What is grace?
Grace can be defined by “favor or good will”. I define it by “undeserved love”. It is the Lord God who grants grace daily. He said; “I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious”.
I speak with so many people that tell me they belong to a faith but they don’t attend services. Many tell me they don’t need to go to church because they talk to God all the time. I tell them that is good, but when does God get a chance to talk to you?
Others tell me they feel too guilty to go because they haven’t gone for a long time. Some seem to only go to church when they are going through a tough time. They only pray when they need something. They can’t seem to face Him. They feel as though He won’t help them.
I ask them, if they are parents, if your children walked away from you, or hurt you in some way would you stop loving them? Would you turn them away if they asked you for help? Of course not! Love goes beyond all human understanding. Magnify the love you have for your children or family a million times over and you will still not be able to comprehend the love God has for you.
He doesn’t hold grudges, He is incapable of hating. And, most importantly, you can’t fool Him. He is not ignorant. He knows what you need and hopes you will pray and ask anything of Him. He waits for you to come to Him. He hopes you will come to church so He can strengthen you. Why? Because faith comes from hearing the word of God. If you don’t feel you are being fed in the church you haven’t gone to for a while then find another one.
I belong to the New Apostolic Church and I can tell you I am always fed, strengthen and my faith is renewed every time I go there. If you want to know more go to http://www.nak.org/ and find out for yourself. Stop making excuses and go back! It’s still not too late to hear what God wants to say to you. He holds all of your answers in His hand. And His son is coming very soon…
Friday, October 30, 2009
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Heaven – Eternity are they the same?
It is my belief that when you die here on earth, you do not go to Heaven.
You are taken by whatever spirit you served here on earth to a “Realm” in Eternity. That may be a good situation or it may be what some people have called “Hell.” The easiest way to comprehend the “Realms” is to think of the old saying, “Birds of feather flock together.” The murderers are with the murderers, the liars are with the liars and so on. If you would like to get a pretty good idea of what the realms of the departed are like I would encourage you to watch a movie called “What Dreams May Come.” I can tell you that it is almost accurate.
Now, everyone seems to think that when Jesus told the malefactor next to him on the cross, “Today, you will be with me in Paradise” that Jesus took him to Heaven. If all we have to do is ask for forgiveness and repent before we die to get to Heaven, then why would Jesus, be coming back for a select few? Jesus took the malefactor to a “Realm” in Eternity called “Paradise.”
I ask you this question: when Jesus died, where did He go for three days? Jesus, The Son of God, didn’t even go to Heaven after He died.
The Bible states in I Peter 3:18-20 (NKJV):
“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison, who formerly were disobedient, when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water.”
Why did He do that? When the people were about to drown, they repented with an open heart and their pleas registered at God’s throne. Jesus’ death ushered in a new era called “The time of Grace.” God sent His own Son to tell these souls that soon they will be redeemed. When Jesus arose from the dead three days later, He spoke to Mary Magdalene in the garden.
It states in John 20:17 (NKJV):
Jesus said to her, "Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to my brethren and say to them, 'I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.”
Not all of these Realms are bad. Please, I don’t want to give you the impression that all of them are horrible places. They are not. We really know very little about them. All I do know is that they do exist.
You are taken by whatever spirit you served here on earth to a “Realm” in Eternity. That may be a good situation or it may be what some people have called “Hell.” The easiest way to comprehend the “Realms” is to think of the old saying, “Birds of feather flock together.” The murderers are with the murderers, the liars are with the liars and so on. If you would like to get a pretty good idea of what the realms of the departed are like I would encourage you to watch a movie called “What Dreams May Come.” I can tell you that it is almost accurate.
Now, everyone seems to think that when Jesus told the malefactor next to him on the cross, “Today, you will be with me in Paradise” that Jesus took him to Heaven. If all we have to do is ask for forgiveness and repent before we die to get to Heaven, then why would Jesus, be coming back for a select few? Jesus took the malefactor to a “Realm” in Eternity called “Paradise.”
I ask you this question: when Jesus died, where did He go for three days? Jesus, The Son of God, didn’t even go to Heaven after He died.
The Bible states in I Peter 3:18-20 (NKJV):
“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison, who formerly were disobedient, when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water.”
Why did He do that? When the people were about to drown, they repented with an open heart and their pleas registered at God’s throne. Jesus’ death ushered in a new era called “The time of Grace.” God sent His own Son to tell these souls that soon they will be redeemed. When Jesus arose from the dead three days later, He spoke to Mary Magdalene in the garden.
