The gift of Hospitality is given by the Holy Spirit to enables us to open our homes willingly and offer lodging, food, and fellowship cheerfully to other people. This gift causes the believer to joyfully open his or her home for meetings and overnight visitors, making people feel welcome and comfortable. Guests and strangers are graciously served.

The Greek word for hospitality is philoxenia, meaning, the love of strangers. The hospitable person is comfortable entertaining others, family, relatives, friends, but most especially when welcoming strangers. People with this gift have a special sensitivity with others, and they know how to make people feel at ease and wanted. Making strangers feel comfortable and at home takes the form of a ministry that helps dispel loneliness and builds a sense of community.

Hospitality is the love of God for the world, for God so loved the world that He gave. This is what God wants us to do. He was the one who gave us this gift. The bible is full of stories and commandments about being kind to one another and to strangers. One scripture talks about being mindful of strangers because you don’t know when they may be angels.

Finally in Matthew 25:34-40, it says, Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:For I was hungry, and you gave me meat: I was thirsty, and you gave me drink: I was a stranger, and you took me in:Naked, and you clothed me: I was sick, and you visited me: I was in prison, and you came unto me.Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when did we see you were hungry, and fed you? or thirsty, and gave you drink?When we saw you a stranger, and took you in? or naked, and clothed you?Or when did we see you sick, or in prison, and came unto you?And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as you have done it unto one of these the least of my brethren, you have done it unto me.

It goes on to say that anyone who doesn’t see about the strangers, the hungry, the sick or imprisoned, God will not recognize as His children or let them into heaven. Hospitality is a gift and lifestyle that God wants us to have. It is showing the love of God to the world.

Crain Blanchard.

Joseph1637@juno.com

Joseph1637.com

Longsuffering is having or showing strength though patience in spite of troubles, especially those caused by other people. Long-suffering, from the Greek word makrothumia, means long tempered or patient. Person who is long-suffering is not weak or meek. Instead, They are strong in character and bold in resisting rash reactions. We should all be grateful that God is the epitome of long-suffering love.

The works of the flesh or weakness of character are Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like:

The fruit of the Spirit manifest itself through strong moral character by a changed heart and they are love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise. He is long-suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. God is rich in His goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance. Peter reminds us that God was long-suffering during Noah’s time. When once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water. God call us, holy and beloved, and to put bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering. He also says that love is long-suffering.

Paul exhort us, as believers, to warn them the unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient (longsuffering) toward all men. It is because we walk through the valley of the shadow of death and fear no evil. For God comforts us with His rod and staff. Jesus talked about persecution for righteousness’ sake. He said when we show longsuffering in the trials the kingdom of heaven is ours. This is because longsuffering is a good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

When do we receive these gifts? Jesus said in Acts 1:8, we shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon us: and we shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. For we are saved by grace through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. Then if we are saved and God has given us the Holy Spirit, then we have the gift of long-suffering. And if we have the gift of long-suffering, then it is up to us to use this gift of God now.

Crain Blanchard.

Joseph1637@juno.com

Joseph1637.com

Commitment is defined as a promise that transforms into reality or to love God with your whole heart, soul and mind. Dedication. Loyalty. Allegiance. Devotion. Fidelity. Faithfulness. Steadfastness. Covenant. In Genesis chapter 1 is the story of God’s commitment to create a world and place man into it. God wanted to share all that He had with man. When man proved to be unfaithful to God, He made a covenant with several men, starting with Adam and ending with Jesus. All the covenants were contingent upon each participant keeping the promises made, including God. And anyone could come into the covenant that God made with man. All covenants are made between two parties, one strong than the other. Where the stronger party protects the weaker one. It requires a commitment on both sides of the covenant.

In reading and studying the bible, it shows God’s faithfulness and the faithlessness of man. In the Old Testament, man didn’t have the power to be able to keep God’s covenant. So, man ran off and did his own thing. Usually getting into more trouble than he could handle. Then when he was about to be destroyed, man would run back to God for help or not.

The difference between the Old and New Testament is the last covenant God made with Jesus. This covenant not only showed what God would do for us, but God would give us power to live the life of God. The promise of power to live the life of God was given to Adam. And all who believed in that promise shared in the reward when Jesus died and rose again from the dead.

