Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Even if we did nothing but praise Jesus 24/7 for the rest of eternity, He would still deserve more. Isn’t it great that although He deserves it, He does not get mad at us if we don’t?
Yet the bible teaches us to bless the Lord or give thanks or praise Him ‘at all times’, ‘continually’, and ‘in everything’. Why? Like everything else He tells us, for our good. When you are thinking about and talking about what is good, by thanking God, you are happier and healthier in the natural, and spiritually you are shutting down the devil and opening the windows of heaven. Make it a lifestyle! Something so second nature you do it by instinct.
Now thanks be to God who ALWAYS causes us to triumph in Christ!! 2 cor. 2:14
I love y’all dearly,
Healed by His stripes,
Nancy Bass

Giving Thanks

Good evening everyone,
I’ve been thinking, is it ‘giving’ if the Person to whom you are giving deserves far more than you can ever give? But then, what would we call it? Paying? Offering? I don’t know, it was just a thought.
Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, His love endures forever!!

Healed by His stripes,
Nancy Bass

Learn of Him

Good afternoon everybody,
Matthew 11:28-30 (again) has been playing around in my head.
28Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

You see, a singing group called Take 6 has recorded it in a song, so the song keeps coming back to me. The Lord brought up a different part of the scripture to me this time. Right smack in the middle of the promises for rest, Jesus said “learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart.” Why would He choose this place for describing Himself? Why did He choose those two attributes, among the many He could have chosen? He could have said ‘I am anointed’ or ‘I am holy’ or lots of things, but He chose meek and lowly in heart. Why?
The Lord impressed on my heart that this is key to the rest He is talking about. Meekness, or humility as some translations say, is how Jesus stayed in the rest of God. And thankfulness is completely intertwined within humility… You can’t be humble without being thankful. Just think about the most humble person you know, really humble, and you will hear thanks from them a lot.
So again, thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
I love y’all dearly! Oh, look. It’s almost thanksgiving! :D
Healed by His stripes,
Nancy Bass

How big is your Cup?

Good afternoon everybody,
I was told a word picture years ago, and it has stuck with me. It was a picture of God, standing next to a water tower of His blessings. It was bigger than the sun! The faucet He was ready to open was as big around as the earth. And here we come, asking Him to fill us up, and we have this little teacup!
Can we limit God? He is infinite! Can we keep Him from doing what He wants to do in our lives? If you are like me, you are asking, ‘where is the scripture?’
Psalm 78:40, 41 says about the children of Israel…
40How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness, and grieve him in the desert!
41Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.

So according to scripture, we can limit God, as far as what He can do for us. It is we who decide how big our cup is.
This leads to the question,, ‘how do I make my cup bigger?’
A lesson series from Keith Moore’s sermons online (www.morelifenow.org ) called ‘Thanksgiving Victory’ directly addresses that question. And basically the title says it, but there is so much GOOD information I wish I could get across to you. It doesn’t come across in writing. He talks about Hannah, Ahab, Jezebel, Rachel, Joseph and the brothers, Jesus, etc. And, he links them all up in thankfulness and humility, or unthankfulness and pride. VERY enlightening!! I guarantee that he will step on your toes somewhere in there, but not in a bad way. You can hit the audio button and listen while reading email or doing facebook, or cooking or whatever. Really, at least listen to the second message, about Jesus and self-pity. Absolutely life changing!!
So the question is, how do I increase my capacity to receive more from the Lord? The answer is as simple as a drop of water, and as infinitely deep and complex as that same drop.
(go ahead and listen!) ~:D
I love y’all dearly! Thanks be to God who ALWAYS causes us to triumph in Christ!

Healed by His stripes,
Nancy Bass
http://nancysministry.blogspot.com

Worship!

Good evening, everyone,
I am, right now, watching (well, listening to, since I am typing) a live worship webstream from the International house of prayer in Kansas city. It is WONDERFUL music and worship, and it is free from six to midnight until Saturday night! Check it out, if only for a minute or two. The link is www.ihOP.org. Be blessed! I love y’all dearly!

