June/July, 2013 Blessed Magazine

June/July 2013

You Don’t Want to Hear This!

Are we being HONEST about our earnings?

Exclusive Interview

Best Summer Get-a-ways

Church Hopping When your church is not satisfying your spiritual needs

Living to PLEASE GOD Being cautious of how we represent the Kingdom

UNDERSTANDING

BETRAYAL The thoughts of JUDAS

Ordinary People Living Extraordinary Lives through the LOVE and POWER of JESUS CHRIST

CONTENTS

Living to Please God Being cautious of how we represent the Kingdom

Page 10 You Don’t Want to Hear This!

Are we being honest about our earnings?

Page 14 Understanding Betrayal The thoughts of Judas

Page 18 Suzanne Sanders “I survived Mommy Dearest Because of Faith”

Page 30 Church Hopping When your church is not satisfying your spiritual needs

Page 36 Best Summer Get-a-ways Traveling on a budget? We got you covered

Page 42

Special Thanks to……

God, the Father who without His vision, this issue would not be made possible Jesus, the Son who has guided and directed our paths to continue planting seeds of hope to those who are lost

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My loving parents who have generously given their love and support for my endeavor to continue the work of the Lord

To our supporters and subscribers. Without your support, Blessed Magazine would not be where it is today Content Writers

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Are you looking for someone to speak to your group on Anger Management?

Laraine Turner Suzanne Sanders Eric Rodes Alvalyn Lundgren Graphic Designer

Certified Behavioral Therapist

Nancy Turner

Laraine Turner

Over 15 Years of Experience Blessed Magazine welcomes all inspiring writers to send us your ideas/stories for review to contact@blessedmagazine.org

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Letter from the Editor A HEART that KEEPS on GIVING Sister Laraine Turner

“I love the LORD, for He heard my voice; He heard my cry for mercy.

Because He turned His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live�

Psalms 116:1-2 Welcome to another uplifting, inspiring issue of Blessed Magazine!

This issue and every issue is dedicated to all of us who are pursuing a ministry of giving and compelling others to know and love the Lord with all our heart, mind and soul I am very confident that this issue will enlighten you from the many topics I have compiled inside. My mission is to discuss issues that directly relate to our way of life and our walk with Jesus I welcome your comments and suggestions for articles to include in upcoming issues. We are in this together and are all striving for the same reward; Heaven May God continue to Bless you with His many riches and mercy

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10

Living to Please God

by Laraine Turner

Many individuals become overwhelmed when faced with the question; “Am I living a life that pleases God?” If you are like most, this will be a subject of interest to explore what pleases God and discover if our lives in lining up to that task I remember when I was first introduced to the Lord. After the initial tarry service of asking God to forgive me of all my sins, the conductor of the service asked me to tell the congregation what God had done for me. “He saved me!” I shouted and was then told to seek the baptism of the Holy Ghost I went home and as I was riding in my parents car, I looked up into the night sky and had this desire of doing all I could to show God how happy and appreciative I was to be counted worthy of receiving Him into my life, my heart Like me, many of you had that same joy and zeal to do, say and show God how grateful we were to be in His family After many years of living our lives for the Lord, are we still displaying that same joy and zeal to do, say and show Him that we are still grateful? Does our lives depict that of a saved person or have we fallen away and become consumed with our every day lives?

In the book of 1 Thessalonians, 4th chapter; the Apostle Paul in writing a letter to the church at Thessalonians while he himself was in Athens begged the Thessalonians to live a life that would please God. He instructed them to refrain from fornication, lust, uncleanness, defrauding and learn how to possess their body in sanctification and honour In all that we do as Believers in the faith, our goal in this life should be to please God! Many of us get caught up in trying to please one another. Our boss, our spouse and our children, but our center of attention should be to please God. In Proverbs 16:7 it states; When a man's ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him. The word of God has made it very clear that when we please God, everything else will fall into place Pleasing God is no mystery, nor should it be a difficult task. When we confessed our sins unto the Lord for forgiveness and believed that He was faithful to forgive and forget, that should be enough to want to please God in all that we do. But are we?

