasing to Him, and is perfect.”   Romans 12:2    This is an evil world, and Satan is the evil god of this world.  The opposite of being a living sacrifice  is letting the world squeeze you into its mold.  But God can transform you!   Paul wrote this letter to those who were new Christians.   Sometimes long- time Christians get caught up in the world and revert back into needing the milk of the Word.  After we have been put right with God, we need to keep renewing our minds.  Our nature is now new, forget the old!   Make your choices by a complete change of your mind.   Do not restrain the Holy Spirit!   Remember that living a life in Christ, is a learning process, and we are to continue,  until our race is completed.       Jane Ann Crenshaw 10/12/15

WHAT DOES YOUR PLAN LOOK LIFE? 10/11/15

I DON’T BELIEVE I started out with a plan.   Growing up in a large family I don’t think I thought much about tomorrow, next week or even next year.   I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior when I was nine and at that time I didn’t have a clue what my life should even look like!    Now I do know that Jim had a plan to play 3rd base for the Yankees.   Some how his plan didn’t work out.   Perhaps life got in the way of his plan, and I suppose that my life developed a plan, when he came along.  
AFTER SCHOOL I thought I would like to be a missionary.   But my pastor felt I should remain where I was, and become a Christian woman in the workplace.   He felt we needed men and women here in America that were walking in the footsteps of Jesus.   I have to admit it wasn’t easy, but looking back, I remained faithful in my walk at home, at work, at play and now I don’t know any different way.   The fact that I wasn’t perfect in my walk, and that many times I was tempted to try a different way, I was directed back by the Spirit within me, because I knew it was wrong.  
GOD BRINGS blessings into a life when that life is committed to follow His Son!  Sometimes we think of these blessings, as God’s will for our lives, but instead God showers us with His approval through these times.   “But the man of faith, not works (as in the law), who believes in the God who declares the guilty to be innocent, it is his faith that God takes into account in order to put him right with himself.”  Romans 4:5   This speaks of man, who’s actions can never be anything but imperfect.  However, faith cannot be perfect except through the obedience of faith!
“BLESSED is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he mediates day and night.  He is like a tree planted by streams of water, that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither.  In all that he does, he prospers.”  Psalms 1:1-6
GOD’s will for all of us, is to walk in the path of His Son, Jesus Christ.  “He was humble and walked the path of obedience to death - His death on the cross.  Philippians 2:8    Jesus was perfect and we already saw in Romans 4:5 that through our faith and obedience we can be made perfect in Jesus Christ.   Paul illustrates a Christian ethic here.   We are to be obedient to death.   It is God’s will for us, but we must choose to be obedient.  
“BUT EVEN though He was God’s Son He learned to be obedient by means of His sufferings.  When He was made perfect, He became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey Him.”  Hebrews 5:8-9   Just because Jesus was God’s Son, He was not exempt from suffering, nor temptations.   He learned first hand how difficult it was to be obedient.   He went to the cross for you and me!    Through His sojourn here on earth He became our High Priest!
WHEN WE are obedient to Him and remain faithful in our walk, Jesus is our salvation!    Good advice is to be careful in what you are about.   Impostors will fail; you cannot defeat God.  If your plans are within God’s will of giving you eternal life, then the goodness therein comes from God.   All good things come from God!  
 IN A NUT SHELL:   “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will succeed!”  Proverbs 16:3     I know from experience, that including God in your plans makes for success.   God’s word also says; “A man’s mind plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.”  Proverbs 16:9    Remember this song: “When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word, what a glory He sheds on our way!  While we do His good will, He abides with us still, and with all who will trust and obey!  Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey!”  My life has led me straight to the Father!      By Jane Ann Crenshaw 10/11/15

