Angela Miller

Angela Miller
Im in love with my Lord and Savior

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Respect

Sunday in church the lesson for the children was on respect. The Virtue taught to the children: Showing others they are important by what you say and do.  Based off the bible verse: 1 Peter 2:17 Show proper respect to everyone.  The bottom line: You can show respect with your actions.

I played Inspector Respectorate ,dressed in a hazmat suit, eye wear, plastic gloves, and a hard hart.  I was dressed for the job.  I went through the audience checking the children's level of respect with my respectorate gauge, and it was awesome to see all the levels of respect. Then we played a game to where questions were asked to the children and they were to determine if it illustrated respect or disrespect. An umbrella was placed over the head of a volunteer and if he got the answer correct then he was protected from the water being poured down on him, However when the last questions was asked and he didn't know the answer, then he lost his protection and was covered in water (sin).

As children we are taught to respect our parents, teachers, and elders, school rules and traffic laws, other people's feelings and rights. . As we get older we come to value respect for such things.  We develop great respect for people we consider exemplary and lose respect for those we discover to be less than, and so we come to only respect those who we truly feel are worthy of our respect. God states in James 2:9 But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin.  You are breaking the law.
 
Check your level of respect through out your day today, don't get covered in water (sin).

Coming out of the Wilderness

At this moment I am in a bible study written by Priscilla Shirer called One In A Million......We are just finishing up week three and I am thrilled.  This bible study is awesome!!!!

This is a bible study about the Walk to the Promise Land and the path through the wilderness, by the way of the Red Sea and how God used this time to bring his people to him, to keep their eyes focused on him and to rely on him for food,water, direction, etc.  So many of the people complained, which was a complaint against god.  Although he had already provided food and water for them they continued to grumble.

When times are good that is when we tend to turn away from our relationship with God, and then turn back to him during the wilderness.  God doesn't want this he is alive he wants to have a relationship with him always.  How do you think someone you are in a relationship right now would feel if you did that to them, only turned to them in the bad times?  I doubt your relationship would last very long.  Just as our relationship weakens with god when we turn away from him, we don't have our hearts filled with his word so therefore we have a tendency to head right back to the sinful ways of our past.


In my past (wilderness), I have grumbled and didn't search for the lesson god was demonstrating, So many times I have been caught up in the situation that I didn't look for gods hand in my life.   By doing so I was forced into the wilderness, and my days were darkened by sin.  I didn't understand why god had placed me in the wilderness or allowed me to be in the wilderness for so long. As, I mature in my walk with the Lord, it makes perfect since to me today. If you want something you have to work for it.  Why would the journey be easy if your are seeking abundant living.  So the walk in the wilderness may seem dry, lonely, dark and sinful, but its when you look back at the wilderness that you see gods footprint or his work in us.  God's word can bring you comfort during your walk in the wilderness. God only provides us our daily needs, so we will continue to visit him daily. God is passionate about us.  

Glory be To God for all he has done and continues to do in our lives. 



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Saturday, September 11, 2010

One Nation Under God


Today September 11, 2010 a day that reminds us of how in one millisecond of a minute life can be changed forever. We all know the official story of September 11th; four jetliners were hijacked by groups of four or five Arabic men armed with box cutters, who proceeded to fly three of the four jets into the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. Subsequently the World Trade Center Towers, weakened by the impacts and fires, collapsed into piles of rubble. Leaving behind death of some loved ones or the individuals trapped for day, or how about the ones that were never found.

Some many times this is exactly where we are in our walk with Christ. Individuals that are hijacked by the sinful ways of this world and feel as though they are covered up from the rubble of life.  Who think"God would never ever want me", or  "I have done to many bad things for God to love me".
 When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outburst of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. Galatians 5:19-21. God loves us so much that he sacrificed his son for each person here on this earth and for each and ever sin listed. It doesn't matter the nature of your sin Isaiah 1:18 Though your sins are like scarlet I can make them as fresh as fallen snow; Though your sins are like crimson I will make them as white as wool.

God knew when he placed us here on this earth that we would sin and fall short of the lord, all he wants is for us to turn these sins over to him and to use our transgression to disciple to others.  God wants us to live as one nation under god.

Today my heart go out to the those who have lost(ed) loved ones.

Friday, September 10, 2010

Protecting the Children

My youngest daughter has reached the age of 15, she has received her learners license and put in an application for a job within one week she has hit two milestones in her little life.  

So, as a protective mother I have rewarded her with a little more leniency.  What this means is she can go the Football games with friends on the weekend, as long as a parent (mostly me) takes and picks the children up from the game.  I'm not ready for her to ride with other teenagers at this time. 


However, this may come to a stop as quick as it started.  Last weekend my daughter attended a football game with the two most rival teams playing.  Everything went fine and we picked my daughter and her two friends up from the game as soon as the game ended, in fact we were there about 30 minutes before the game was over but waiting outside the gate for the girls to leave.  We all went to bed that night and all was safe at the Miller home.


