Monthly Archives: August 2015

Believing NOT Required

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desert-story-1440057-639x954You don’t have to believe in Jesus to follow Him. The early disciples followed Jesus for three years without believing. For some it was their eye-witness encounter with the empty tomb, while for others it was actually encountering the risen body of Jesus, which finally convinced them. Suddenly they understood what Jesus had been teaching.

What exactly did these early disciples believe?

These things are written so that you may continue to believe that
Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God,
And that by believing in Him you may have life
By the POWER of His name. John 20:31

During a conversation with Jesus before His death, Peter made this exact confession, but under pressure he faltered; he stopped believing. He thought maybe he had got the story wrong or been confused. Upon encountering the risen body of Jesus, his life was dramatically changed and never again did he doubt that Jesus was all He claimed to be.

You can begin to follow. To listen. To think about the things Jesus said.

All without believing.

Most of Jesus’ followers started off by NOT believing.

IMG_0423Author: Becky Hastings, wife, mother, grandmother, passionate follower of Jesus Christ and truth seeker, especially in the areas of health and children. Facing a world quite different from the one in which I grew up, I seek to research and understand the true route to health, freedom and joyful family living!

 

My reality

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bible-heart-1178881-640x480When you read the Bible over and over, the themes and dominant concepts become clearer and more cemented in your heart and mind.

Then sometimes, you pause at one small section and it’s like light floods your heart in a new way as you gaze at a collection of a few small words, words that you have read many times, but this time, you receive them as a lightening bolt from heaven.

This is my weak attempt to demonstrate what God showed me in this passage from John 17:25-26 which is found in the left column, with my thoughts in the right column.

John 17 v 25

DSC_0043 - Version 3Author: Becky Hastings, wife, mother, grandmother, passionate follower of Jesus Christ and truth seeker, especially in the areas of health and children. Facing a world quite different from the one in which I grew up, I seek to research and understand the true route to health, freedom and joyful family living!

 

Exploring Jesus

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Underwater swimmingJesus came to earth
To do the work of God.
Jesus came to demonstrate
The Father’s love for a lost people.
Jesus displayed His power
Through miraculous signs –
Demonstrations that no one else could do
Or has ever done.

The heart of the Father
Is that we ACCEPT Jesus.
That we seek to explore
All that Jesus has done
And WANTS to do for us.

When we reject Jesus;
Deny His power;
Deny His authority over our lives;
Deny His Godhood;
We deny God.
Denying God, we set ourselves apart and
In opposition to Him.

Jesus explains how He provides overflowing JOY,
“But anyone who hates Me
Also hates My Father.”

Jesus brings JOY.
He brings TRUTH
He brings LIFE
He brings PEACE
He brings HOPE

Apart from Jesus we have only
A counterfeit.
Living in opposition to Jesus,
We will never experience
All He is able to bless us with.

Truth graphicBased on John 15. Please read the whole chapter, or even the whole book of John, to learn more of the heart of the Father and the work of Jesus.

12Author: Becky Hastings, wife, mother, grandmother, passionate follower of Jesus Christ and truth seeker, especially in the areas of health and children. Facing a world quite different from the one in which I grew up, I seek to research and understand the true route to health, freedom and joyful family living!

The Mystery of our Faith

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Christ was
Revealed in a human body
Vindicated by the Spirit
Seen by angels
Announced to the nations
Believed in throughout the world
Taken to heaven in glory.

Now He is
Far above any ruler or authority or
Power or leader or anything else—
Not only in this world
But also in the world to come.
God has put all things
Under the authority of Christ and
Has made Him head over all things
For the benefit of the church.

And the church is His body;
It is made full and complete by Christ,
Who fills all things everywhere
With Himself.

The Church is part of God’s mystery
Not a building in your neighborhood;
Not a denomination.
The living body of Jesus,
In whom are hidden all the
Treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

God’s purpose in all this
Was to use the church
To display His wisdom
In its rich variety
To all the unseen rulers and authorities
In the heavenly places.
This was His eternal plan
Which He carried out
Through Christ Jesus our Lord.

The church is the household of God.
And the church is His body;
It is made full and complete by Christ,
Who fills all things everywhere with Himself.

This is the church of the living God,
Which is the pillar and foundation of the truth.
God Is building His church, and
The Gates of Hell
Will never overpower it.

Taken from Ephesians 1:21-23, 3:9-11, Matthew 16:18, I Timothy 3:15-16, Colossians 2:3

IMG_0423Compiled by Becky Hastings, wife, mother, grandmother, passionate follower of Jesus Christ and truth seeker, especially in the areas of health and children. Facing a world quite different from the one in which I grew up, I seek to research and understand the true route to health, freedom and joyful family living!

Bold Claims

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Jesus made many bold claims, here is one:

Light image“I have come
as a light to shine in this dark world,
So that all who put their trust in Me
Will no longer remain in the dark.

… I have come
To save the world,
NOT to judge it.

All who reject Me and My message
Will be judged on the day of judgment
By the truth I have spoken.
I don’t speak on My own authority –
The Father who sent Me has commanded
Me what to say and how to say it.
And I know His commands lead to eternal life;
So I say whatever the Father tells Me to say.

Jesus, John 12:46-50

Jesus is our source of truth. Paul explained the priority of Jesus:

I have had one message
for Jews and Greeks alike:
the necessity of
repenting from your sins,
turning to God, and
having faith in our Lord Jesus.

But my life is worth nothing to me
unless I use it for finishing
the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus –
the work of telling others
the Good News
about the wonderful grace of God!

Paul, Acts 20:21 & 24

12Compiled by Becky Hastings, wife, mother, grandmother, passionate follower of Jesus Christ and truth seeker, especially in the areas of health and children. Facing a world quite different from the one in which I grew up, I seek to research and understand the true route to health, freedom and joyful family living!