What is required in this last covenant of God is commitment to Jesus. Then God will give all the things that are promised in this covenant to us, including the power to live the life of God. Now man is without excuse. He can no longer say that he doesn’t have the power or protection or provision to live like God.

Many people are afraid to make that commitment. They are afraid because they don’t believe. This fear has trapped them into a life of hell. It takes a person, as they say coming to oneself, to reach out to God to enter into this commitment or covenant. It all starts with hope. With hope it will turn into faith. Then faith will turn into commitment. And commitment will turn into the covenant of God and all the promises. In 1 John 1:9 it says, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Turn to God and make that commitment and in turn enter into His covenant with man.

Crain Blanchard.

Joseph1637@juno.com

Joseph1637.com

What so important about the mind of Christ? I know that we are made up of 3 parts, our heart, the soul and the body. Our body is the physical body that we live in. Our soul is God’s connection that binds our heart and body together. So, what is our heart? It is who we are. It is our spirit, our mind and our intellect. We have 5 senses, sight, smell, touch, taste and hearing. They are inputs into our spirit. You have heard the old saying, garbage in, garbage out. That means if you only process garbage in your life, that is only what is going to come out of you. Our senses process all information into our spirit. That why the bible says to guard your heart, it is the wellspring of life. Your heart and spirit are one and the same.

When you began with Christ, your heart and mind were made new as you became a new creature in Christ. Just like a new born baby, we had to learn and still do who God is. The portal for our senses is the mind. Everything passes through our mind to get to our heart. Like the bible says, corrupt company, corrupts good morals. The job of guarding our hearts and minds starts with us. We choose what we are going to watch, read or participate in. then if we let God have His way, He will guard our heart and mind through Jesus Christ.

This is where the mind of Christ comes in. In Romans it says, And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind. Now how do we transform our minds? We start by reading the bible. Then we talk to people about what we have read. Then we do what the word of God says. When we take knowledge and experience it, it becomes wisdom. Then with wisdom comes discretion.

Our mind is the first line of defense against the devil and his wiles or darts. If our mind is the mind of Christ, we will know what to do with the devil. Our second line of defense is our heart. When we read the word of God, it becomes knowledge in our heart. And with our faith, it become an offensive weapon. We war not against flesh and blood, but against spiritual wickedness in high places. With God leading the way into battle, we will come out victoriously.

This is why we need the mind of Christ in everything.

Crain Blanchard.

Joseph1637@juno.com

Joseph1637.com

We shall hear of wars and rumors of wars. All you have to do is to turn on the news and there wars and rumors of wars. Israel was attacked by hamas terrorists and all most 2000 Israelis are dead. Israel has mobilized there army and called up 300,000 reservists. Hezbollah has attacked in northern Israel. It seems that Iran is behind all of this conflict. There has been atrocities on both side of this war. But the Palestinian people are going to suffer the brunt of this war.

But the bible says that the end isn’t yet. It says that nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. It also says that there will be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. Then they will deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you. This they are doing to the Israelis right now. And you will be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. When this happens to the Israelis, then each of us has something to be concerned about. I am talking about believers in Jesus Christ, Jewish and Christian.

And except those days of tribulation should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened. This war in Israel is not over by any means. And it can escalate into a world war very easily. The United States is trying to keep this conflict from becoming global. There is one US Aircraft Carrier strike group in the Mediterranean Sea off Israel and another on the way. There is another US Aircraft Carrier strike group in the Persian Gulf. There are 7 fleets of the US Navy and three are in the Middle East, not counting nuclear submarines.

The bible says that before the end comes, the earth shall quake and the heavens shall tremble. The sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall will fall from the sky. And the Lord shall descend with a shout before His army. And this will be the great and very terrible day of the Lord. But no man knows the day or the hour this will happen except our Father God.

We, as believers, are the sons of God, and it doesn’t yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when Jesus shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.And every man that has this hope in him purifies himself, even as Jesus is pure.

What I can recommend to everyone is to pray and ask God the Father to stop this war. And if we do, I believe that a world wide crisis will be averted. Because once the End Times begin, there is no stopping until Jesus descends to this earth.

Crain Blanchard.