One way of living to please God is bearing of fruit. As Believers in the faith, our daily lives should be reflected upon as mirrors of God‟s word drawing lost souls unto Jesus. It‟s not the talk, but the walk that reveals the identity of a Believer and through our lives, Jesus will draw sinners unto Him Another way of living to please God is wanting to know Him earnestly. God‟s word is the key to getting to know Him

Through God‟s word, we can fully understand what God desires and how we can truly live a life that pleases Him. There‟s no guessing, but straight facts directly provided to us through the

“It’s not the talk, but the walk that reveals the identity of a Believer and through our lives, Jesus will draw sinners unto Him” inspiration of the Holy Ghost for us to follow Pleasing God also includes the action of true brotherly love towards everyone. In 1 John 4:20 it states: If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? Love is the key to pleasing God and without love we cannot please Him. Within love there is patience and longsuffering for others and as Believers of the faith, we must exercise this type of love to please God And finally, being grateful for what God has done for us. This point is so easily overlooked because as humans we have the tendency to desire more than what we have, but this should not be. Imagine for a moment that you gave someone a gift out of the kindness of your heart that they had been wanting, but later found out they were unhappy with it. How would that make you feel? Well, imagine how God who supplies our needs and some of our wants sees and hears us complaining. We thank God for what He's given us, but at

the same time feeling he should have given us more. This displeases God. As Believers we must be content and grateful for whatever God supplies us and keep in mind that the material things and desires of our heart here on earth are all temporary; we are destined to live with Jesus in a land where the streets are gold and the gates are pearled. No more crying. No more dying. No more sorrows of this world to plague us and every need shall be met beyond our imagination

All things pertaining to this life is temporary. Live a life that is pleasing to God to live with Jesus forever in His glory

Final thought: Living a life that pleases the Lord can be simple if we apply it daily to our lives. Keeping ourselves in prayer and in the word of God will definitely guide us in our quest to please God in every aspect of our lives

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14

You Donâ€&#x;t Want Are We Being Honest

to Hear This!

About our Earnings?

The bible told us of a story about a husband and his wife we decided to be dishonest about how much they sold their land for and for this dishonesty, both after being confronted fell dead at Apostle Peter‟s feet – Acts 5: 1-20 How many of us today are following the path of this couple? Are we being honest about our earnings or are we only reporting a portion of what we actually are collecting from our employer or side business?

Like Ananias and Sapphira we are in danger of losing out on our blessings when we are dishonest about our earnings When we work for an employer and receive a check for our services, we know that we should set aside to tithe 10%, but what about when we do odd jobs such as babysitting, mowing a lawn for a neighbor or working from home? Any money that we earn whether its from an employer or working on the side, this income is subject to be tithed Being dishonest about money we earn goes hand in hand with the scripture „For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows‟ - 1 Timothy 6:10 As Believers our love and focus should be to do all we can to obey God‟s word and this means in all we do; especially with our money. When we contribute what we are obligated to give to the house of God, we are fulfilling His commandment, but when we give place for the enemy to enter into our heart and mind, we stray away from God and open the door for other sorrows to plaque our lives As a reminder, setting up treasures here on

this earth, in this life is not what God intended for us to do, but in His word He clearly stated to - Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven – Matthew 6: 19-20 Be faithful in all things unto the Lord especially with our money to inherit the blessings of the Lord in all things

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said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with “Jesus a kiss?� At that very moment, one can only imagine what was going through the mind of Judas as he planted the kiss of betrayal on the cheek of Jesus Many scholars have written stories about the encounter between Jesus and Judas, but this article will focus on what might have been on the mind of Judas before, during and after the betrayal of Jesus Thirty pieces of silver was the price Judas agreed upon to betray Jesus to the Pharisees and those who opposed Him. Was it greed? Power? No one knows specifically why Judas was chosen to betray Jesus, but what we do know is that Jesus 18