Healed by His stripes,
Nancy Bass
http://nancysministry.blogspot.com

A Perfect Fit

Good evening everyone,
Matthew 11 is still on my heart. I have learned a little about yokes and burdens since last email… The best yoke for an ox or horse will fit him perfectly, so that it works with him and not against him. If it does not fit right, he will have callouses or actually wound himself. A wounded workhorse can’t do his work at full strength, so a wise owner will spare no expense to have a perfect fit.
Our owner, who paid the highest price in the universe for us, custom designed an easy yoke for you, and for me, before the universe was born. It fits like a glove! There is nothing to be afraid of, being in the center of His will for you.
28Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Jump right into the center of God’s will for you, it’s a perfect fit!
I love y’all dearly,

Healed by His stripes,
Nancy Bass
http://nancysministry.blogspot.com

Come Unto Me

Good evening everyone, (morning )
I have had this scripture on my mind for days.
Matthew 11,
28Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Light burdens, easy yokes… Praise God!!
‘nuf said. I love y’all dearly!
Healed by His stripes,
Nancy Bass
http://nancysministry.blogspot.com

Psalms 12:6

Good afternoon everybody,
Psalm 12 held a treasure for me today.
6 And the words of the LORD are flawless,
like silver refined in a furnace of clay,
purified seven times.
The Lord is a man of His word. He has never, nor will He ever, in fact He cannot, tell a lie. He has never exaggerated. He always tells His children the truth.
My mother once gave me some really good advice: don’t put anything in writing unless you want the world to know. Well, our Father put lots in writing because He wants the world to know. He wants us to know, because to know His word is to know Him. Every promise is reliable and sure. And what He promised, He is able to perform, says sarah in Hebrews 11. Plus the Lord said in Jeremiah, He watches over His word to perform it. What a deal we have! Love Himself is our Father and He is reliable and faithful to His word. Thanks be to God who ALWAYS causes us to triumph in Christ. (2 Corinthians 2:14)
I love y’all.

Healed by His stripes,
Nancy Bass
http://nancysministry.blogspot.com

Healing Scripture Romans 8:11

Good afternoon everybody,
Romans 8:11 (KJV) “. . . the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead . . . shall also quicken your mortal bodies . . . .”
We have within us, the Spirit of the living God! And this Spirit is the same one that raised Jesus from the dead. And when Jesus returns, the bible says that this Spirit will change our mortal bodies into immortal! Forever young! Do you believe it?? I know you do.
Well if this Spirit can do all that, then it is a simple thing, EASY, for Him to do a little repair work on it to keep us going strong!! Romans 8:11 doesn’t say He can, however. It says He SHALL! Glory to God, He shall quicken our mortal bodies. These bodies, in the mortal here and now. Yahoo! I love y’all dearly! Speak out romans 8:11, for you and me today!

Healed by His stripes,
Nancy Bass
http://nancysministry.blogspot.com

Redemption

Good evening everybody,
We are redeemed! What does that really mean? Redemption is a big word! First,
Jesus became sin so He could make us righteous. That erases all our guilt and condemnation. We get to be near Him forever! And would have been enough, but our Father loves us so much, and Jesus loves us so much, that they didn’t stop there. Redemption means something in the here and now. Jesus conquered sin, death and the devil! He paid the highest price for our health and safety too. Look at Psalm 91. I copied the Message, for variety.
Psalm 91

1-13You who sit down in the High God's presence, spend the night in Shaddai's shadow,
Say this: "God, you're my refuge.
I trust in you and I'm safe!"
That's right—he rescues you from hidden traps,
shields you from deadly hazards.
His huge outstretched arms protect you—
under them you're perfectly safe;
his arms fend off all harm.
Fear nothing—not wild wolves in the night,
not flying arrows in the day,
Not disease that prowls through the darkness,
not disaster that erupts at high noon.
Even though others succumb all around,
drop like flies right and left,
no harm will even graze you.
You'll stand untouched, watch it all from a distance,
watch the wicked turn into corpses.
Yes, because God's your refuge,
the High God your very own home,
Evil can't get close to you,
harm can't get through the door.
He ordered his angels
to guard you wherever you go.
If you stumble, they'll catch you;
their job is to keep you from falling.
You'll walk unharmed among lions and snakes,
and kick young lions and serpents from the path.

14-16 "If you'll hold on to me for dear life," says God,
"I'll get you out of any trouble.
I'll give you the best of care
if you'll only get to know and trust me.
Call me and I'll answer, be at your side in bad times;
I'll rescue you, then throw you a party.
I'll give you a long life,
give you a long drink of salvation!"