Joseph1637@juno.com

Joseph1637.com

Abraham, on his way back from defeating the king of Elam and his allies, came through Jerusalem or the city of Salem. Melchizedek came out and meet Abraham. Melchizedek, king of Salem and high priest of the Most High God, blessed Abraham. The scriptures say that Melchizedek had no beginning or end, but continues as a priest of God forever. Abraham gave a tithe to Melchizedek. This is the first time that Jerusalem is mentioned in the bible.

If you remember Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice to God on Mount Moriah, which is the modern day temple mount in Jerusalem. Jerusalem was a Canaanite city until Joshua conquered it, when the Israelites came into the promised land. From that point on it became the capital of Israel. King David ruled Judah and Benjamin from Hebron. When king Saul and his sons died, the Israelite leaders came to David and ask him to rule them. That is when David moved to Jerusalem. God promised David that a descendant would sit on his throne forever. Jesus is the last king to sit upon the throne of David. Then Jerusalem was lost for 2000 years.

God choose Jerusalem to place His name. 2 temples were built to house God’s ark of the covenant, the first was Solomon’s temple, the second was Herod’s temple. The ark of the Covenant has be lost to time. But the importance of Jerusalem has never gone away. God called Jerusalem the center of the earth. This is why there has been war in Israel since the beginning of time.

Israel was reformed as a nation in 1948. Israelites has secured formidable defenses to secure their nation. They have defeated all of their neighbors several times. This recent attack, although not foreseen, was inevitable. No one wants a war, but Israel will defend themselves. Gaza is going to be destroyed. But maybe that is what Israel’s enemies want. The peace deal with Saudi Arabia is just a few months away. But like David and Goliath, Israel will take on anyone who will attack it.

In Psalm 122:6-7, it says to pray for the peace of Jerusalem and any one who does God will prosper them.

Crain Blanchard.

Joseph1637@juno.com

Joseph1637.com

Jesus came the first time, preaching and teaching that the kingdom of God is at hand. Everyone knew about Jesus how He went about doing good and healing everyone. Many people followed Him at first, but when many heard the truth about themselves, they left. Jesus even questioned the disciples their loyalty to God. Peter spoke the truth by the Holy Spirit when he said, where can we go, you have the words of truth, life.

Jesus came the first time for three reasons. The first reason was to call everyone to repentance. He said I came to save that which was lost. The second reason was to die for our sins. Jesus told the disciples that He was going to be betrayed and handed over to sinful men to be killed. The third reason was to give us eternal life. God said that anyone who believed in Jesus wold have eternal life with Him.

After Jesus rose from the dead, He stayed with the disciples to teach them. Jesus stayed 40 days after His resurrection. Jesus and the disciples went to the garden of Gethsemane. There He ascended into heaven. The disciples watched Jesus ascend in a cloud into heaven. Two angels appeared to them and told them that Jesus would come again. He would appear or descend from heaven the same way He ascended. Jesus is coming again.

There are many scriptures that tell us about preparing for Jesus’ return to earth. The preparing for Jesus’ return is for one reason, that we would look like Jesus. The bible says that when Jesus returns, we will see Him as He is. The reason is that we will look like Jesus. Take a look in the mirror and see if you look like Jesus. If you don’t then it is time to change into His image.

The second coming of Jesus is called the great and terrible day of the Lord. In Matthew 21:33-41, it describes the second coming of the Lord. This is the parable of the husbandman that built a vineyard and hired people to run it. Only the workers rebelled against the owner and killed his son. The owner came and killed the workers and replaced them with workers who would be loyal.

This time Jesus is coming as a King of kings and Lord of all. The world will come together to fight against Him. This is the battle of Armageddon. It will happen in the valley of Jezreel or Megiddo. And with the spoken word of God, Jesus slays 200 million people. The bible says the blood is as high as the horse’s bridle, which is 6 feet deep. And it will take 6 months to clean up.

God gives everyone time to hear the gospel and repent of their sins. But when that time runs out, it is over. Then that person has no recourse except hell. Just because God hasn’t judged you yet, doesn’t mean that He won’t. There are few things that are set in stone and one of them is God’s judgment of each and every person that has ever lived. As long as you are alive, you have the opportunity to repent of your sins and ask God for forgiveness. But once you die, then comes the judgment of God.