Understanding Betrayal

The Thoughts of Judas

said to his disciples that He had chosen twelve, and one of them was a devil? (John 6:70). Before the great commission to sacrifice His life for us, Jesus knew what must take place Our purpose of this exclusive article is to explore the thoughts of Judas and what might had been on his mind as well as discuss betrayal and how it affects Christians today Please keep in mind that this article is just a discussion and any facts we list within its contents will be outlined with scripture references. No one knows for certain what took place within the heart and mind of Judas. We will build our story on the facts listed in the Holy Bible Story continued on page 23

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money. Did Judas do this for the love of money? Again, no one knows the absolute reason why he sought council with the Chief Priests and Pharisees, but we do know that he settled for thirty pieces of silver which in those days would have made life a lot easier

Before the Betrayal – (Meeting with the Chief Priests and Pharisees) The bible states that Judas secretly met with the Chief Priests and Pharisees to inquire what they would give him to turn Jesus over to them (Matthew 26:14-16) and they agreed upon a price of thirty pieces of silver. From that moment, Judas observed opportunities to deliver on his promise Now the question we want to explore is why? Why would Judas who had walked, talked and witnessed the many miracles that Jesus had performed in his presence have the desire to even think of betraying Jesus?

We have already concluded that Jesus knew one of His disciples was a devil and that betrayal was inevitable. However, in the mind of Judas, what could he had been thinking?

In reading the passage from the bible prior to Judas meeting with the Chief Priests and Pharisees, it seems as though the woman with the alabaster box was so upsetting to Judas that he might have sought vengeance for the waste of precious oil poured on Jesus‟ head. Judas along with the other disciples felt that the ointment should have been sold instead of wasted. So did this prompt Judas to seek council with those who opposed Jesus? Was Judas offended at the answer in which Jesus replied? One might conclude that Judas was greedy for money

Night of the Betrayal – (Jesus Reveals the Betrayal) On the night that Jesus and His disciples met in the upper room to share in the Last Supper, Jesus made a statement which shocked not only Judas, but all His disciples “Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me” (Matthew 26:21) Jesus stated this right before taking part in the communion Now the question Judas asked Jesus “Lord is it I” might have come as a shock to the many readers of the bible, but it equally must have been a shock for Judas as well.

He might have thought to himself, “Does Jesus know about my agreement? How did Jesus find out about my deal with the Chief Priests? Again, we can only imagine what might have been going through the mind of Judas, but if it were I in his shoes, my heart would have skipped many beats because the Son of God knows that I am the one who He has stated would betray Him. I also wonder if Judas had second thoughts about going through with the plan to betray Jesus

after Jesus confirmed that it was indeed him Now John 13:27 states that Satan entered into Judas and Jesus said unto him; “That thou doest, do quickly” So, did Judas have a choice in what was to take place in the life of Jesus? As you remember from the beginning, Jesus stated that He had chosen the twelve and one of them was a devil.

Did Judas have a choice in the matter? Could he had changed his mind? Makes you wonder about the scripture in Proverbs 16:4 where it states “The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil” It seems evident that Judas did not really comprehend who Jesus really was. Judas did not have the faith in Jesus as the other chosen.

