Introspectives

We have all asked this question at one point or another in our respective lives. The question can only be answered by how determined we are to find out the truth. We can try and guess at the answer and even make up our own thoughts and ideas, but we will never know the truth if we don't go to the source. The only information we do have is given to us in the pages of the bible. Yet,. that's not enough to fully grasp the fullness of who God is. To truly understand who God is, we must make ourselves available to be taught. How do i make myself available to be taught? Jesus Christ, the son of God, is the only way to true knowledge. Jesus must be accepted into your life. Different denominations have different views on how this is done, but Jesus says: " Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me." Rev. 3:20. So, this is why it's important to go straight to the source. Jesus clearly says, just open the door. And this means keeping an open mind and heart, as Jesus teaches us what true life and living are all about. Our first and most important lesson is: We don't know. And we don't until we're taught. When searching for who God is, the answer is found in Jesus, and in him alone. Once accepting Jesus as your teacher, he will lead you through real life circumstances that will show us exactly who God is and what he's about. And the best part? We will become more and more like our teacher Jesus, as we progress from one lesson to the next, holy and acceptable to God our creator. C. Makepeace Author, devoted student of Jesus Christ Who Is God? The Bible does not give one specific definition of God. Instead, it assumes God's existence from the beginning and reveals His nature and work throughout. God is understood as the supreme being and the creator of the universe. God is Our Creator The Bible begins with the statement, "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth" (Genesis 1:1, NIV). This verse introduces the notion that God initiated the existence of the world through a deliberate and purposeful act of creation. God is thought to have brought the universe into existence without pre-existing materials. This idea emphasizes God's absolute power and sovereignty over all of creation. God continues to sustain and uphold the universe. In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul writes, "In him [Christ] all things hold together" (Colossians 1:17, NIV), suggesting God's ongoing role in maintaining the order and existence of the world. The act of creation is often seen as a manifestation of God's glory and creative wisdom. Psalm 19:1 expresses this sentiment: "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands" (NIV). Understanding God as the Creator of the universe provides a framework for understanding the nature of God and humanity's place in the world. God is the Holy Trinity The Trinity refers to the understanding of God as one essence existing eternally in three distinct persons: Father, Son (Jesus Christ), and Holy Spirit. The Trinity asserts that there is one God—that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit share the same divine essence. The concept of the Trinity is not explicitly laid out in a single biblical passage but is inferred from various biblical teachings, such as the Great Commission, where Jesus speaks, referencing each entity. "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen." (Matthew 28:19-20). Each person of the Trinity is understood to have distinct roles while sharing the same divine nature. The Father is often associated with the role of creator and source, the Son with redemption and revelation (especially in the Incarnation of Jesus), and the Holy Spirit with sanctification and empowerment. The relationships within the Trinity are considered eternal and unchanging. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have existed in a perfect and loving relationship from eternity past. This eternal communion reflects the idea that God is inherently relational. The Trinity is often described as a divine mystery, acknowledging that human language and thought are limited when trying to grasp the nature of God. It goes beyond our ordinary understanding of unity and plurality. The work of redemption involves the Father sending the Son, Jesus Christ, into the world for the salvation of humanity and the Holy Spirit's role in convicting, guiding, and empowering believers. David Sanford Christianity.com

Have you ever given thought to this question? Not just my likes and dislikes, but who really am I? What have I been created for? For the most part, most of us have accepted Jesus in our lives to be our lord and master, yet how far are we willing to live out that statement? We say he is our lord and master, yet we don't follow him as closely as we should, in order for us to find out the answers. We spend so much of our time working to survive, and thats all we are doing surviving. We never truly thrive until we give 100% all of our attention to our spiritual teacher and guide, Jesus. Jesus is the bridge to our creator, and our creator has all the answers to any question we could ever possibly have. So who am I? The only way to honestly have that question answered, is to let God be God in your life. God is so creative, only he knows what he's created, and he knows the best way to grow it into maturity. Yet, this never happens if we are content being our own god, and eeking out an existence from birth to death. And is this not what we do? Some of us have followed our passion, and worked out a profession, doing what we really love to do, yet most of us have not. We work a job we can barely tolerate. Look at this worlds system. We work three quarters of our lives in our chosen career. We save as much money as we can to live on when we finally stop working. We have spent so much time and energy on something, that in the end, really doesn't matter. And if we had taken the time to work with our creator for him to mature what he put in us we could have used that time to nurture and develop who we really are, and do what we were created to be and do. There are some of the most beautiful voices you have ever heard sing squeeking out a life working at the local retail store. There's a great artist wasting time and talent working at the fast food restaurant. The next great pastor of our time is working at a warehouse in the middle of nowhere. God knows what he created when he created us, and he knows what gift, talent, and abilities he installed in every single one of us. Yet, we have wandered so far from our God we will never know what's in us until we return to God to let him show us. We've all felt like something is missing or something is out of place, and it is. If we are not doing what we were built for, we will always feel out of place, because we are. Come to God, and give him total access to all of who you are. God will lead you into who you are, and what you were designed for if we stay faithful to the process. and it is a process. Just as we progress from babies to where we are now, it's the same process being taught who we are. There will be experience after experience, some triumphs, some utter failures. Yet, trust God through the process as he brings us from who we created to the person he created, you won't be disappointed. There is no better feeling than when you truly discover who you are, and doing what you were created for. This is a deep subject with a lot more to study,. but to put this into the simplest of terms. The only way to truly discover who you are, is to come to God the creator, and allow him time and opportunity for him to teach you. Be blessed in your understanding. C. Makepeace Author, devoted student of Jesus Christ. What is the answer of Who am I? Answering the question "who am I?" is a complex task that requires introspection and reflection. It is a question that has puzzled philosophers, psychologists, and thinkers for centuries. The answer varies from person to person, as everyone has a unique set of experiences, values, and beliefs that shape their identity. Wikipedia Final thought: To sum up the question "who am I"? Only the artist can explain his art, and only the creator can explain the creations function. God knows what he created when he formed you. Come to him and him alone to find any and all answers to any question you may have. Be Blessed.