Future Events

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finger-post-in-the-morning-sun-1553708-1279x852Ever get confused by the times we live in? The letter Paul wrote to people living in Thessalonica is as relevant today as it was nearly 2000 years ago. I re-arranged 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 ever so slightly:

Let’s clarify some things about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and how we will be gathered to meet Him.

  • Don’t be easily shaken or alarmed by those who say that the day of the Lord has already begun. It’s not true.
  • The day of the Lord will be preceded by a great rebellion against God
  • The man of lawlessness will be revealed – the one who brings destruction.

Right now he is being held back, because he can only be revealed when his time comes. Now, this lawlessness is already at work secretly in the world. It will remain secret (to most people) until the one who is holding it back steps out-of-the-way. Then the man of lawlessness will be revealed, but the Lord Jesus will kill him with the breath of his mouth and destroy him by the splendor of his coming.

The man of lawlessness is no match for Jesus. He is only a created being. Forever remember: “In Christ all the fullness of GOD dwells in bodily form and you have been given fullness in Christ who is head over EVERY power and authority.” (Colossians 2)

The man of lawlessness is doing the work of Satan with counterfeit power, signs and miracles. He will use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because

They refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them.

Blind leading blindSo God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies. Then they will be condemned for enjoying evil rather than believing the truth.

Remember, God has chosen you for salvation. His salvation comes through the Spirit of God who makes you holy. You received salvation because you believed in the truth.

Therefore, stand firm and keep a strong grip on the teaching of God through Jesus Christ.

Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by His grace gave us eternal comfort and a wonderful hope, comfort you and strengthen you in every good thing you do and say.

IMG_0423Author: Becky Hastings, wife, mother, grandmother, passionate follower of Jesus Christ and truth seeker, especially in the areas of health and children. Facing a world quite different from the one in which I grew up, I seek to research and understand the true route to health, freedom and joyful family living!

God’s Powerful Victory!

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DangerSometimes we feel overwhelmed. We may feel surrounded by evil forces, wicked plans for our harm. We have become sensitized to the plans of man for evil and not for good. When we become aware of the many lies used to lure and deceive us into actions we are told are for our “good” but are actually going to harm us, it is an unsettling experience. We realize many plans have been set up for greed and profit, but are promoted for our health or safety.

What do we do? Do you ever feel besieged just by entering a grocery store, knowing that there is so much unknown poison lurking in many of the items sold as ‘food’? Or bombarded by the news, especially when our country debates whether it is ok to sell aborted baby parts for science?

In 2 Kings 6 the enemy king sent a great army with many chariots and horses to surround the city in which Elisha lived. They were intent on capturing Elisha because he was interfering with their plans. God had given Elisha special insight and he was boldly proclaiming God’s truth.

Elisha’s servant got up early in the morning and saw the troops, horses, and chariots everywhere. He panicked, “What will we do now?”

Elisha had a knowledge and awareness of the presence and power of God – a presence and power that remained in EVERY circumstance.

“Don’t be afraid!” Elisha told him. “For there are more on our side than on theirs!”

Then Elisha prayed, “O Lord, open his eyes and let him see!” The Lord opened the young man’s eyes, and when he looked up, he saw that the hillside around Elisha was filled with horses, and chariots of fire.

Ask God to open your eyes to see the protection and deliverance He has provided for you. For our God is the same yesterday, today and forever. He desires to deliver you from the hands of the wicked. Seek Him. Put your trust in Him. He has already achieved victory over every evil scheme of the enemy. The enemy has been defeated, so let’s walk together in the victory God has declared.

IMG_0423Author: Becky Hastings, wife, mother, grandmother, passionate follower of Jesus Christ and truth seeker, especially in the areas of health and children. Facing a world quite different from the one in which I grew up, I seek to research and understand the true route to health, freedom and joyful family living!

Delectable, Light, Easy, Gluten Free Waffles

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IMG_2203Waffles have been a family favorite forever! My traditional recipe started with whole wheat (wheat berries) and blended them with several other key ingredients to produce light fluffy waffles. Since I stopped eating wheat in August 2012 I haven’t indulged in waffles.

My daughter helped me discover that there is a wonderful way to make gluten-free waffles with rice and tapioca flours. I still don’t make them often (preferring my Chia Breakfast salad or a smoothie), but it is nice to spoil the grandchildren with waffles when they come to visit!

IMG_2201Heat up waffle iron and in a mixing bowl whisk together:

  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup kefir (or buttermilk, or milk with 1 Tbl  lemon)

Add:

  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • a pinch of salt

Whisk all together. It should be bubbly, then Add

  • ± 1/2 cup coconut oil

(it seems like this might be an optional ingredient, but adds both nutritional and flavor. One time I forgot to add the coconut oil and the waffles turned out fine. I didn’t realize until much later that I had forgotten to add it!)

IMG_2202Add:

  • ½ cup tapioca flour
  • 1 cup brown rice flour

Mix just until thoroughly combined.

Spoon about 1/3 cup of the batter onto the hot waffle iron. Cook until the light changes colors (or follow the procedure for your particular brand of waffle maker).

This recipe will make approximately 8 waffles. I like to make all of them and freeze leftovers which can be heated in a toaster for a quick snack or breakfast.

IMG_2160

Chia Breakfast Salad

My regular preferred breakfast remains many variations of chia/kefir breakfast salad, but this is my goto recipe for waffles whenever there is an occasion for them!

_DSC7099Author: Becky Hastings, wife, mother, grandmother, passionate follower of Jesus Christ and truth seeker, especially in the areas of health and children. Facing a world quite different from the one in which I grew up, I seek to research and understand the true route to health, freedom and joyful family living!