Because of his unbelief and sense of greed for money, he was easily persuaded to be chosen by Satan to deliver the blow to Jesus. Judas had a choice clear up until Satan entered him, but the love of money is truly the root of all evil (1 Timothy 6:10)

that Judas' kiss of betrayal was a sign to the mob who came to arrest Jesus that he was the one to arrest. A kiss was, and still is, a common greeting custom in the Middle East. Using it in this way was the ultimate hypocrisy During this time in the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus and His disciples were praying unto the Father (well Jesus was praying) and when Jesus had ended His prayer unto the Father, He knew the time was at hand for the last chapter in His life to be fulfilled As we remember, Jesus had dismissed Judas to go do what he had purposed to do earlier during the Last Supper and Judas did just that. Knowing that he was to gain thirty pieces of silver for his role, he approached Jesus with a band of guards One might ask, why did Judas bring such a large crowd with him? A clear answer to that is Judas although he lacked faith in Jesus, he still remembered what power Jesus possessed and so did the Chief Priests and Pharisees Upon arriving at the garden of Gethsemane, Judas had already signified how Jesus would be identified. “Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he: hold him fast” (Matthew 26:48)

The Betrayal – (The Infamous Kiss)

But Jesus said unto him, “Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss?” (Luke 22:48) Before we explore the depths of the betrayal act, we must first understand why Judas chose to betray Jesus with a kiss According to Wiki-Answers.com, many agree that

Immediately after receiving the sign from Judas, the band of guards took hold of Jesus and led Him away

Judas; what must have been going through his mind seeing Jesus being led away.

Many scholars have concluded and I must agree that Judas somewhere in his heart felt that it would be Jesus who could and would overthrow the Romans. As we remember, Judas was very greedy when it involved Story continued page 28

money, but it also involved power and with such power from Jesus, he would eventually gain that power. Oh how it must have been very confusing for Judas to see Jesus willingly go with the guards. Could Judas had thought to himself; “Was Jesus who He said He was?”

Here is this great teacher who has done so many miracles, yet He does nothing to defend Himself! I could only imagine what might had been the thought of Judas

After the Betrayal – (Jesus is Sentenced to Death) Could you only imagine how Judas felt as he discovered that the Chief Priests and Pharisees had plotted all along to have Jesus put to death and that he was the reason for the wheels of death to begin turning?

Judas no doubt must have remembered what Jesus had stated during the Last Supper; “Woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not been born” (Matthew 26:24) It can only be imagined that at this point in the game, Judas was panicking because his plan had not unfolded as he had predicted. And, as we have read in Matthew 27:3-5 - Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood.

And they said, What is that to us? see thou to

that, and he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed and went and hanged himself

For a brief moment when Judas came to his senses, he realized that he had condemned the Son of God to death!

The guilt and shame that Judas must have felt and how he imagined how Jesus and the rest of the disciples would look upon him for this act. It was just too much for him to bear and therefore again, Satan entered into him and convinced him that killing himself was his only escape We can continue to speculate on how Judas felt and what must have been going through his mind during the course of all these events, but one thing we all can agree upon; Judas was chosen and open to do what he did. He had a choice and made his choice. Whether it was for greed or power, in the end the mistakes he made, he paid for them with his life As Christians, we also have a choice to make and like Judas, we have the choice to deny Jesus or accept Jesus. We pray that you make the right choice God Bless You and we sincerely hope that this article has ignited your curiosity to explore God‟s word and get to know Jesus as your personal Savior

Suzanne Sanders 30

“I Survived Mommy

Dearest Because of Faith�

All of us start out in life a clean slate with no bad thoughts or unhappiness expected when you are a child of God in this world. All we worry about as children is where are our toys, when to eat and the changing of the next diaper. I was born into an affluent family as the daughter of a handsome Doctor who looked like Jimmy Stewart and a mother who looked like Betty Garble Everyone envied me because I lived in a beautiful house, drove nice cars and went on fabulous vacations. I had one brother who grew up to be a college professor and to the out side world life could not be better.