Our creator has put one mandate on us, and that is to believe. Sounds simple, until it's time to put what we say we believe into practical real life application. Yet, this is exactly what our creator expects us to do.When we were first born we knew nothing about nothing, and had to be taught and learn everything about ourselves, our surroundings, etc. Everything we learned we learned from experience. We first learned how to stand up, then it went to pushing ourselves across the floor, to standing straight up and using our legs to walk. Same with talking and communication. when we were babies the only way we could communicate is to cry. It was up to our caregivers to decipher what the cry meant. are you hungry? tired and cranky? gassy and uncomfortable? The more time the caregiver spent with us, the easier they could decipher what our cries meant, because they have been around us long enough to understand our communication. yet again, it had to be learned. The older we became, we learned how to put words together to communicate instead of just crying. Point at hand is , we progress as we learn more about whatever we're studying and/or being taught. None of us have seen God, and all we have to go by is the words of the bible, until we go further and let God be God in our life. The bible is God's word and tells us exactly what we need to know about anything pertaining to us, our creator, and everything in between. The bible only becomes real when it is lived, meaning it's just words until we put it in practice in our lives. God expects us to continue to grow and mature, as we strengthen our system of belief. And, we grow and mature as we keep our trust open and honest towards our God who leads us through experience after experience in real life that proves to us what the words of the bible mean, and how true and authentic they truly are. C. Makepeace Author, devoted student of Jesus Christ Jesus Christ Christians believe that Jesus was the Son of God, fully human and fully divine. They believe that Jesus died for humanity's sins, rose from the dead, and will return at the end of time. Christians believe that salvation can only be achieved by believing in Jesus and following his teachings. Salvation Christians believe that salvation is freedom from sin and the penalty of separation from God. They believe that believers can struggle with sin while living on earth, but can overcome it by studying the Bible, following the Holy Spirit, and asking for forgiveness. Eternal life Christians believe that those who believe in Jesus and follow his teachings will inherit eternal life. Generative AI

This is the single most important aspect of our human condition that has to be learned, practiced and mastered. We should pay just as much attention to our spirit nature as we do our physical nature, if not more-so. We do good by faithfully attending our local church services, but, as faithful as we are as going to "school", we should be aware of what we're being taught. It's not enough to only learn and never apply what we're learning to our lives, and when we attend church, we are learning life giving and life sustaining information. So, our spiritual nature isn't just something we do, it's what we become as we progress further and further into our journey of understanding. And this is a journey. It will take us a lifetime to master our spiritual nature if we master it at all. We are constantly learning and evolving either closer to holiness, or further away from it. There has to come a point in our lives when we open and honestly not only accept Jesus as our lord and savior, but 100% agree to follow him wherever he may lead. Jesus will lead us to holiness, but the path crosses poverty, the path crosses sickness, the path crosses uncertainty and requires blind trust. This is where we too often fall short. We don't want to give up our authority over our lives, we fight to the bitter end to keep our level of comfort and lifestyle we have grown accustomed to. The only way to true spiritual life is through Jesus teaching us, and that includes going through those hard beaten pathways. But the end will be a trust being built on the one true God, because he provided for us when we were broke, he healed us when were sick, and he led and loved us when we had no clue which way to go or how to get there. The only way to true understanding is following Jesus through those real life teaching moments, and sad to say it requires a certain level of discomfort. Yet, in the end we will have developed a real and tangible relationship with our creator, which is exactly what all this about, us reconnecting to our holy God. C. Makepeace Author, devoted student of Jesus Christ Living “life in the Spirit” can be described as a way of setting our hearts on the leadings of the Holy Spirit. In his Letter to the Romans, St. Paul is very clear that the power of the Holy Spirit is an integral part of the gospel that he had traveled the world proclaiming. According to Paul, we all have some areas of our lives which are of God and very pleasing to him, and others which are not so good. Paul understood that only by living in the Spirit can we continue to build up those parts that are pleasing and gradually do away with the parts that are sinful and displeasing. Paul was realistic about how challenging this can be. In one of his most famous passages in Romans, he cries out, “I don’t understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate” (Romans 7:15). Doesn’t our own experience confirm this dilemma? Each of us has our own forms of erratic behavior. In one setting, we can be generous to a fault yet, in another setting, we can be completely selfish. At one moment we are kind and thoughtful, and in the next moment we are angry and intolerant. Is this the way God wants us to live? Does he really want us to be haphazard in our actions? To use Paul’s words, does God really want us to be alternately controlled by the Holy Spirit one moment and by our selfish desires the next moment (Romans 8:5)? Brothers and sisters, God does not want us to act and think haphazardly. He wants us to be able to know whether our thoughts come from the Holy Spirit, from the devil, or from our own fallen nature. He doesn’t want us to be left wondering whether our thoughts and actions are pleasing to him. No, he wants us to know that we really can recognize when our behavior is of him and when it isn’t. He wants to assure us that we have the power of the Holy Spirit to help us grow in our ability to discern God’s will and the movements of his Spirit within us. The Word Among Us