<BGSOUND SRC="golightyourw.mid" PLAYCOUNT="10"> SPRINGS IN THE DESERT--Spiritual Oasis

SPRINGS IN THE DESERT

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Site updated 3/7/2006

Welcome! Pause here for a few moments of respite from the stress, worries, and hurts of life. Many of us were living in a dream world, forgetting the degree to which people can allow their lives to be ruled by hatred and evil. I daily go back to the Scriptures for help and strength; there we are reminded that the true God, the God of love, is still on His throne, and that one day there will be peace and righteousness when His kingdom comes. Actually, His kingdom (His area of rule and authority) is already here in the hearts of those who have submitted to that rule. I hope and pray that you will be one of them, and may this site point you to Jesus, the Prince of Peace. There is living water here. Come and be refreshed. Jesus stands with arms wide open to welcome you.

Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labor for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. (Isaiah 55:1-2)



Sabino Creek photo by Stuart Glogoff, courtesy of University of Arizona library, showing some of the beauty of Southern Arizona. Although I now live in Florida, the Sabino Canyon area was one of my favorite places to visit when I was a child.






Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. (Isaiah 1:18)
Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. (Isaiah 55:7)
For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.
 I Peter 3:18 (NIV)
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance that we should him.
He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.
Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows,
yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Isaiah 53:2b-6 (NIV) 
The key is to have a personal relationship
with Jesus Christ.  "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock. If
anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and
dine with him, and he with Me." (Rev. 3:20 NKJV)

Jesus' on the cross and resurrection from the grave has provided the way for me (and you) to both be forgiven and have (literally) Christ Himself living within us to give joy, peace, and a whole new life. To invite Him into your life, you need only to ask Him, and be willing to turn away from those things that are not pleasing to God. If we want to do this, God will help us. The Bible even tells us of a man who felt his faith was so weak that he said to Jesus, with tears, "Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief." (Mark 9:24b)

Jesus loved you and me so much that He went to the Cross for us. If I (or you) had been the only person who needed saving, He still would have gone.

If you would like help in asking Jesus into your life, click on either or both of the following:

A step by step guide:Becoming a Christian
The Four Spiritual Laws: 4 Laws

Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:28-30)
photo credit to Stuart Glogoff, (c) Arizona Board of Regents. Some of the beauty of Southern Arizona.

Some of the most beautiful flowers in the world grow in a seemingly barren and arid desert. Perhaps God made it that way to teach us that He can do something really beautiful in our lives even when everything seems dry and lifeless.

The connecting link between my need and God's provision is simply, only, and always.....FAITH. Faith is just believing what God says, which means that if we don't know what He says, it makes it kind of hard to have faith. The Bible puts it best: "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Romans 10:17) We can get faith if we fill our minds less with the trash of this world-system and more with the promises, commands, and exhortations found in God's holy word, the Bible. "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God." (Romans 12:2)

Speaking of desert flowers, please visit my link below to the Sabino Canyon. Relax and stay for a few minutes, taking time to explore not only the pathway to the desert wildflowers, but some of the other pathways as well. Visit for a while, and enjoy the beauty of God's creation.

MEN! We tend to be loners, whether it's refusing to ask for directions when we know we are lost, or trying to live the Christian life. If your goal is to be a godly man, link up with other men who have the same goal! (To follow the link, click on the banner below.)

As this site has grown, beginning with the thought of receiving God's mercy and love into our own lives, I have tried to focus on the fact that God expects us to share our many blessings with others who are in desperate need, both spiritually and physically.

Whether it is the new famine in Ethiopia (see worldvision.org), the street children in most Latin American cities (totalling literally thousands of little boys and s learning to fend for themselves in life-threatening situations), or garbage dump dwellers in Mexico City, we (in America) live in a society which largely ignores them, choosing instead to finance the entertainment, lottery, and sports industries with our spare dollars and time.

Did I say it's wrong to go to a ball game? No, you didn't hear me say that, but I do say that as a nation our priorities are all wrong, and if God did not spare his own people from his judgment on greed and other sins, he may not spare America if we do not turn back to him.

God speaks in His word much more powerfully than anything I can say. The following Scriptures illustrate how God feels about the importance of our sharing with others out of our abundance: (please click on Scripture to read)

  • Luke 16:19-31-shows the necessity of genuine repentance.

    Thanks to jet travel and the Internet, there are all kinds of people quite literally "at our gate." And while we say we cannot do much, remember that the man in this story only wanted what was falling to the ground unnoticed and wasted.

    Though one does not "earn" heaven by being kind to the poor, we must not miss the fact that the unrepentant attitude of the rich man did make the difference between heaven and hell for him.

    Our greatest motivation must be love, which comes through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, the only Way to heaven. Additionally, God makes many promises to provide for our needs when we are generous --e.g. Proverbs 28:27a "He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack".

  • Luke 3:8-14-putting repentance into action
  • I John 3:17-18-explains that genuine love has feet and hands.
  • Luke 8:14-choked by non-essentials

We who know Christ also have a spiritual treasure to share (see above). The ministries below are a few (among many) which I highly recommend to you for your prayerful support:

  • Many times God uses native missionaries to best reach their own people. For many years this ministry has helped them do that:
    Christian Aid Mission
  • Ministries to Children at Risk: Streetkids.net There are over 150 million street children worldwide; 10 million in enforced prostitution; millions are involved in child labor, and 35,000 children under the age of 5 die every day as a result of malnutrition or starvation. (Source: Latin America Mission daily prayer calendar, 6/1/02) May we lift them up in prayer, together with those who are trying to help them, as well as share from our own comparative abundance to make such ministries possible.
  • Sharing Christ's love in many ways and in many places:International Mission Board
  • These kids have won my heart for 2 years in a row: Friends in the West
  • On the cutting edge:World Relief
  • People who live in cities need the Savior: Christ for the City
The music you hear playing in the backgound was received from Newsong Online--

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Recommended Links


Angelfire - Easiest Free Home Pages
Looking for some fun and a place to call home?..Peggie's Place
Sabino Canyon-Desert Oasis
Bible Verses for Everyday Life
Gettting into God's Word each day
AWESOME GOD
Imagine Peace
The above links were my first; well worth visiting. For new ones, see below:


MORE LINKS BELOW...PLEASE VISIT, AND ADD YOUR LINK IF YOU LIKE!

....... CrossDaily.com

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Unless otherwise indicated, Scriptures are quoted from the King James Version.

Scriptures quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright (c) 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (R). Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. The "NIV" and "New International Version" trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society. Use of either trademark requires permission of International Bible Society.