WHAT IS GOD'S PLAN FOR YOU? October 4, 2015

I KNOW I have addressed this question many times but it still is an issue that keeps coming up and I believe many are not quite satisfied or have understanding of what God’s will is.   Recently I heard it expressed with; “do we have to know God’s will!”    I believe that God has let us know explicitly, what His will is for each one of us.     Jesus knew what His Father’s will was for Him, at the age of 12 (Luke 2:49).   We are His children also, and He has expressed in His Word, what His will is for each one of us.  
LET ME ASK you a few questions to think about.   Does God really care where you live?    Does God care what you choose as a lively hood; a way to support your physical needs?  Does God care what Doctor you choose to advise you on your health?    Does God care whom you choose to marry or what you name your children?    Does God want to direct your path in your personal life so you will reach the goals He has set before you?   Does God set stumbling blocks before you to redirect your way?    Lots to think about, huh!
MANY TIMES I have said; “There but for the grace of God go I!”    Because of God in my life I have chosen not to work in certain professions.   Because of God I have chosen to be circumspect in my relationships.   Because of God I have raised my children to know Him.  Because of my decision to live for Him, I have chosen to follow the path He has set out for me.   Because of my relationship with God, He has chosen to use me where I am, and in what I do.  With God in my life, He has set me in my own little world of total amazement!
“FOR GOD so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”  John 3:16     This passage is so familiar to all of us and in it we find that God’s will is that no one should perish.   Is knowing God’s will important!   Absolutely!     Remember the story of the lost sheep?   Out of 100 sheep one is lost.  He searches for it and rejoices when he is found.   It is God’s will that not one of his children be lost.  (Matthew 18:12-14)    “The Lord is not slow about His promise as some count slowness, but is forbearing toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”  2 Peter 3:9      What do you think of God’s will now?
HERE ARE Some more!   “For it is God’s will that by doing right you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men.  Live as free men, yet without using your freedom as a pretext for evil, but live as servants of God.”  1 Peter 2:15-16     How about  1 John 2:17 “And the world passes away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides for ever!”   Now lets get into the nitty-gritty of God’s will for us.
“I APPEAL to you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.  Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”   Romans 12:1-2
  I HAVE NOT shared with you anything that you are not already aware of.   Many want
to grab hold of Jeremiah 29:11 and expect God to take them by the hand and lead them thru all the muck and mire and bring them out smelling good.   For one thing, that whole passage was given to the captives in Babylon because Jerusalem was to be destroyed.   He said for them to hold tight for He had a plan for them.  A plan for good and not evil; to give them a future and a hope.   Well, God’s will for us comes with a plan just like that.   He has a future all planned out for us and it comes with HOPE which is Jesus Christ.  Meanwhile we need to be circumspect in  living our lives!   Read Galatians 5:16-25, it spells it out for you; but instead of His hand He has given us His SPIRIT!   His will for us is to walk by the Spirit, and  He has given us fruit also.   Our liberty in Christ is not free, show it off by letting it shine!    By Jane Ann Crenshaw 10/3/15

DRAW ME NEARER! Sept 27, 2015

THERE IS a favorite old hymn that says at the end of the chorus; “Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer precious Lord, to thy precious, bleeding side!”  Beautiful words to live by.   When Jesus came to earth to show us the Father and when He went to cross to bring us to the Father, He drew us closer than man had ever been before.  He has never moved!   I have heard many preachers say; “draw close to God!”  And I say; Amen!  
WHEN my children were small and into their teen years, they either wanted to sit on my lap and later they would sit so close that they were almost on my lap.   I loved it!   I miss those days when they wanted to be so close to Mom and Dad.   When Jennifer was a toddler she would push me away.    It was difficult to understand why, but I eventually didn’t try to make her stay close to me.   One day when she was about four she came into the house and over to where I was standing in front of the stove.   She wrapped her little arms around my legs.   I pushed her away, and said I was busy.   She wandered off and suddenly it hit me!   She wanted me and I turned her away.   I never did that again, and God never does that to us!
I WONDER how many times God has wanted us to be close to Him and we have pushed Him away.   I wonder how many times we have come and simply wrapped our aching hearts around Him and He wrapped His loving arms around us without recourse.   How many times has He said to us; “How do I love thee, let me count the ways!”    God loves us so much that He gave His only Son, so that we might be His forever.  
“OR DO YOU suppose it is in vain that the scripture says; “He yearns jealously over the spirit which He has made to dwell in us?  But He gives us more grace; therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”  James 4:5-6     This is not the Holy Spirit that James is referring to.   It is the spirit God has given each of us when our lives began.     Our spirits are filled with fierce desires which can destroy us if we do not get a handle on them.   He gives us grace to draw close to Him.   What does God see in us that draws Him close to us!
“SO THEN, submit yourselves to God.  Resist the Devil, and he will run away from you.”   James 4:7    God gives us the grace to overcome our human spirit!  And God show us a better way of living even to cause others to follow His son; Jesus Christ!   “Toward the scorners He is scornful, but to the humble He shows favor!”  Proverbs 3:34    God frustrates the plans of the prideful but He gives grace to the humble so they can succeed.  He is drawn to the humble!
THROUGH the Holy Spirit we have received power to resist the Devil and we have received power to do all things through Christ.   Through the power of the Holy Spirit we are given grace to become all that God has created us to be.  A man named Benson says: “We may chase away the Devil, not by holy water, the sign of the cross, or any superstitious charm, but by steady virtue and resolute goodness.”
“DRAW NEAR to God and He will draw near to you.  Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you men of double mind.”   James 4:8    WOW!     If we wish to have God very near to us we must seek to dwell very near to Him!   This passage says we are to have clean hands and a pure heart.    One of my favorite passages in Psalms says; “Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?  And who shall stand in His holy place?  He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false, and does not swear deceitfully.  He will receive blessing from the Lord, and vindication from the God of His salvation.  Such is the generation of those who seek Him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob.”  Psalms 24:3-6
IT IS CLEAR that we must get rid of those evil desires and bad motives which make us act in such contradictory ways.   Don’t allow the world to take precedence in your lives.  Instead Praise the God who draws near to us; so we can draw near to Him!   By Jane Ann  Crenshaw 9/11/15

