GinaWhite_BennyGreenleePage20.htm

A Word From Gina & Benny's Bits

	August 2010 IS THE DEVIL BEATING YOU UP? How many times have you heard Christians say they feel shame or guilt from things that happened in the past, before they received salvation? The devil is still beating them up for things that have been forgiven and covered by the blood of Jesus long ago.
Some people ask forgiveness from God, but still can't forgive themselves, therefore, the devil causes them to live in that bondage for years, and miss out on blessings that God wants to give them. They ask forgiveness over and over for the same old sin, and God is saying "What sin?" Once you are forgiven of a sin, it is washed away to never be remembered again. You can commit new sins, but the old ones are gone forever. Wouldn't it be wonderful if people were as forgiving as God is. We may have our past thrown up in our face by others, but never by the Lord. If your past keeps haunting you, perhaps you need to forgive yourself and move on and accept the new creature that you are in Christ Jesus. The bible also says to forgive others, or God won't forgive us. If someone has wronged you and you are still holding bitterness in your heart, that person and the situation still has control of your emotions. We must forgive in order to be free to move on.		We sometimes say, Lord they don't deserve to be forgiven. They haven't asked me to forgive them. The bible says to love even our enemies, and do good tothose that do us wrong. He can't pass judgment on them as long as we are keeping his hands tied. Once we release forgiveness, then God is free to handle the situation. I know this, first hand, as I battled with guilt over things for years, and also held anger in my heart, but once I released it, it no longer had a hold on my life, and I felt free to live the life that God intended for me to live as a born again Christian. Forgiveness can make you free, even if it's yourself you are forgiving, and unforgiveness can break you down. Don't let your past rob you of your future. God loves you unconditionally, and you are precious in His sight.
	God Bless you until next month, and keep holding on to HIS unseen hand and HE WILL KEEP HOLDING ON TO YOU!! Blessings, Gina

Benny Greenlee

                                    BENNY'S BITS

     It is with sincere honor that I accept the challenge of writing this column in this great magazine.

     When thinking about what to write, I thought about how many people we casually run into in the course of our day. As you well know, we ALL get so busy sometimes that we don’t see the pain and hurt of those around us as we go

along our way trying to get things done. I am reminded of how Jesus was NEVER too busy to stop and minister to those in need.

     Those of us that are in the ministry ( singing, preaching and helps ministries) sometimes get so busy getting done what WE want done that we forget the example of Christ. He stopped, listened and responded to those in need, even in His busy work.

     It didn’t matter if His best friend was sick unto death (Lazarus), He still took time to minister to those in need. Three days later He shows up at Mary’s and Martha’s to find out His friend had died. Sometimes we forget who is working in us to take care of the problems at hand. Jesus took care of the people and their need at both places, and never got in a hurry to move on or go elsewhere. I know that sometimes I get so anxious to get to the next THING that I forget there is work to do before I go forward.

     As a minister, (that’s not just a preacher, but any type of ministry) we MUST remember that we are in this not for money or prestige or any other reason than to touch somebody’s life, and through the power of God to see their lives changed forever.

     Jesus never put a price tag on him healing, delivering, or saving someone from their problems. Many times the Word of God says that Jesus was “moved with compassion,” and I believe that we should be as touched and moved as He was. We know that IS the GREAT EXAMPLE to all of us. So the next time your singing, preaching, or just walking through Wal-Mart (most of us practically live there), remember, someone there is in need of what YOU can give through Christ!

     Until next time, remember “TAKE TIME FOR PEOPLE“!