It states in John 20:17 (NKJV):
Jesus said to her, "Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to my brethren and say to them, 'I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.”
Not all of these Realms are bad. Please, I don’t want to give you the impression that all of them are horrible places. They are not. We really know very little about them. All I do know is that they do exist.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Angels and Demons
Before time began God created angels, spirits and everything we can see with our natural eyes and He called it good. He also created a world that can’t be seen with the natural eye but deep in the hearts of those who have faith. They know it exists.
After God created man He told the angels that they would serve man. One angel, Lucifer, the archangel of light had a problem with this idea. He told God that there was no way he would bow to man and serve him, for he had the strength of 10 men and was superior to man in every way. It was in this one brief moment that God gave angels the privilege to choose whether they would serve God’s will or their own.
Lucifer stood on one side of heaven and God stood on the other. The choice was made and one third of the angels were cast out of heaven and as they fell to earth Lucifer claimed a number of spirits and took them with him as well. Satan corrupted these angels and spirits. He created a hierarchy within his forces. He established commanders and generals over all of the earth with one mission in mind: to destroy man.
Today we face these unseen forces. Lucifer has many names now but we all know him as Satan. The fallen angels are known to us as demons. Demons play on our emotions and desires. They can directly affect our health and they can also kill us. But there is “one” who stands between us and them and it is the Lord God!
Many seem to think that God is powerless over Satan but He is not! We give Satan more power than he will ever deserve. He cannot do one thing to us without God’s permission, and often we forget that. Fear nothing and place your trust in the Lord and He will always be there to defend us.
Battles are won many ways, by sheer numbers alone or by strategy. The Lord God alone with one though could wipe out Satan and all of his forces, so I ask this one question of you: How can we lose then?
God has a plan. He made this plan before anything happened. He knows the future and he longs for things to be the way he always intended them to be, to share his kingdom with man. But God never just hands anything to us, He expects us to have faith, to trust Him and ultimately to love Him not because we fear him, but simply because we want to.
After God created man He told the angels that they would serve man. One angel, Lucifer, the archangel of light had a problem with this idea. He told God that there was no way he would bow to man and serve him, for he had the strength of 10 men and was superior to man in every way. It was in this one brief moment that God gave angels the privilege to choose whether they would serve God’s will or their own.
Lucifer stood on one side of heaven and God stood on the other. The choice was made and one third of the angels were cast out of heaven and as they fell to earth Lucifer claimed a number of spirits and took them with him as well. Satan corrupted these angels and spirits. He created a hierarchy within his forces. He established commanders and generals over all of the earth with one mission in mind: to destroy man.
Today we face these unseen forces. Lucifer has many names now but we all know him as Satan. The fallen angels are known to us as demons. Demons play on our emotions and desires. They can directly affect our health and they can also kill us. But there is “one” who stands between us and them and it is the Lord God!
Many seem to think that God is powerless over Satan but He is not! We give Satan more power than he will ever deserve. He cannot do one thing to us without God’s permission, and often we forget that. Fear nothing and place your trust in the Lord and He will always be there to defend us.
Battles are won many ways, by sheer numbers alone or by strategy. The Lord God alone with one though could wipe out Satan and all of his forces, so I ask this one question of you: How can we lose then?
God has a plan. He made this plan before anything happened. He knows the future and he longs for things to be the way he always intended them to be, to share his kingdom with man. But God never just hands anything to us, He expects us to have faith, to trust Him and ultimately to love Him not because we fear him, but simply because we want to.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
A Reason, A Season, or a Lifetime
I love this poem and below it have offered my insights on its meaning.
Original Poem- author unknown
Some come into your life for but a reason,
sent by the one that sees your heart's need.
Cry not when that friend's not in season,
but carry on and plant the next seed.
Some come into your life for a season,
and when that season is through,
the Autumn will have it's way for this reason their purpose in your life is now over,
tho' their season may come anew.
Some come into your life for a lifetime,
that companionship is so sweet.
They'll never leave you, even in strife time,
not while they yet walk on mortal feet.
Learn from all who are sent into your life-
they're sent by a friend of all.
Learn, the first time, what they've come to teach you,
all those lessons, great and small.
My insights on A Reason, A Season or a Lifetime
People come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. When you figure out which it is, you know exactly what to do.