WHERE HAS OUR PASSION GONE? 9/20/15

RECENTLY I received an email from a Pastor friend of mine.  The following is from his Sunday morning ‘sermon starter’ (9/13/15)
“FRIDAY we remembered our National Disaster of 9/11.  We played on national television our clips of remembrance of when the twin towers fell.  We gave our memorial homilies, prayed our prayers, did our memory rituals and gave our tearful eulogies and tributes to the fallen on Friday.  A week from now most of our routine rituals will be forgotten as we press on in the business of daily living.”
“I REMEMBER with longing the time when we felt the passion associated with being an American.  What about the night of September 12th, 2001 when both houses of the U.S. congress stood together on the steps of the Capitol and sang, “God Bless America?”  What about a time when you couldn’t find an American flag in any store in the U.S.?  They were sold out and it took weeks to get one on back order.  What about the weeks following 9/11 when our churches were filled with people who were frightened about the future?”
  “I WAS NEVER more proud to be an American than September 17, 2001, when CBS news correspondent, Dan Rather was being interviewed on David Letterman’s show.  He was reflecting about how this is the first time mainland American soil has been stained with the blood of the innocent.  He began to quote the fourth verse of the patriotic hymn; “O Beautiful for patriot dream that sees beyond the years.  Thine alabaster cities’ gleam, undimmed by human tears!”  The venerable, ordinarily stoic newsman stopped, his voice broken with grief.  He couldn’t go on.  He was speaking from the heart of a grieving nation.  Letterman broke for a commercial so he could compose himself.  I shall never forget the newsman’s prophetic words when he returned.  “America can never again sing the fourth verse; “Thine alabaster cities gleam, undimmed by human tears!”   His voice was still breaking as he struggled to retain composure;  “We will never be the same again!”
“WHAT ABOUT our spiritual passion?  What happened to you and I spiritually after 9/11?  Did we have a great desire to return to the complacency of pre-9/11?   Since then a spiritual change has happened to America.  We have lost that initial post-9/11 hunger and thirst for God.  Now, we are like the desensitized frog-in-the-beaker.   We are back to watching our mind-numbing satellite and cable network shows and have let these fourteen years slip by without answering God’s call to Battle with the spiritual forces of darkness.”  (Phil Roland)
BUT WHAT ABOUT our passion?   Are we still on fire for God and His mercies?   After 9/11 our Churches were filling up faster than a gas tank at a local gas pump.   Today we are being threatened by incident after incident as the cloud of darkness is circling their camps on American soil once again.   It has a different name, the cause is somewhat suspect but the outcomes are cruelly the same.   Today,  Christians are the focus and the perpetrators are blatant in their assault.    The enemy has drawn the line in the sand throughout Europe and it is trying to break down the doors of the American borders.   Are we going to let them in?
THE CHRISTIAN is called to repent and to PRAY!  God says; “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”  
2nd Chronicles 7:14   God is calling on all of His people to pray!   God wants us to remember; “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places..  Ephesians 6:12   As the song says; “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face; and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.”   Jane Ann Crenshaw 9/14/1

