My friend, Alicia, graciously allowed me to guest-post on her blog today! Hop on over: http://aliciaannewillis.blogspot.com/2015/02/herein-is-love-guest-post-by-amanda-tero.html
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Word Wednesday #41
“And they shall comfort you, when ye see their ways and their doings: and ye shall know that I have not done without cause all that I have done in it, saith the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 14:23)
God never moves without purpose or plan but wisely works for His pure and perfect cause.
Share a verse that God has given you today or copy the button if you’d like to join in Word Wednesdays with your blog!
The Armor of God – TRUTH | Ephesians Study
Ephesians 6:11-14
(11) Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
(12) For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
(13) Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
(14) Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
Put on the armor of God . . . take unto you the whole armor of God . . . now STAND.
The first part of armor to help us stand is truth; girding (gird all around, fasten one’s belt) ourselves with truth.
Truth
-All of God’s paths are in truth.
“All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies.” (Psalm 25:10)
-All of God’s works are done in truth.
“For the word of the Lord is right; and all his works are done in truth.” (Psalm 33:4)
-God’s law, commandments, and words are truth
“Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth.” (Psalm 119:142)
“Thou art near, O Lord; and all thy commandments are truth.” (Psalm 119:151)
“Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” (John 17:17)
-God’s truth will preserve us.
“Withhold not thou thy tender mercies from me, O Lord: let thy lovingkindness and thy truth continually preserve me.” (Psalm 40:11)
-God’s truth is a shield and buckler to us.
“He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.” (Psalm 91:4)
-God has given us His truth to lead and guide us.
“O send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead me; let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy tabernacles.” (Psalm 43:3)
-God desires truth in our inward parts.
“Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.”(Psalm 51:6)
-We are to study and rightly divide God’s truth.
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)
-God wants us to speak the truth.
“These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates:” (Zechariah 8:16)
-We have the choice whether or not to walk in God’s truth.
“Teach me thy way, O Lord; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name.” (Psalm 86:11)
“I have chosen the way of truth: thy judgments have I laid before me.” (Psalm 119:30)
“For I rejoiced greatly, when the brethren came and testified of the truth that is in thee, even as thou walkest in the truth. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.”(3 John 1:3-4)
-Truth helps to purge iniquity.
“By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the Lord men depart from evil.”(Proverbs 16:6)
-God lives in truth.
“And thou shalt swear, The Lord liveth, in truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; and the nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory.” (Jeremiah 4:2)
-Jesus Christ is truth.
“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (John 14:6)
-The Holy Spirit is truth.
“Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.” (John 16:13)
-Man can deceive himself to believe something that is not God’s truth – they can change God’s truth in their minds.
“Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.” (Romans 1:24-25)
-Man can disobey, reject, and resist the truth.
“O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?” (Galatians 3:1)
“Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.” 2 Thessalonians 2:9-10
“Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith.” (2 Timothy 3:8)
-The way of truth will be evil spoken of by evil men.
“And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.” (2 Peter 2:2)
Even believers can deny God’s truth and ignore it. To do so is only opening our lives to a direct attack of satan. It is so very vital for the believer to be rooted and grounded in the truth. How can we use the Sword of Truth if we do not even know the truth? I don’t believe there is any “coincidence” that truth is the very first weapon mentioned. The first step of the believer should be to read God’s truth, study God’s truth, seek God’s truth, and follow God’s truth. By doing so, they are putting on the first weapon in their armor.
Creating a Watermark with Lightroom
I’m gradually learning more and more in working with Adobe Photoshop Elements 10 and Adobe Lightroom 3 (both programs which I recommend for any photographer who is serious about their pictures). One of the “big things” right now with photographers is creating a watermark. You can do this easily in Lightroom if you are just looking for a simple watermark.
First, import your image to Lightroom.
After you have edited your picture, export your picture (under “file>export”).
In the window that opens, you have various options. Scroll all of the way down until you see the option “Watermarking.”
You will need to create a new watermark (or, if you have a watermark already – like I do – click to edit watermarks at the very bottom).
A new window will open. Notice that I circled the place where you will type in your watermark. I did “www.withajoyfulnoise.blogspot.com”
On the right, notice that you have various options: Image options (if you want to get advanced and have a logo instead of text), Text options (where you can select different fonts, styles, etc.) and if you scroll down . . .
. . . you will notice Watermark Effects (opacity, layout, etc.).