When someone is in your life for a REASON, it is usually to meet a need you have expressed outwardly or inwardly. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide
you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally or
spiritually. They may seem like a Godsend, and they are. They are there for
the reason you need them to be Then, without any wrong doing on your part or
an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the
relationship to an end. Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away.
Sometimes they act up or out and force you to take a stand. What we must
realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled; their work is done.
The prayer you sent up has been answered and it is now time to move on.
When people come into your life for a SEASON, it is because your
turn has come to share, grow, or learn. They may bring you experience of
peace or make you laugh. They may teach you something you have never done.
They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy. Believe it! It is real!
But...only for a season.
LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons; those things you must
build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation. Your job is to
accept the lesson, love the person/people (anyway); and put what you have
learned to use in all other relationships and areas of your life. It is said
that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.
The PRESENT is the gift from God that you receive when he puts someone in
your life, whether it be for 5 seconds, five years or fifty years. God
doesn't promise us any certain time with someone and it's what we make of
that time that is our gift from God That's why we call it the PRESENT. So
Enjoy the PRESENT from God.
Original Poem- author unknown
Some come into your life for but a reason,
sent by the one that sees your heart's need.
Cry not when that friend's not in season,
but carry on and plant the next seed.
Some come into your life for a season,
and when that season is through,
the Autumn will have it's way for this reason their purpose in your life is now over,
tho' their season may come anew.
Some come into your life for a lifetime,
that companionship is so sweet.
They'll never leave you, even in strife time,
not while they yet walk on mortal feet.
Learn from all who are sent into your life-
they're sent by a friend of all.
Learn, the first time, what they've come to teach you,
all those lessons, great and small.
My insights on A Reason, A Season or a Lifetime
People come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. When you figure out which it is, you know exactly what to do.
When someone is in your life for a REASON, it is usually to meet a need you have expressed outwardly or inwardly. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide
you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally or
spiritually. They may seem like a Godsend, and they are. They are there for
the reason you need them to be Then, without any wrong doing on your part or
an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the
relationship to an end. Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away.
Sometimes they act up or out and force you to take a stand. What we must
realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled; their work is done.
The prayer you sent up has been answered and it is now time to move on.
When people come into your life for a SEASON, it is because your
turn has come to share, grow, or learn. They may bring you experience of
peace or make you laugh. They may teach you something you have never done.
They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy. Believe it! It is real!
But...only for a season.
LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons; those things you must
build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation. Your job is to
accept the lesson, love the person/people (anyway); and put what you have
learned to use in all other relationships and areas of your life. It is said
that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.
The PRESENT is the gift from God that you receive when he puts someone in
your life, whether it be for 5 seconds, five years or fifty years. God
doesn't promise us any certain time with someone and it's what we make of
that time that is our gift from God That's why we call it the PRESENT. So
Enjoy the PRESENT from God.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Hope...
We currently live in a period of time known as the “End Time”. We are surrounded by war, famine, disease and natural disasters. One may feel that this is the worst time to live or maybe there is no hope, there is no one to turn to, or no one that can help. But there is hope, a very bright future and there is someone whom we can all turn to. It is God! He has always been with us even before time began. All of these events are the mirror image of The Book of Revelations in the bible. These are the signs of the end time and they herald the return of the true King. His Son, Jesus Christ.
Now, today in the 21st Century, God is just as active as he was thousands of years ago. He is the same now as He was then. He longs to complete His family and take them home. Some ask questions, why would God allow such horrible things to happen in the world? Why won’t God step in and stop these things from happening? Why do so many people have to suffer because of others? In my view, there is one answer.
When God created man He gave us one of the most precious and complicated gifts of all of His creations, “Free will”. You are free to make our own decision and choices in life. Some are good choices and some are bad and these choices affect the world we live in. At no time will God interfere with free will because of His righteousness. He will, however, try to move the heart of man in the right direction so that we do make positive choices that affect the world in a good way.
Some believe that giving your heart to God is the best gift we can give Him, but I would have to say that giving God your free will and completely surrendering yourself to Him is the ultimate gift you can give Him. Our free will is the only thing we have control over. Why is that the ultimate gift? You would have to trust Him completely with no reservations. You would have understand that all He tested and tried you with would be for your perfection and in time would lead you to the goal of your faith, Heaven.