DO YOU KNOW! 9/13/15

DO YOU KNOW that God did not disclose His will all at once, through those, from the beginning of mankind?   Do you know that God revealed all things in “bits and pieces” then?   There were exceptions, like Melchizedek, Balaam and even Job.   Did you know that God spoke to the prophets of the Jewish nation and would reveal some things to one prophet, and another part would come through a different one?   Did you know that 1500 years passed from Moses to Christ?   And did you know that the Old Testament was not complete until the last word of Malachi was written!  
“IN THE PAST God spoke to our ancestors many times and in many ways through the prophets.  But in these last days He has spoken to us through His Son.  He is the one through whom God created the universe, the one whom God has chosen to possess all things at the end.  “He shines with the brightness of God’s glory; He is the exact likeness of God’s own being, and sustains the universe with His powerful Word   After He had made men clean from their sins, He sat down in heaven at the right side of God, the Supreme Power!”  Hebrews 1:1-3 (Good News)
PETER IDENTIFIES; “but in these last days” as beginning on Pentecost.   Apparently, the Church has been in the lasts days since it began.   Kind of mind boggling isn’t it!    What mystify’s me is that the Church doesn’t get the picture of Christ’s coming again, even though Jesus said it Himself.    “And when I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be there also.”   John 14:3
IT IS CLEAR to me that the place (or a room),  Jesus went to prepare for us, was the cross.    Without the cross there would be no place for us to go.    This passage is speaking of Christ’s second coming.  All who belong to Him will be taken to the “wedding feast in heaven”. Paul reiterates this as follows;  “Those who have died believing in Christ, will rise to life first; then we who are living at that time will all be gathered up along with them, in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air.  And so we will always be with the Lord.”   1 Thessalonians 4:16b-17 
I CAN’T HELP but feel excited about His coming again!   Paul had it altogether when he preached the Word and when he wrote his letters.  He was lifting up and encouraging the Saints to be ready, fully prepared, and full of anticipation.   Jesus was coming again!   May not have been then or it may not be tomorrow, but you can count on God to fulfill His promise, because,  ‘Jesus is coming again!'
LET’S GET THE PICTURE!   All of God’s people since the beginning of time will be gathered up as the dead rise to life, and those living are changed, to meet the Lord in the air.  Nothing says that Jesus will ever set foot on earth again.  His people will rise to meet Him!   The Church that is active here on earth, will become the Church Triumphant.   The Church of Christ does not terminate, but is united with Christ as a bride to her husband, and the Wedding Feast continues forever without end.
I BELIEVE that the church should live excitedly.      Some would like to say that because Jim and I are so active in our Church, we are just involved in busy work.   There is nothing busy about it!  Oh our days are full, we like to be there whenever the doors are open but busy work means not important.   When we are asked to do something we give it our all.   It is not important that it be important to everyone, but it becomes important to us because it is for God’s Kingdom.   Makes all the difference in the world to us!  
“SO THEN, cheer each other up with these words.”  1 Thessalonians 4:18   I love the words of songs; “Get all excited, go tell everybody that Jesus Christ is king!”    “Heaven is a wonderful place, filled with glory and grace.”   Jim and I want to be there, and wouldn’t it be more than wonderful, if you were there also.        By Jane Ann Crenshaw   9/5/15

BEGINNING AGAIN! September 6, 2015

HOW MANY TIMES have you started over?   How many times have you used a new recipe and discovered, as you took it out of the oven, that you obviously did something wrong!   On a bad day you would throw it out and call it a day.  On a good day you begin again, but this time by checking each step to be sure you've got it right.   Not many of us are perfect or ever near perfect at the beginning of anything.  It takes practice, show and tell, along with perseverance to get to the goal set before us.

