Tahoe Camp Meeting

Just got back from Tahoe Camp Meeting and let me tell you it was one of the best experiences i've ever had. We had a really really good preacher up there named Lee Venden if you ever get the opportunity check him out for sure! He broke down the 3 angels messages in Revelation 14 in a whole new light, helping me, and others, to point the finger at self instead of each other or certain religious groups. Yes the symbolisms in the passage still mean the same things they always have, but it helps to make sure that we dont focus so much on looking out for them that we forget our own tendency to lean on self. We must make sure that we dont try to save ourselves. I dont know if you get what im saying, but simply put if we dont have a TRUE CLOSE RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS we are trying to save ourselves. Whether it is by our "good deeds" (check out Isaiah 64:6 for the bibles opinion on those) or thinking we can "earn" salvation in some other way, we are leaning on self. Jesus has said in John 14:6 "I am the Way the Truth and the Life. No man cometh unto the Father BUT BY ME". There is no other way. We need to spend time with Jesus DAILY or our relationship cannot grow; we WILL NOT be saved if we don't have Christ. Even if we have knowledge about everything and live a "good" life, we wont make it unless we have a close connection with Christ, Any way Lee really brought out the Jesus I know, and helped me grasp Him soooo well. Everything he said reminded me of my Jesus :) and really helped me know for sure that He loves me. Not just the idea of Him loving me, but actually really feeling it and knowing for certain that NOTHING can separate me from His love. It is so good to know this Jesus! So often we get caught up in our presumptions about Him that we forget He is an alive, present, near being that cares so deeply about each and every one of us. The picture of Christ has been so twisted that we hardly know Him anymore. But His spirit was so close with me up there in tahoe; my advice for all of you is to take time in nature to SLOW DOWN and think about Christ and all that He has done. There is no way that Christ could have gone through what He went through, taken the abuse from His creation, and died, (A PART OF GOD DIED, think about that concept CRAZY) if He didnt love us. Satan has tried to twist this image for people to see Him as a tyrant, an arbirtrary God, but He is not so! GOD IS LOVE (1 John 4:8) Why is it so hard for us to grasp this? You must spend time in the Bible if you want to get the real picture of God and who He truly is. You won't find Him any other way. Don't let the things of this world keep you from knowing Christ. He is the best Thing in the whole world, and He has truly given me life more abundantly. Take time with Him every day slowing down and remembering Who He is. I love knowing CHrist! having Him near is the best thing anyone could ever have, and if you would honestly just take time to find Him, He will be found of you. He wants you to be TRULY close with Him more than you want to be. And i said TRULY close. That means not just going on your way doing whatever you want, cussing, talking behind peoples back, making crude jokes, etc. and claiming you have Christ. Those who are God's sons and daughters take up His nature. A calm, loving, patient, kind nature. (Galatians 5:22) These fruits are the fruits of Christs true spirit. "Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but HE THAT DOETH THE WILL OF MY FATHER WHICH IS IN HEAVEN" - MATTHEW 7:20,21 Find Christ. Make Him the One who guides EVERYTHING you do. Make Him part of every aspect of your life, and you will find true peace, and He will then change your ways to be more like His. We cannot do this. We cannot make these changes on our own. It is not natural for a man to have enmity against Satan. But God transforms us into new creatures by changing the way we think. "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature, the old things are passed away, behold all things are become new" - 2 Corinthians 5:17. HE DOES ALL THE WORK. Not us, we are far too weak. But the only way He can do this is if we have a true, strong relationship with Him. Any way, just hopefully you will check this out for yourself and believe what i say. Check the word of God, for this is where you will find Christ and His amazing love for us. Look at your life and how far you've come (or how far you've fallen for that matter) and get back with Christ today. Go to Him, just as you are and ask forgiveness for your sins, and He will take you in and transform you. Spend time with Him everyday, that you may become one of His dearly beloved children, saved by grace, growing closer to Him everyday. Beloved, heaven begins as soon as you take hold of Jesus............