I look forward the great and terrible day of the Lord. Jesus will return and bring the peace of God for a 1000 years to this earth. He will reign and rule from Jerusalem and anyone can visit with Him. And as John 3:16 says, For God so loved the earth that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever would believe on Him, shall have everlasting life. I am a whosoever.

Crain Blanchard.

Joseph1637@juno.com

Joseph1637.com

It has several meanings. It means to bury, to drown, to completely defeat or given too much to handle. When the pandemic struck in 2020, there was a feeling of helplessness. Covid 19 took a toll on everyone. People didn’t know what to do. Some people just carried on as if nothing was happening. Then people began to die at an alarming rate. That got most every bodies attention.

The world became overwhelmed by the vastness of the virus. Most every countries economy came to a stand still. Merchants trying to survive, began to implement usual method of keeping customers. Large retail store were delivering goods to people’s doorstep. Grocery stores are still delivering foodstuffs to people’s houses. If a business didn’t have a drive through, they did now. Most people were afraid of getting out of their homes. And the government was and still is in panic mode.

Being overwhelmed isn’t anything new. It has been happening since the beginning of time. King David of Israel, before he became king, was being chased by his father in law, king Saul. Saul wanted to kill David, so he couldn’t become king. David left Jerusalem with 600 men of valor and their families. Saul chased David all over Israel until he ended up in a cave in the Negev desert. David was overwhelmed because Saul was at the mouth of the cave. Saul didn’t know David was there, but went into the cave to sleep. David cut a corner of Saul’s skirt while he slept. When Saul arose, he left the cave and David followed him out of the cave. David faced his fears and convinced Saul with the cut piece of his skirt, that he wasn’t going to harm him. Saul left in peace and never chased David again.

When we are overwhelmed with anything in life, we must face this fear head on. It may kill us to do it, but you will never be free from it until you face the fear. In Philippians 4:6-7 it says, Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Then you will not be overwhelmed by anything.

Crain Blanchard.

Joseph1637@juno.com

Joseph1637.com

Crain Blanchard.

Joseph1637@juno.com

Joseph1637.com

Courage is defined as giving support, confidence or hope to yourself. Courage is a hope or faith in yourself. It is believing in your ability to stand up to something that frightens you. So, then what is bravery? Bravery is courageous behavior in the face of danger. So, Courage is believing that you have the strength to stand against danger. Where Bravery is doing something about the danger. The words are similar in concept, but different in action.

The US Congressional Medal of Honor is given to individuals that go above and beyond the call of duty. They showed bravery in the face of danger risking their life in the action. You would say that they are courageous and brave. The American National Anthem’s last 2 lines say, the land of the free and home of the brave.

Many people that you have never heard of, have had courage in their hearts and bravery to carry out the action. If you start reading about our country and the people that traveled west to settle this vast land, they had courage and bravery. There are hundreds of thousands that you will never know that made it possible for us to live in this land.

Courage is hoping that your belief can be put into action. When God called Abraham to leave his home, he travel 700 miles on foot to Hebron, Israel. Abraham left Ur of the Chaldeans with 300 families and his animals. He didn’t know what to expect, but showed bravery traveling to Hebron. Samson was a judge in Israel, but didn’t follow the Lord. He lost his anointing when his hair was cut. The Philistines captured him and made a slave out of him. When Samson’s hair grew out, he prayed and asked God for the anointing to come back. God gave it to him and Samson destroyed the Philistine’s temple and killed over 3000 Philistines and himself. The prophetess Deborah called Barak to muster an army of 10,000 Israelites to face the Canaanites. Barak refused to lead an army against the Canaanites. God gave the honor to Deborah. She defeated the Canaanites and killed their king. Daniel refused the king’s order not to pray to any God except the king’s god. Daniel pray everyday to the Lord and never stopped. Daniel got into trouble and was thrown into the lion’s den. God shut all the mouths of the lions and Daniel wasn’t harmed. He put his conviction into practice. In other words, he put his courage into action and it became bravery.

Jesus did the same thing and became our example of courage and bravery. Our lives are meant to be an example to the world. We as believers need to stand up and be counted as courageous and brave. This only happens when we have convictions or faith that works. Because faith without works is dead.

Crain Blanchard.

Joseph1637@juno.com

Joseph1637.com