SEPTEMBER is a period of beginning again!  For many, school begins again, and for me, I will begin blogging again.  I began blogging "Morning Glory Devotionals" in September 2008.   I began blogging MGY Treasures Devotionals a few years back.  Same blog but two different locations.  Perhaps, you could say this month is my blogging anniversary.   The last one posted was April; Easter Sunday.  Lot of changes have taken place in my life since then.  We prepared to sell our house after we listed it and continued to get it ready for the new buyer even after it sold.  Closing was delayed for one reason after another and the home we planned to move into was waiting for the first transaction to be completed.  However, in due time it all came together and now we are beginning again in another location, but the same town.  

I HADN'T THOUGHT about picking up blogging again until my young friend, the computer wiz, suggested I should begin again in September.  After thinking about it and re-reading the beginning of my blogging days, I decided to go ahead and begin again.  I have to admit how surprised I was to discover just how many have continued to read my blog even during my absence.   How they find my blog is beyond my understanding, but then God's love for me is also beyond my understanding!

"IN THE BEGINNING God created the heavens and the earth."  Genesis 1:1   When God completed His creative work, He rested!   It wasn't until Adam and Eve left the garden that God's plan began moving into a different direction   God didn't stop being God but His plans changed for a period of time.  All of this affects us today in a great way!   When God un-veiled His Son, Jesus Christ, His plan included you and me.  He offered us all a way to begin again!

WHEN WE WERE BORN,  we came into this life with nothing but a need.  Until we met Jesus we were lost in our need.  The interesting thing about meeting Jesus Christ is we become born again!  We begin our early life learning how to live as a child, then an adult.  All these years, we are learning, but until we meet Jesus we do not know how to lean sufficiently on the one that can fill our need.

GOD'S WORD says we can be born again!  This is not spelled out totally in one scripture, but it is a process that God's Word reveals to us, as we become ready to hear, believe, and to confess.  "Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."  Acts 2:38    Not many talk this way but I do; 'you are to hear, believe, repent and confess' often, but you only need to be baptized once.   Then you have the Holy Spirit and your need is filled!   You are born again!   Your earthy body will decay in death but your spiritual body will live eternally in heaven with God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.  WOW!   Are you ready to begin again in Jesus Christ?  

YOU HAVE A CHOICE!   You can choose Jesus Christ today and live eternally with Him , or you can remain as you are; still seeking for something to fill that need and eventually end up lost in the search.  Even though our spirits have been created to live eternally, its your choice that will decide where!   I pray that for those who need to be born again; do it today!  I pray for a revival in those who need to begin again; do it today!    By Jane Ann Crenshaw 8/21/15

HE IS RISEN......HE IS RISEN INDEED! 4/5/15

WE ARE TO REST in our SAVIOR! Our Lord says; ‘Come unto me all who are heavy laden and I will give you rest!’ Today is the day of SALVATION; says the LORD! Our world is in such turmoil and we in America are still living within the safest of havens as countries go. However, the Christians are truly being persecuted for just saying ‘I am a Christian!’

TODAY let us be encouraged by Paul’s words; ‘Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know, how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words.’ Romans 8:26 We believers are imperfect in our prayer lives, for often we do not know what to ask for, nor how to pray. His Spirit (God within us), knows the mind of God! He teaches us how to pray, what to pray for, and even takes over for us with sighs too deep for words. When the Spirit’s strength is added to our weakness, we are unconquerable!

MANY have died, through the years, with the name of Jesus on their lips. Many have died just yesterday, with the name of Jesus on their lips. Jesus paid the ultimate price to give us hope and freedom. Because of Him we have hope for eternal life with the Father. Because of Him we have the freedom to die without fear. Oh to be gathered to Him in Paradise, at that fateful moment.

‘AND GOD, who searches the heart, knows what is in the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints, according to the will of GOD.’ Romans 8:27 Only Jesus brings God and men together; He is our mediator! Even though we cannot find words to pray, or are ignorant of the true nature of things (such as in a crisis), the Holy Spirit is our prayer partner, and pleads with God, for us.

