{"id":355,"date":"2010-02-01T09:00:20","date_gmt":"2010-02-01T16:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.imagingtheheavens.com\/?p=355"},"modified":"2011-06-29T06:47:39","modified_gmt":"2011-06-29T13:47:39","slug":"pillars-of-creation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.imagingtheheavens.com\/?p=355","title":{"rendered":"“Pillars of Creation”"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n[Translate]<\/a>\"\"\n
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\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Good morning!\u00a0 It’s in my heart this morning to share a few thoughts with you before I head off on my trip
\nto California.<\/p>\n

By the way, did you notice that God has blessed us with another beautiful day! Did you
\nsee the wonderful cloud formations over the past couple of days? Some of them looked
\nlike massive pillars extending up to the sky! In some respects, this awesome beauty
\nabove us reminds me of the famous Hubble Space Telescope image called “The Pillars of
\nCreation”.<\/p>\n

Back on Earth… I really love the seasonal changes and “micro-climates” we experience
\nhere in Las Cruces. Each year the weather is slightly different as our seasonal
\nperceptions are challenged. I think it’s God’s way of nudging our senses — not letting us
\nget too comfortable in a particular setting — climate or otherwise. That’s good, because
\nGod does not want to settle into this world — He has a better plan! The questions then,
\nfor each of us to ponder: What is God’s plan for my life? How can I bring God’s plan for
\nmy life into focus?<\/p>\n

Coming to terms with these questions are vitally important for our life, because it largely
\ndetermines how we live our life, and the impact to our eternal destiny. More importantly,
\nunderstanding the answers to these questions are life-saving, in fact, they have eternal
\nconsequences!<\/p>\n

I have always found, that the best approach to answering any question, is to carefully
\nassess what is known about the truth that surrounds the question. The questions before us
\nbeing: “What is God’s plan for my Life; and how can I bring God’s plan for my life into
\nfocus?” (Some of you quickly recognize where this is headed, but that’s good, as it tends
\nto re-sharpen our understanding — keep reading.)
\nFirst of all, we need to know that God loves us and offers a wonderful plan for our lives.
\nDo you really believe this?<\/p>\n

We know of this love, because it says in God’s Word, John 3:16, “God so loved the
\nworld that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish
\nbut have eternal life”. Not only that, but, we also have knowledge of God’s plan as stated
\nby Jesus, as written in John 10:10, “I came that they might have life, and might have it
\nabundantly.”<\/p>\n

Why is it that most people are not experiencing that abundant life? This is because man
\nis sinful and separated from God. Thererfore, man cannot know and experience God’s
\nlove and plan for his life. This state is spoken of in Romans 3:23, “All have sinned and
\nfall short of the glory of God.”.<\/p>\n

You see… Man was created to have fellowship with God; but, because of his own
\nstubborn self-will, he chose to go his own independent way and fellowship with God was
\nbroken. This self-will, characterized by an attitude of active rebellion or passive
\nindifference, is an evidence of what the Bible calls sin. This results in man being
\nseparated fron God. as it says in Romans 6:33, “The wages of sin is death”. Can you
\nimagine the devastating nature of this — our being separated by a great gulf and never
\nbeing able to “reach God” by his our own efforts? How then can we or anyone, be able to
\nbridge this gulf?<\/p>\n

Fortunately, God’s love is so amazing that He made a provision for us. In fact, Jesus
\nChrist is God’s only provision for man’s sin. Through Him (that is Jesus) you can know
\nand experience God’s love and plan for your life. He Died In Our Place, for as it says in
\nRomans 5:8, “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet
\nsinners, Christ died for us.”.<\/p>\n

Further… He rose from the dead! As it is confirmed in 1 Corinthians 15:3-6, “Christ died
\nfor our sins… He was buried… He was raised on the third day, according to the
\nScriptures… He appeared to Peter, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more
\nthan five hundred…”<\/p>\n