However the inside world was another story Life should have been wonderful, but it wasn't, I blame most of it to the fact my father rescued my mother from an alcoholic family

and she never received the nurturing she needed as a child. Everything was about appearances and jealousies of any attention my father showed anyone including me. I was the other woman in my fathers life as far as my mother was concerned and it showed to those who knew us well. My father on the other hand was so kind and considerate that he paid very little attention to my mothers behavior passing it off to just don't make your mom mad and everything will be O.K. It was living like a Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Things were better when I was younger but grew worse as my Mother aged and she also turned to drinking to numb her problems and to pills to get up, go to sleep, lose weight and feel better. I call it her Valley of the Dolls era, as we did not understand what booze and pills did to the brain at that time. My saving grace was my father who took me to Sunday school and church while my Mom slept in My Dad was a kind and generous man who was loved by his patients and who was ready to help those in need. I remember huge bags of corn, potatoes, tomatoes left on our door step by farmer patients my Dad had delivered their babies and did not charge them because they were struggling. So I got use to giving away things because stuff was always showing up on our door step from those patients. My Mother always complained about my Dads generosity but he ignored her and did it anyway. He would say" How much money do we really need to be happy, and what's wrong with helping others when you can afford to do it." I was actually quite lucky in all this to have him for my Dad and to have his spirit in me and on the other hand I had my Mothers looks as I really wouldn't want to look like Jimmy Stewart My Mothers looks took me a long way in life as I grew up and won the Miss San Antonio 1966 beauty pageant, which changed my life.

All of a sudden I got some attention I had never had before and my smart brother had to

take a back seat for the first time in his life During all this time I still went to church every Sunday and helped my Dad in different charitable endeavors including the Lions Club. I said my prayers every night and would pray that God would help my Mother to do better and to save me from turning out like her. I would tell God if you can help me to be a better person I will use my life to help those who can not help themselves. Little did I know how important that prayer would be till I grew older.

Because of my faith in God I forgave my Mother as I knew because if her childhood she could not help herself. My parents grew up and were educated when there was no counseling for your emotional problems, the attitude back then was keep it to yourself and just deal with it and it will go away. We now know that it does not go away and can ruin your life if you let it. My faith saved me because I believed we can make a decision on how much we let those things ruin our lives and how long we allow it to go on

Life went on as usual, my wearing resale clothes while my brother wore Neiman Marcus, I felt like Cinderella. He could do no wrong, I could do no right, as far as my mother was concerned. I ask for help from the school counselors, no one listened because we looked like the perfect family to the outside world Life went on as usual, my wearing resale clothes while my brother wore Neiman Marcus, I felt like Cinderella.

He could do no wrong, I could do no right, as far as my mother was concerned. I ask for help from the school counselors, no one listened because we looked like the perfect family to the outside world Besides all teenagers have problems, why

mine any different But it was different, I could see that my mother needed some help, which was hard to find in those days. When I ask my Dad for help for her, I would become the enemy to my mother for suggesting such a thing. So the day came when I was old enough to get myself some help, so I did. I went to counseling as soon as I moved out of the house and have gone back 4 more time during my 65 years to clear my mind and to get assistance on how I'm feeling and how to deal with it. I also pray for guidance and put things in the hands of God that I know I can not change other-wise and do make the effort to change what I can What I can change is my outlook on life and how I feel everyday. So many abused children grow up to be angry and to carry on the abuse to their own children and everyone around them. I made it my goal not to pass this down line, to honor the good rather than the ugly and I have happy healthy sons because of it. I have a handsome grandson who got all the good we had to offer, my moms looks and my dads brains and spirit. I did not want to spread the evil that my mother was subjected to and my biggest regret was I could not help to save her as no one else wanted to save her. Since then my father has passed away and my mother is in a nursing home for the demented. My smart brother turned out gay and died of AIDS long before his time, so I am the only survivor to this day I spend my life helping others, as I prayed to God I would do if he saved me from my Cinderella life. I grew up to be a Real Estate Agent and retired as a Mortgage Loan Officer I'm the 15 year President of the Guadalupe County