AS YOU celebrate our SAVIOR today; include a prayer walk for those who are on the front lines, of paying their ultimate sacrifice; their lives! Then, let us go and live for Him, for Jesus is coming again!
    By Jane Ann Crenshaw 4/5/15

WHOM SHOULD I FEAR? 3/22/15

AS CHRISTIANS we are encouraged to live for Christ. We are given instructions to put our trust in God and Him only should we serve. However, while we are living in this world we are bombarded from all sides to enjoy this life to the fullest by submitting to the pleasures afforded us while we tarry here! We are encouraged to drink this; try that; it won’t hurt; once is not a habit; this will make you feel good; and so on!

WHEN WE ARE DECEIVED we submit to the whims of what the world offers, we show our lack of respect of fear toward the Lord. Instead of walking as Jesus walked we find ourselves following the antics of Satan. You say that is ridiculous! Perhaps; but when we are not following in Jesus’ footsteps we are walking in Satan’s.

RECENTLY I heard a story. ‘A snake was lying along the path as the girl walked by. He said; ‘I am so cold, please pick me up and put me inside your coat so I can get warm.’ She replied; ‘NO!’ He begged; ‘please, please; I am so cold.’ She said; ‘NO!’ After a few more times of his begging her, she gave in and picked him up and put him inside her coat. After a while he bit her! She stopped and said; ‘why did you do that?’ He said; ‘you knew what I was when you picked me up!’

SATAN is the author of destruction. He is the darkness of death! We like to say that when we do wrong or get caught in a discretion, ‘the devil made me do it!’ Did you know that Satan can’t make you do anything? He can tempt you but He does not have the power to either make you or harm you. You choose to allow him to tempt you into submission.

‘BE SOBER, be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking some one to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experience of suffering is required of our brotherhood throughout the world.’ 1 Peter 5:8-9    Satan is the trouble maker and he looks for those who are vulnerable to him. We don’t need to get caught in his traps, nor should we leave our selves wide open giving him room to pounce.

THE PROBLEM with Satan, is that, this is his home. He lives here! He believes that the world is his oyster and he is free to roam and entice all who live here. But when Christ came He freed us from being under the auspicious behavior of God’s problem angel! Living with Satan brings death; living with Christ brings life everlasting! We must fight to live!

REMEMBER we know when we sin! We should become afraid and run for our life!  Many places in Gods Word tells us to seek His face. I found another one in Isaiah that a repentant sinner is to do. ‘Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near!’ Isaiah 55:6   God is always near His children. He waits with baited breath for us to call upon His name. We are free to choose his freedom. While there is breath, there is hope!

‘BEHOLD, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.’ JOB 28:28 Yes, we are to fear the Lord! God has said that we need not fear the one that can kill the body, but the one that can kill the soul! What do you think? We are to be mindful of what we say; where we go and what we do! Satan is always waiting to move in when we loose sight of our Lord.

‘THE LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?’ Psalms 27:1a    In Christ we need not fear Satan. ‘For He will hide me in His shelter in the day of trouble; He will conceal me under the cover of His tent, He will set me high upon a rock.’ Psalms 27:5

WE KNOW that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God! We also know that God has made a way of escape from eternal damnation. We only have to choose His SON and take Him as our Savior. And, oh, what a Savior He is! By Jane Ann Crenshaw 3/19/15

DO NOT BE DECEIVED! 3/15/15

WE ARE so easily deceived, aren’t we! Whether it is out of self pride; reading only what we believe; or our mind set declares it is okay, because it is dedicated to the Lord. We are instructed to fear God, but people argue ‘that does not mean we should be afraid of God!' Where is our fear of God? Why are we so easily deceived? Why do we consider that sacrifice is better than to obey? Why are we so blatant about our sins? Why do so many think it is okay to sin? Don’t be deceived - all sin requires repentance!

REMEMBER the story in 1 Samuel 15 where Saul is anointed king and is given instructions to overcome the city of Amalek. Saul was to go and utterly destroy all that they had; ‘do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.’ 1 Samuel 15:3 And Saul defeated the Amalekites which was east of Egypt. But he took King Agag alive, along with the best of the sheep, of the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, he took back with them. Saul later tells Samuel, when he was confronted with this, ‘I brought them back to offer them as a sacrifice to your Lord.’

GOD REPENTED He had made Saul king. Samuel pleaded with God all night but finally went to Saul and confronted him with his wrong doing. God was not happy that Saul had not obeyed his edict in cleaning up the city of Amalek. Because Saul decided on his own to change God’s plan, he lost the job that God had created for him. A job of stature; power and prestige among the people! He could have been a man of God and a leader of men!