The very next morning I turned on the computer and pulled up facebook to find a post by one of my daughters close friends post of panic that her sister had been hit in the face and their cousin had been hit and then chased by approximately 30 teenage boys.  


As a parent of a teenager; I am should I say very very dishearten by the behavior of these teenagers to the point that they would cause such harm to another human and to have 30 boys chase this young man.  


I have experienced this myself around the same age of my daughter and saw the results of a young man beaten by 16 within an inch of his life.  I called my father first then the police, this is one of the most frightening adult situation for a teenager to ever face.  By doing the right thing I was punished as a child by being spat on, thrown up against lockers, mocked at for nearly  a year.  The memory of this moment to me was like it happen yesterday.


So I ask you...... How do we protect our children, Who will protect me from the Wicked?Who will stand up for me against evildoers? Psalm 94:16  Within the next few years my daughter will graduate and be off to college, then what? 

Thursday, September 9, 2010

My chains are Gone

My chains are Gone, I've been set free, My God my Saviour has rescued me. by Chris Tomlin is a song I will never forget.

As early as being around six  I remember my grandmother taking me to church in Atlanta called Mt. Carmel Christian Church, I remember thinking how big and beautiful this place was, but it also reflects a memory of a man that would get red in the face and pound the podium talking about some God man.  Boy this made me think this God person was really scary. I don't really remember anyone talking to me about god as a child of my early years.

Around the age of 10; I started attending church with my neighbor and this church had a place for kids. This is when I starting memorizing bible verses and reciting them the next week.  I remember doing crafts and I also remember accepting Jesus as my lord and Savior at the age of 13.

For many years I stopped following Jesus and experienced many of the world sins.  Much to your amazement yes I was a teenager that felt as though I was invincible.

Married and divorced twice, continued to live a sinful life until God YELLED ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!!!

I walked into the doors of Eastridge Community Church in 2005, with my daughter in tow who attended E-town this Sunday morning. While attending this service alone, I remember feeling as though I wasn't alone  and I truly loved the way this church delivered the word and feeling the Holy Spirit in me.  I was so in hopes that my daughter was comfortable in her church group. My sweet daughter and I continued to attend Eastridge and continued to feel right at home.

In 2006, I invited my now husband (Paul) to Eastridge, he accepted and on his first visit I remember asking Paul what he thought about  the church he indicated to me that he normally attended a more Traditional church, my thoughts were "Oh well I am not marrying this man so if he likes his more traditional church better;  the he could go back to his church".

Paul continued to attend ECC with me and on May 21st 2006 I was baptized.  Paul made this day very special for me.

Paul and I were married in 2007 by Scott Moore in the conference room after a Sunday church service with Tracey (Scott wife) as our witness. This is just the beginning of so many wonderful days to come for me and my family at ECC.

In 2008 I attended an event called Women of Purpose.  During this event ladies were announcing the up and coming bible studies, I remember thinking how each and every bible study sounded so good.  When the last bible study was announced by Renee Rutledge she asked the ladies in the room "How many of you ladies have attended a step study") WOW the hands that went up; So many of the ladies that I looked at with great admiration.Without a doubt I knew right then and there I want what these women have, so I signed up for my very first Bible Study.

In 2009 the new Bible Study (Step Study) at my church called Celebrate Recovery began.  The bible study made me a bit uncomfortable at first; but I knew this is exactly where god wanted to me to be at this very moment in my life.

The bible study took 9 months to complete, teaching me the 8 Principles to follow in life and the 12 steps to take in order to get there.

Of the 12 steps the one that is so relevant to me is step 6.  I was entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character from my life."Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up James 4:10
Before God could remove all the baggage in my life and heal the past hurts I had to be ready to give it over to God, I will not tell you these steps were easy because I had 40 years of garbage in my life I had to hand over to God, but I am so glad God is carrying those burdens today and not me.


Today I continue to focus on Principle 6 and "Evaluate all my relationships.  Offer forgiveness to those who have hurt me and make amends for harm I have done to others, except when to do so would harm them or others.  "Happy are the merciful,"and "Happy are the peacemakers." Matthew 5:7a and 5:9.

During this walk in my life I remember hearing Amazing Grace during a Church Service; but it was being delivered in a different way that I had ever heard before. The song by Chris Tomlin.  Some of the lines that really touched me :

My Chains are gone
I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
and like a flood His mercy rains
Unending love, Amazing Grace

Wow, that is exactly what God had done for me in my life.  He released me from the chains that had bound me in a life of sin, He set me free of all the hurts I had experienced in my past life and he Ransomed me from myself. He rained his mercy over me so I could feel free. Wow his amazing grace he bestowed on MY LIFE.

I stand truly amazed today to be the woman god had planned me to be; a light that will shine for my Lord and Savior.