From here, you will play around with your watermark until you have placed it where you like, have it large or small enough, and so on. Just play around with it.
When it looks pretty, select “save.” It will pop up with a screen for you to title your watermark – this makes it easier the next time you decide to watermark you pictures: it will be there, ready and waiting.
Export your picture as usual and there you have it! Your picture has its watermark!
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“Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned:” (1 Timothy 1:5)
Word Wednesday #40
“And she hath changed my judgments into wickedness more than the nations, and my statutes more than the countries that are round about her: for they have refused my judgments and my statutes, they have not walked in them.” (Ezekiel 5:6)
If we change God’s Word to say what we want it to say and then follow our interpretation, that is but refusing God’s way and walking in our own way. Oh, we must be so careful to be sure that we are following God’s Word and His Word alone!
Share a verse that God has given you today or copy the button if you’d like to join in Word Wednesdays with your blog!
The Wiles of the Devil | Ephesians Study
Ephesians 6:12
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Before giving us the armor, God continues to stress the importance of why we need this armor. Our battle is not physical – thus, we cannot rely on physical resources (example: Psalm 20:7, “Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.”). To fight the spiritual battle warring, we must arm ourselves with spiritual resources.
We cannot be ignorant against whom we are fighting. The Bible helps us to understand the enemy: “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.” (1 Peter 5:8-9)
The devil is as a roaring lion.
He walks about.
He seeks to devour.
But, he can be resisted.
Ephesians 6:13
Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
Just as we must “put on” the armor, we must also take the armor. These words give the implication that it is our choice whether or not we will receive the armor that God has provided. It is there. It is available. But do we take it?
After warning us about the devil, the challenge again to pick up the armor of God and use it is given – very similar to verse 11. We do not have to be defeated by the wiles of the devil. Instead, we can withstand (stand against, oppose) and stand (to stand).
Thoughts of Love . . .
I’ve never been much of a Valentine’s Day fan (and no, it’s not because I’m “still single” :)). However, one of my friends asked me about doing a little graphic design for her to put on her FaceBook page for February. We began discussing how important it is to focus not on temporal love, but on God’s love for us. I asked my friends for verses on “love” (there are SO many beautiful verses to choose from!). Here are some of the verses that they suggested.
(Note: the quality of these are very low; as an Etsy download, the quality is full resolution)
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| On Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/listing/220753399/charity-the-greatest-of-these-digital?ref=shop_home_active_7 |
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| On Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/listing/220753629/love-of-god-digital-download-for?ref=shop_home_active_6 |
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| On Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/listing/220753426/love-in-word-and-deed-digital-download?ref=shop_home_active_5 |
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| On Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/listing/220753781/because-he-first-loved-us-digital?ref=shop_home_active_4 |
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| On Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/listing/220753620/because-he-first-loved-us-digital?ref=shop_home_active_3 |
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| On Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/listing/220753985/god-commendeth-his-love-digital-download?ref=shop_home_active_2 |
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| On Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/listing/220754075/nothing-shall-separate-from-the-love-of?ref=shop_home_active_1 |
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“But God commendeth His love for us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8
Photography Note
Hi all! My dad just informed me that he wasn’t comfortable with me posting pictures of my siblings online publicly (as in individuals). I can see his wisdom in this choice so if you’re looking for the photoshoots I’ve posted previously, you won’t find them. I may begin a private photography blog and will let you know if that proceeds. Thanks for understanding!
A Prudent Man
A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished. (Proverbs 22:3)
It is interesting to note that most often the opposite of a fool (who is made known by what/how often/how he speaks) is a prudent man. Prudent means “cunning” (Hebrew word aruwm). [There are other references for “prudent” in the Bible which uses a different Hebrew root word – I’m just looking at these few]
A fool’s wrath is presently known: but a prudent man covereth shame. (Proverbs 12:16)
A prudent man concealeth knowledge: but the heart of fools proclaimeth foolishness. (Proverbs 12:23)
Every prudent man dealeth with knowledge: but a fool layeth open his folly. (Proverbs 13:16)
The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way: but the folly of fools is deceit. (Proverbs 14:8)
The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going. (Proverbs 14:15)
The simple inherit folly: but the prudent are crowned with knowledge. (Proverbs 14:18)
Word Wednesday #39
“Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.” (Mark 9:23)
Ironically, we must believe this verse – we must believe that all things are possible when we believe.
Share a verse that God has given you today or copy the button if you’d like to join in Word Wednesdays with your blog!
Amanda Tero Books 