SAMUEL asked that Agag the king of the Amalekites be brought to him. He came cheerfully and stood before Samuel. ‘And Samuel hewed Agag into pieces before the Lord in Gilgal.’ 1 Samuel 15:33b Samuel not only did the job that Saul was to have done, he did it with an ax, vehemently yielding strength and force.   ‘Then Samuel went to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul. And Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul. And the Lord repented that he had made Saul king over Israel.’ 1 Samuel 15:34-35

SAUL should have feared the Lord. Saul should have known that obedience is better than sacrifice. In 1 Samuel 15:22 God says that obedience is better than sacrifice.   When Saul decided what was best, even when God had already told him what to do; he should have been afraid of the consequences. ‘For rebellion is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the Word of the Lord, He has also rejected you from being king.’ 1 Samuel 15:23

SOME HAVE SAID that even if we are disobedient to God’s Word, and do not live according to God’s commandments, we can still go to heaven, but we will just not have the victory here on earth. Do not be deceived! Many have watered down God’s Word to tickle the seekers ears. Makes everything easier to swallow and to digest. Some say this is the new age and therefore not everything in God’s Word is relevant for today. Hogwash! God’s Word is the same yesterday, today and forever. Therefore it is relative! Anything to do with God, we need!

THE PRIDE of our heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rock, whose dwelling is high, who say in your heart, ‘who will bring me down to the ground!’ Obadiah 3     There is another verse that keeps me on my toes; ‘But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the Lord; and be sure your sin will find you out.’ Numbers 32:23    Okay so our pride can bring us down and no matter the sin; it will become known. God is faithful to forgive; because He sent His only son to make a bridge for us to cross over into His joy! Why do we turn away from Him? Why do we say not now? We can love with respect and be obedient; but we need to love God with the respect of fear because our choices are not always the best choice! Ask yourself; ‘If not now, when?’ Today is the day for salvation!    By Jane.Ann Crenshaw 3/12/15

BEST FOOT FORWARD! 3/8/15

ONE OF THE MOST memorial things my Mother taught her daughters is how to stand, especially when having your picture taken. She said that standing towards the right always cup your right hand into the cup of your left hand. Then with your right foot pointing a little towards the right, place your left foot pointing out with the heal resting slightly against the right foot. Chest out, shoulders back and your head tilted up!

NOW if you were to be facing towards the left - all is reversed except for your hands. That is your left foot is pointing a little towards the left, your right foot is pointing out with the heal slightly resting against the left foot. But your hands are always with the right cupped into the left. We have pictures! I bet I got it right, but if not, my sisters will let me know!

THE QUESTION IS; ‘Which foot facing forward is the best?’ You have heard it said that we should always put our ‘best foot forward!’ Is my right foot better than my left? Is my right hand better than my left? Well for me I am right handed which means it is easier for me to lead and do with my right. When I start to walk I think I always lead with my right foot. When I write, eat or do anything that requires my hand I lead with my right. How about you?

THE BEST FOOT FORWARD came about during a period of several centuries. European noblemen and wealthy gentry were greatly concern about beauty of person. They added ruffled sleeves, powdered wigs, black satin knee breeches, and full-length hose above buckled shoes. I can visualize that; can’t you? We have seen pictures! It seems as though the idle rich in those days, took pride in showing off a good pair of legs. Go figure!

SOME WENT TO EXTREMES by showing preference to one leg as being more attractive than the other. Competition came about in wanting to make a greater sensation at all the grand affairs. He would find a special place where he could stand with his best-looking leg and foot in front, hoping to attract many glances. By the 16^th century, a person wanting to make a good impression knew just what to do. He would put his ‘best foot forward,’ and by doing so helped to create this phrase, that we still use today.

THOSE WHO follow the teachings of Jesus Christ know that our body is the temple (house) of the Holy Spirit. If we have Christ within us our lives take on a different dimension of attitudes. How should I speak; where should I go; what should I wear; what is my course of action; how can I best serve Him, and with each breath we seek His directions. Everything we need to know on ‘how to live a Christian life’ is in God’s Word!