county Inter-Agency for Social Services, I'm a 16 year member of the Seguin Sunrise Lions Club, who I joined because of all the good they do to help children. I spend my retired time recruiting disabled kids to go to Lions Camp, selling Lions Christmas trees in December, doing fund raising for our Lions car show and bike and run race at T.L.U. From April to September I Chair the Seguin I.S.D and Lions Stuff The Bus project which help 2000 low income kids get school supplies for the past 24 years. Everyone ask me why I spend so much time doing charity work, I should relax and sit back and enjoy my retirement. I tell them I am enjoying it, to the fullest. Doing things that help others is enjoyable. It makes me feel as good as it does for them. Being charitable is Gods work, Jesus preached to all of us to help the poor and we need to listen Most of them can not help themselves and your life will be full if you are involved in helping others. It has brought me wonderful friends, great volunteers and a joy in life you can get no other way. It lifts the spirit and carries you through the rough times. I've been through two floods in my home, three health problems I should have died from and an abusive mother and ex husband. If your busy helping others you don't have time to sit and brood and be miserable about what someone did to you. You'll be out and about working with good hearted people and it will do more for you than it does for them. It's to late for my Mommy Dearest, but it is never to late for me or for you if you are a victim of abuse. Yes you need counseling, go and cry your eyes out and then make the decision to end it and get on with your life being happy and helping others

Want to share your story with our readers?

Email us at contact@blessedmagazine.org

Suzanne Sanders

Marshall and Scott

Scott and Natalie

Scott

Family Portrait

Scott, Marshall and BJ

Church When Your Church is not

36

Hopping

Satisfying Your Spiritual Needs

By Eric Rodes and Alvalyn Lundgren

Many of us have tried our best, frequenting several churches to find a "right fit", only to become increasingly apprehensive of the church going experience People church hop because they are not satisfied with their current church and feel that they are missing out. Maybe you are not feeling that spiritual connection with God and feel empty when you leave church. Well, if this is you, then we hope this article will help you to understand what‟s really happening in your life Church hopping is wrong. It opens the door for the enemy to have recess in your mind. “I‟m bored”, “I got nothing out of church today”.

These thoughts are seeds being planted from the enemy and once those seeds begin to sprout, you will begin feeling uneasy at church looking at the grass at other churches thinking its better Church hopping can leave you feeling discouraged. Every church has its problems and if you are looking for the perfect church, then you‟re going to have to wait until Jesus comes and collects it We‟ve become a society of consumers, and how we view our church attendance is really no different. We are all looking for a church that packages its product the way we like it. For some people, any excuse to leave a church will do. With this in mind, here are some reasons why I think church hopping is a bad for a Christian‟s spiritual health. In no particular order: It makes you a critic and not a humble learner. A person who finds himself hopping from church to church over a short period of time approaches every church situation with a critical eye having in mind a particular list of characteristics that he expects a church to fulfill. I‟m not saying we shouldn‟t have certain priorities in mind when we‟re deciding where to worship, but the church hopper‟s default

position is to be critical and this makes it difficult for him to be a humble learner. A person cannot learn when he is always looking for someone else to make a mistake.

There is no church that will satisfy in every way, the church hopper uses this reality as an excuse to move on It promotes a lack of community. In 13 years of marriage, my wife and I have lived in three states. One thing we‟ve found to be consistently true for us is that the first year in a new place is tough. It is hard to find a church and build relationships. We‟ve found that it takes two to three years to really build authentic community. The church hopper never really experiences the benefits of community because they aren‟t around long enough, and their critical nature keeps them from allowing themselves to vulnerable enough for authentic community to happen It promotes a lack of authenticity. For the extreme church hopper, this is likely the reason they keep moving on. Some church hoppers are hopping because they are hiding a sense of shame, and they really don‟t want to be known by others. The fact is that if you are around the same people long enough, you will see their flaws, and they will see yours.