Now, that is redemption! (-:

I love y’all dearly!
Healed by His stripes,
Nancy Bass
http://nancysministry.blogspot.com

Faith Working by Love

Good afternoon everybody,
A wise bible study teacher once said they try not to teach on something they are still working on, not to say they are perfect or they have mastered it, but only that they have settled into the Word about it, and they know the Way. So I am not perfect in this love thing (I can see Brian now, FOFLOL). There is a certain scowl, a look that oozes contempt, and looks very similar to my squinting to keep the air from leaking from my breathing mask into my eyes. So am I mad or just windblown? I’d like to say windblown all the time. Again, pick Brian up off the floor – he needs to breathe; no more laughing now!
So you understand I am not a master, but I know the Master. He is perfect! He never rolled His eyes in disrespect. He is recorded as cutting off someone only in one case, and He said ‘get thee behind me, Satan!’ to him. Somehow I think that would be a rare case where we had permission to say that! He had lots of hard words for people. He drove out the animals and greedy people from the temple, but He was not out of control when He did it. He was angry but never sinned.
What is ok, what is not? You would think that by 43 I might have some answers. Well, I have some. Generally speaking, if our feelings are screaming, we should not act on them. Screaming feelings are never the fruit of the Spirit. Peace doesn’t scream. When feelings scream, take charge of them like you would a two year old having a tantrum. Yes they scream but they are not in control. At least not in a healthy family. So we are spiritually healthier as we control and discipline our feelings. That ‘umpire of peace’ that the bible talks about is the voice of the Lord inside. Jesus always listened to Him for everything. Ephesians says be angry but sin not. Many times today I wanted to backhand someone, and I did yell this morning, but after that I did better. Of course my yells sound like squeaks in the mask. Not exactly intimidating, but sin all the same. That whole seventy times seven thing comes to mind. I lost count, but I guess that is how it should be. Right? Love keeps no record of wrong. Jesus didn’t, even though people spit and slapped and ripped out His beard. He didn’t even when they yelled all sorts of insults at Him while He hung naked and exposed, dying on a cross where every breath moved and tore against His hands, feet and raw back. And He still keeps no record of wrong even though we act like I did today.
Here is the point… (finally) my faith, your faith, whosoever’s faith, will not work if our mind is full of strife. And strife happens. So take a deep breath and remember that you have a choice, I have a choice. Even with red faces and screaming feelings, we have a choice. Love listens to the umpire of peace. Now thanks be to God who ALWAYS causes us to triumph (over our feelings) in Christ.
I love you all! I really do!!
Healed by His stripes,
Nancy Bass

Faith Comes in and Goes Out

Good afternoon everybody,
Today I was reading a devotional on www.rhema.org. You can’t subscribe; you have to visit every day, but it is WORTH it!! Click on study center and devotional.
Today’s was on Mark 11:23, and the Lord showed me, or recalled for me, several things to share with you all at once. I pray that I can bring them out coherently, here goes…
Romans 10:17 says that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. You can’t have faith for something you haven’t heard about. For instance, when you were little, you would ask mom or dad for something. But you could not have faith for it until you heard them say yes. Boy, then you know you’ve got it!
Even if you have to wait a little, you have faith in your parent’s word.
Well, now you have a Father who never lies and never fails. You just need to hear and hear what He said. Faith in God is faith in His word. Anything else is just ‘high expectation off the wrong information’. (I heard that somewhere)
So that is how faith comes, but simply having faith is not enough to get results. James says faith without works is dead. We must release our faith by acting, and our primary action is speaking. Faith goes out by speaking mostly, and of course, doing whatever the Lord tells you. But clearly in Mark 11:23 the Lord tells us to speak. Say to the mountain be removed and be cast into the sea, believe and do not doubt what you say, you will have what you say. Notice that say is mentioned three times as much as believe. Jesus said that, so what we say is important to Him. Really important! He was very careful with his words. ‘so, what can I say, Nancy? ‘ well, if it agrees with the word of God, speak freely. If it is contrary to the word, bite your lip! Anything in between, use the law of love. Simple, right? Ok, maybe it takes practice, but WE CAN DO IT! See how I spoke faith there? It’s easy, isn’t it! I love you all!
Healed by His stripes,
Nancy Bass