Fruits of the Holy Spirit... Reality Check.

Ever heard the saying, "the fruit of the spirit is not a lemon"?

Well then, what are they?

According to Galatians 5:22-23

 

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control.

There can be so many things in life that can 'get on our nerves'...
The best way to determine whether we are living life in the spirit of Christ,
is really... how we REACT to challenging situations in our lives.

The best way we can put it, is to fill in the blanks with the fruits of the spirit,
whenever we face worrisome situations in life...

For example:

When a friend does something that tests my patience/does wrong, do I have the spirit of ____ towards them?

When I am tempted to say something hurtful to another, does that display a spirit of _____?

When life becomes a challenge, am I still able to show the spirit of _____, so that Christ may be honoured through my actions?


Definitely a challenge for all of us, including myself. 

 But if we rely on Christ to lead the way always, we cant go wrong...

"Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." - 1 Corinthians 15:57 And Im sure that the victory can be seen when we display the fruits of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness and self-control in our lives. God bless you today! =)

 

Toby Mac Explains "Steal my Show" to his 5 year old son

 

Here Toby Mac explains the message behind his song,

"Steal My Show."  A beautiful analogy.

He says the message of this song, applies to everybody.

Allowing God to "Steal your show" can apply to anything in your life.

He says you have one life and you can make it yours,

or you can give it for God's purposes, and have God do something

bigger with your life, than you can ever imagine.  :)

Type of Dog = Your Personality

Came across this cool post online that talks about how the kind of dog you have, can give some clues to your personality traits... What kind of dog do you own?  

http://www.livescience.com/19787-dog-owner-breeds-personality.html

I dont own a dog, so I guess that means that nobody can guess what my real personality is :)  However, I came across another online post about WHY some people dont own pets.  In a nutshell... its cost, time and allegies...

http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2012/10/12/dealing-with-pet-ownership.aspx

However, all that said, I must agree that if you own a dog, you will realize that it truly is a man's best friend. :-)

This goes to show how loyal pets are...

A German Shepherd Dog who was adopted by a woman as a stray, has been attending the church they visited together every day since she passed away. The loyal dog named Ciccio was rescued by 57-year-old Maria Margherita Lochi after she found him abandoned in a field near her home in San Donaci near Brindisi, Italy.

The 7-year-old dog was her faithful companion.


SEE PICTURE HERE : http://www.dogheirs.com/larne/posts/2618-loyal-dog-attends-church-of-his-deceased-owner-every-day

Christian Grammy Award Nominations 2013

GRAMMY AWARDS 2013 HAPPENS ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10TH,

AT THE STAPLES CENTER IN THE U.S.

 

And the nominees are...

Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music Performance

"Jesus, Friend of Sinners" – Casting Crowns
 "Take Me to the King" – Tamela Mann
 "Go Get It" – Mary Mary
 "10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord)" – Matt Redman
 "My Testimony" – Marvin Sapp

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 Best Gospel Song

"Go Get It" Erica Campbell, Tina Campbell & Warryn Campbell, songwriters (Mary Mary)

"Hold On" Cheryl Fortune, James Fortune & Terence Vaughn, songwriters (James Fortune & FIYA, Monica & Fred Hammond)

"I Feel Good" Phillip Feaster, Fred Hammond, Jonathan Miller & Calvin Rodgers, songwriters (Fred Hammond)

"My Testimony" Aaron Lindsey & Marvin Sapp, songwriters (Marvin Sapp)

"Released" Donald Lawrence, songwriter (Bill Winston & Living Word Featuring Donald Lawrence)
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Best Contemporary Christian Music Song

"Jesus, Friend of Sinners" Mark Hall & Matthew West, songwriters (Casting Crowns)

"10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord)" Jonas Myrin & Matt Redman, songwriters (Matt Redman)

"When Mercy Found Me" Jeff Pardo & Rhett Walker, songwriters (Rhett Walker Band)

"White Flag" Jason Ingram, Matt Maher, Matt Redman & Chris Tomlin, songwriters (Passion & Chris Tomlin)

"Your Presence Is Heaven" Israel Houghton & Micah Massey, songwriters (Israel & New Breed)

------------

Best Gospel Album

Identity – James Fortune
 Jesus at the Center: Live – Israel & New Breed
 Gravity – Lecrae
 I Win – Marvin Sapp
 Worship Soul – Anita Wilson

-----

 Best Contemporary Christian Music Album

Come to the Well – Casting Crowns
 Where I Find You – Kari Jobe
 Gold – Britt Nicole
 Eye on It – TobyMac
 Into the Light – Matthew West

How to store Xmas Lights properly

Tips on how to store those Xmas lights neatly, courtesy of : http://home.yourway.net/quick-tip-packing-away-christmas-lights/

All you do is start with one end of the strand. Put the first light at the bottom of your palm and pull the 2nd light to the top (vertical across your palm). The, while you are pinching/holding the 2nd bulb, pull the 3rd bulb down the the 1st.

 

Then keep matching the odd and even bulbs.

 

 

Then once you get them all in your fist…

 

Just wrap the remaining cord around and plug it back in!

 

 

 

Hope that makes storing Xmas lights soo much easier and neater for you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Remembering Lolito 1928-2012

This week I am in Vancouver , helping prepare for my grandfather's (lolito) funeral. He passed away to be with our Lord on the night of December 11, 2012.
Part of my responsibilities since arriving in BC on the 13th, have been to look after the multi-media aspect of my grandfather's memorial service, including producing an end-of-life video to be played in front of all family and friends at the final church service scheduled for December 20th... Since arriving, I have been coordinating with all family members, looking through picture albums and old video cameras to gather photos of my lolito's 7 children and 26 grandchildren throughout the years. I am filming all 7 children sharing their "best memories" of lolito. My family and I are also going to church everyday to attend scheduled prayer/worship services, leading up to my grandfather's funeral this week.  Its a busy time.  On Dec. 25, we get together again for Christmas. It's then my birthday on the 28th, and I join my family one more time for New Year on Jan 1st, before heading back to Toronto Pearson and Barrie on the 2nd, and back on the air at Life 100.3 on Jan 3rd.
For this blog post, I thought Id share a couple of photos I am including in the production of my lolito's memorial video, which I am using this week. Below is a copy of my grandparent's wedding back in 1952, and a copy of a prayer for my lolito that my family put together. One of the nicest final memories I had of lolito, was the time he asked me : when my friends and I were coming to visit their condo and use their swimming pool... I remember standing in front of their condo building, after having helped unbuckle his seatbelt in the car, and I said next time I visit Id go, and he said we were always welcome to use it... although sadly, that day never came.  Maybe over he next week, I can try to make a point to have a swim. :) See you back in town on Jan 3rd... :)