It is not a bad thing to know the flaws of others, nor is it a bad thing for someone to know yours. It is in working through our flaws together that we learn true patience and love for one another in Christ. This sort of authenticity, though sometimes difficult, is really important to our spiritual growth and for the health of the church as a whole. The church hopper never gets to experience the sort of authenticity that fosters spiritual growth in Christ It avoids accountability. Related to authentic community, accountability to our brothers and sisters is important for our spiritual maturity. Some church hoppers hop because they refuse to deal with conflict or refuse to

repent when there is a legitimate sin issue in their lives that is affecting the health of the church It shows a propensity to be like our culture and not like Christ. Our culture is built upon consumerism. Take more and more, consume more and more. Expand your territory. The Church is built on upon the sacrifice of Christ. The Church is supposed to represent a culture of sacrificial giving to others for their benefit. The church hopper is a consumer who is looking to take for themselves in order to fill their bottomless pit of neediness It allows us to make our “pet issues” primary. There are all sorts of issues that divide Christians and churches. Most of these are really issues of secondary importance, but human nature being what it is, we all want to win the argument. When we desperately need others to agree with us this is a sign of our own insecurity. Many people church hop because they can‟t stand the thought that they might be wrong on some of these secondary issues and they are looking for a group to reinforce their beliefs on secondary issues. This is bad for our spiritual health because it does not allow us to really listen to the voices of other Christians and makes our view of Christianity very narrow.

Worse, it can cause us to view our fellow Christians in a self-righteous way, denigrating their faith because they don‟t agree with us over something secondary Conclusion: Stop church-hopping and land somewhere. Stop making church all about you and your wants and instead make it about Jesus and where He wants you to be.

Allow the Holy Spirit to put you in the body where He wants you. It will be a sure fit.

Submit to His lead, participate, tithe and get involved. Plant yourself, take root, grow and bear fruit

Best Sum

42

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South Padre Island is located at the southernmost tip of Texas and minutes, from Matamoras, Mexico

The Isla Grand Beach Resort offers 128cabana rooms located in our 2-story building featuring views of Tropical Foliage, pools, along with beach views.

Cabana rooms accommodate up to 4-ppl with 2-double beds, or you may request 1-king size bed with sofa sleeper.

Majority of our rooms have Sleep Number beds for you to control your comfort while you sleep.

Our Beachfront Cabanas Feature: •Patio or Balcony •32” Television with 74- DIRECTV channels •Sleeper Sofas in selective rooms (inquire) •Iron and Ironing Board •Hairdryer •Mini-refrigerators •Free Wireless Internet •Digital In Room Safe Rates start at $189/night Website www.islagrand.com

Grand Canyon, AZ Recognized as one of the great seven natural wonders of the world, the sheer majesty and beauty of the Grand Canyon is unsurpassed. It is truly breathtaking.

When you stay at Grand Canyon National Park Lodges you're not just

close - You're there!

You have a choice of accommodations from seven distinctly different Grand Canyon lodging properties and experiences, all in the park.

All of our guests aged 16 and under stay free in the same room with a paying adult Accommodations: Phantom Ranch Maswik Lodge El Tovar Kachina Lodge Thunderbird Lodge Yavapai Lodge Trailer Village Rates start at $166/night Website www.grandcanyonlodges.com

Great America Theme Park, CA California’s Great America is Northern California’s biggest and best choice for world-class family fun and thrills. New for 2013: Gold Striker, the tallest and fastest wooden roller coaster in Northern California. In addition, Snoopy and his friends return in the summer ice spectacular Happiness Is Snoopy! California’s Great America is home to the most rides and most water rides in Northern California. Plus, it is the only theme park in California to offer a complete water park inside – free with park admission. In Fall, the park also features Halloween Haunt, the ultimate Halloween extravaganza featuring walk-through mazes, scare zones, and Halloween themed rides and shows. The 100-acre theme park is located on Great America Parkway between highways 101 and 237 in Santa Clara, Calif.

Open March through October Hotel Rates start at $79/night Ticket Prices: Adults: $59.99 Youth: $39.99 Website: www.cagreatamerica.com