‘LET THE WORD of Christ dwell in you richly, teach and admonish one another in all wisdom, and sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father, through Him.’ Colossians 3:16-17   This is speaking to our works and service in His Kingdom.

‘SO, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God!’ 1 Corinthians 10:31 Always ask yourself the question; ‘is this going to glorify my God or is this going to drag me down?’ God also says to wives; ‘Wives, submit to your husbands, as to the Lord!’ Ephesians 5:22 How are wives to submit to the Lord; we are to love Him with all our hearts, soul and minds - give Him our all! We are to love our husbands; take care of them, give them honor and respect and raise their children to love the Lord.

‘BE GENEROUS with the things God has given you. If words, use God’s words; if help, let it be through God’s help. That way God’s presence will be evident in everything you do; He will get the credit because He is the mighty ONE in everything.’ 1 Peter 4:11 All we have is in Christ, and no matter what; He makes it our best!     By Jane Ann Crenshaw3/8/15

(Why You Say it - by Webb Garrison)

ARE YOU LISTENING? 3/1/15

WHEN I began teaching women in a Sunday School class I began with a series called "You’ve Got What it Takes!" It was a little book and I can’t remember who wrote it, but I took the title because it said it all. My emphasis was that with Christ, we could do whatever God wanted us to do. This past week I was watching Joyce Meyer and she was using the title of "We Can Do It"; which was taken from the advertisement of Rosie the Riveter during WW11. She made it clear that the WE was God the Father, Jesus the Son, the Holy Spirit and you! Both clearly calls the Christian to stand firm in all ways!

"I CAN do all things through Christ who strengthens me!" Philippians 4:13 I hate for my world to be so vividly exposed through the world of technicolor technology. The news media has brought it all home to us. I remember during the Desert Storm Battle of 2000; Jim and I could hardly wait to get home from work, to turn on the TV, to sit on the couch eating our dinner, watching the war in action. It was like we were there! You could almost feel the dust and blood spatters along with the smell of oil fumes and burnt flesh.

TODAY we want to watch and be tortured by the futile efforts of the enemy as they behead, burn alive, and to use whatever method they feel will cause our jaws to drop, to kill Christians and even those who are not Christian, to show their power and their, off the wall, allegiance to what they call allah, the Muslim god. We love to be scared; we love to walk a fine line; we love to hate! I use the word we loosely, because I am not part of the we! I hate to be scared, I hate to walk a fine line, and I hate to hate!

"FOR JOHN is the one of whom the scripture says; "Here is my messenger, says God; I will send him ahead of you to open the way for you., remember this! John the Baptist is greater than any man who has ever lived. But he who is least in the Kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the time John preached his message until this very day the Kingdom of heaven has suffered violent attacks, and violent men try to seize heaven. All the prophets and the law of Moses, until the time of John, spoke about the Kingdom; "and if you are willing to believe their message, John is Elijah, whose coming was predicted. "Listen, then, if you have ears!"  Matthew 11:10-15    Are you listening?  

I SUPPOSE that those who are least in the Kingdom are greater than John because he lived and died under the law. You and I are under grace! Are you listening! In the Greek there are two meanings for the word violent. The first violent in this passage means to attack, and the second means to be energized. Our news has been likening the attackers of today to those in WW11. Are they alike; yes! Has there been anything else like it; yes! Men of violence always try to force their way in, when they try to conquer a city. Remember, they attempted to make Jesus a political King! "Jesus knew that they were about to come and get him, to make Him king by force, so he went off again to the hills by Himself." John 6:15

IF JESUS had wanted to be a political king, that was His opportunity. He frustrated their plans by going off by Himself. But later the people turned on Him and killed Him and God showed the world His Son! "Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and stone the messengers God has sent you! How many times have I wanted to put my arms around all your people, just as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would not let me! Now your home will be completely forsaken. From now on you will never see me again. I tell you, until you say; "God bless Him who comes in the name of the Lord." Matthew 23:37-39

THE ROMANS came in later and completely decimated Jerusalem. Well over 11,000 were killed in despicable ways and Rome ruled. Are you listening! Prayer is the key to heaven, but Faith unlocks the door! God has given us time; use it well!     BY Jane Ann Crenshaw 3/1/15