My book; “One wish…Won Battle!” is about how I gave God my free will and everything He has put me through. I would gladly go through all of it again because of where I currently stand in my faith, the understanding I have of Him and the love I feel from Him. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
Now, today in the 21st Century, God is just as active as he was thousands of years ago. He is the same now as He was then. He longs to complete His family and take them home. Some ask questions, why would God allow such horrible things to happen in the world? Why won’t God step in and stop these things from happening? Why do so many people have to suffer because of others? In my view, there is one answer.
When God created man He gave us one of the most precious and complicated gifts of all of His creations, “Free will”. You are free to make our own decision and choices in life. Some are good choices and some are bad and these choices affect the world we live in. At no time will God interfere with free will because of His righteousness. He will, however, try to move the heart of man in the right direction so that we do make positive choices that affect the world in a good way.
Some believe that giving your heart to God is the best gift we can give Him, but I would have to say that giving God your free will and completely surrendering yourself to Him is the ultimate gift you can give Him. Our free will is the only thing we have control over. Why is that the ultimate gift? You would have to trust Him completely with no reservations. You would have understand that all He tested and tried you with would be for your perfection and in time would lead you to the goal of your faith, Heaven.
My book; “One wish…Won Battle!” is about how I gave God my free will and everything He has put me through. I would gladly go through all of it again because of where I currently stand in my faith, the understanding I have of Him and the love I feel from Him. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
Gifts From God
Fort Lauderdale, FL---October 6, 2009 A battle-wearied world, an economic crisis of global proportions, belly-churning hunger, rampant disease, overwhelming natural disasters, man’s increasing madness…all these are indisputable facts of life today. Yet, for some, the struggle is worth the price, when the reward is a renewal and affirmation of faith. In his moving book, One Wish…Won Battle, author James N. Rybak shares his hard-earned insight.
One Wish . . .Won Battle tells the story of the author’s faith in God. As Rybak relates, “After I gave my free will to God, He took everything away from me and put me on a path that would ultimately bring me closer to Him than I ever thought possible.” God opened his eyes to see angels, souls, spirits, demons, and much more. He gave Rybak many spiritual gifts and continually tests his faith. This is a classic story of good versus evil, the end time, and the struggles we all face in our battle between temptation and faith.
This rich, personal journal gives exact dates and locations of the author’s experiences. Laugh out loud while reading the true story of his life, struggles, faith, family life, dating, and expectancy of meeting the woman of his dreams. The author’s ultimate message is one of hope…“Find God and renew your own faith in Him!”
http://www.onewishwonbattle.com/ Book available online at Amazon.com. Review copies and author interviews are available upon request. Please contact Lori Gertz, Publicist at (847) 882-4234 to request an interview or review copy.
About the Author
James N. Rybak was born in the Northwest suburbs of Chicago. He has three siblings. Family is everything to him. Throughout his whole life his family has always been there to support and love him. James’ career for the past twenty years has been in procurement (Buyer) for numerous businesses. He also served in a ministry in the New Apostolic Church for eighteen years. He sings in the choir and is also a choir director in his local congregation. James has been a member of the New Apostolic Church his whole life and has found great joy serving the Lord.
One Wish . . .Won Battle tells the story of the author’s faith in God. As Rybak relates, “After I gave my free will to God, He took everything away from me and put me on a path that would ultimately bring me closer to Him than I ever thought possible.” God opened his eyes to see angels, souls, spirits, demons, and much more. He gave Rybak many spiritual gifts and continually tests his faith. This is a classic story of good versus evil, the end time, and the struggles we all face in our battle between temptation and faith.
This rich, personal journal gives exact dates and locations of the author’s experiences. Laugh out loud while reading the true story of his life, struggles, faith, family life, dating, and expectancy of meeting the woman of his dreams. The author’s ultimate message is one of hope…“Find God and renew your own faith in Him!”
http://www.onewishwonbattle.com/ Book available online at Amazon.com. Review copies and author interviews are available upon request. Please contact Lori Gertz, Publicist at (847) 882-4234 to request an interview or review copy.
About the Author
James N. Rybak was born in the Northwest suburbs of Chicago. He has three siblings. Family is everything to him. Throughout his whole life his family has always been there to support and love him. James’ career for the past twenty years has been in procurement (Buyer) for numerous businesses. He also served in a ministry in the New Apostolic Church for eighteen years. He sings in the choir and is also a choir director in his local congregation. James has been a member of the New Apostolic Church his whole life and has found great joy serving the Lord.
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