In addition, He is the only way to God, for it says in John 14:6, “Jesus said to him, ‘I am
\nthe way, and the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father but through Me.’ ”
\nNow… carefully reflect on what has happened here. As you just read, this amazing,
\nloving, omni-present God we have has made a “special provision” for those that are
\nseparated from God. The eternal gulf that separated us from God is bridged by His Son,
\nJesus Christ, who died on the cross in our place to pay the penalty for our sins. Just
\nimaging a “Cross” that serves as a bridge across the gulf between man and God. Now we
\nare starting to understand… But… it is not enough just to know God’s provision from the
\nabove. Read on…<\/p>\n

We must individually receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord; then we can know
\nand experience God’s love and plan for our lives. What does this encompass?
\nWe Must Receive Christ. Listen to John 1:12, “As many as received Him, to them He
\ngave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.”
\nWe Receive Christ Through Faith. For as it says in Ephesians 2:8-9, “By grace you
\nhave been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as
\nresult of works that no one should boast”.<\/p>\n

When We Receive Christ, We Experience a New Birth.
\nTake some time and read what is says in John 3:1-8.
\nWe Receive Christ Through Personal Invitation.<\/p>\n

As it says in Revelation 3:20, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears My
\nvoice and opens the door, I will come in to him”. This receiving Christ really involves
\ntruning to God, repenting of our sins, asking Christ to come into our lives to forgive our
\nsins and to make us what He wants us to be.<\/p>\n

This is not an intellectual or emotional experience, but one of Faith — that is, we receive
\nJesus Christ by Faith, as an act of our own free will. Having done that, true repentance
\nand true acceptance by faith, we can now experience what it means to leave the “selfdirected
\nlife” we were once living, to that of living a “Christ-Directed Life”. Which kind
\nof life to you want to live?<\/p>\n

Fortunately, we can receive Christ in our lives through prayer. God knows our heart, and
\nHe knows our attitude — that is, the attitude of our heart. Let’s pray to God…
\nLord Jesus, I need You. Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the
\ndoor of my life and receive You as my Savior and Lord. Thank You for forgiving
\nmy sins and giving me eternal life. Take control of the throne of my life. Make me
\nthe kind of person You want me to be.<\/p>\n

We can know that if this prayer expresses the desire of our heart, then Christ has come
\ninto your life, and you can begin experiencing God’s plan for your life — just as He
\npromised.<\/p>\n

OK… many of you recognize this as the Four Spiritual Laws described by the Campus
\nCrusade for Christ. If you got this far, then good — for it is always a nice refresher to
\nknow how we can be saved. The best part is, the above is a good way to share the Good
\nNews of Jesus and help someone know the Truth, and bring them into a new life —
\neternally saved the loveing Grace of God, and through their faith in Jesus as their Lord
\nand Savior.<\/p>\n

Here’s a challenge for you… Would you like to make God smile, and the Angels in
\nHeaven rejoice? Then go out this week, and make it a point to share God’s Plan of
\nsalvation with someone — they will be eternally grateful you did. For as it says in Luke
\n15:10, “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God
\nover one sinner who repents.”<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>In closing, here is a wide-field of the Pillars of Creation image taken\u00a0from my observatory here in Las
\nCruces.\u00a0\u00a0 It’s interesting to see a different perspective of this object, expressing the awesome
\nand expansive nature of God’s Creation as revealed in each image. “The heavens declare the Glory of the
\nLord.” Psalm 19:1 Just imagine what we will see when we get to Heaven !<\/p>\n

So my prayer for you today is for God to place someone in your path that you can share
\nthe Good News of Jesus. Praise the Name of Jesus! Amen!\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0Have a great week!<\/p>\n

Your Brother in Christ,
\nMike Sherick<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[Translate] <\/p>\n

Good morning! It’s in my heart this morning to share a few thoughts with you before I head off on my trip to California.<\/p>\n

By the way, did you notice that God has blessed us with another beautiful day! Did you see the wonderful cloud formations over the past couple of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.imagingtheheavens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/355"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.imagingtheheavens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.imagingtheheavens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.imagingtheheavens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.imagingtheheavens.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=355"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/www.imagingtheheavens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/355\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1337,"href":"http:\/\/www.imagingtheheavens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/355\/revisions\/1337"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.imagingtheheavens.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=355"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.imagingtheheavens.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=355"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.imagingtheheavens.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=355"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}