I’m a Citizen of Heaven!

Encouraging Words with Pastor Bruce & Suzi Elman

Earth isn’t our everlasting home. Our citizenship is in heaven. Together we eagerly wait for YESHUA to come and take us to live with Him forever. In the meantime, we have direct access to God through the Holy SPIRIT. When days are long and nights are painful, we can remember where our real home is. This life of ups and downs are only temporary. In the loving arms of YESHUA, we can find grace and mercy in time of need.

We are united with our Savior. I am one in spirit with Him, and so are you! YESHUA doesn’t call us His servants; as a matter of fact, he calls us His friends. He tells us that servants do not know what the Master’s business is. “I have called you friend, for everything that I learned from my Father, I have made known to you” (John 15:15).

YESHUA is with us while we wait for His return. It’s important that we spend time in His Word and learn who He says we are. We are His children, and for God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in HIM shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).

This world is not our home and for many MESSIANIC JEWISH BELIEVERS, we feel like we don’t belong. The hard truth is that we don’t belong here. We belong with MESSIAH in the heavenly places. The good news is that we can have heavenly moments with MESSIAH now! It’s in these times we find His strength to help us carry on.

Inspired by author—Lisa Brown

 

Love & Blessings,

Bruce and Suzi Elman

L’Chaim Messianic Congregation

Pursue Peace

Encouraging Words with Pastor Bruce & Suzi Elman

Do you have trouble getting along with people? Do you know that our relationship with our LORD, ourselves and other people are all interconnected; meaning they affect each other?

In our scripture today, Peter is telling us to strive to be at peace with GOD, with ourselves and others!

First, if we’re not at peace with ourselves, we can’t possibly be at peace with others. You can’t give away something you don’t have!

Second, you will never get along with other people if deep down inside you don’t get along with yourself! Many of us have strife inside ourselves which causes us to not be at peace. Instead we continually judge, analyze and criticize ourselves. Keeping a record of all our faults causes us to live under quilt and condemnation!

1 Peter 3:11
Let him turn away from wickedness and shun it and let him do right. Let him search for peace and seek it eagerly (Do not merely desire peaceful relationships with God, with your fellow man and with yourself, but pursue, go after them.}

We cannot just passively wait to feel peaceful. We must pursue GOD’S peace, and let’s refuse to live without it!

 

Love & Blessings,

Bruce and Suzi Elman

L’Chaim Messianic Congregation

Self Talk

Encouraging Words with Pastor Bruce & Suzi Elman

Without a doubt GOD loves us. His Word is His endless love letter to you and me and all through it He repeatedly proclaims His love for us. But, knowing GOD loves us in our head is not the same as knowing He loves us in our heart!

There are a number of things that keep us from having a heartfelt revelation of GOD’S love, but I believe one of the greatest things is the way we talk about ourselves, which is “self-talk!” Let’s admit it, we all talk to ourselves; we can do it externally or out loud and also internally within our thoughts.

Are you speaking negative words (self-criticism, judgement and condemnation) over yourself or positive words of GOD’S love and acceptance? Don’t let the truth of GOD’S love be drowned out by thoughts of negatively, fear and doubt!

Luke 6:45c

Out of the abundance (overflow) of the heart his mouth speaks…

Realize that nobody’s words carry more weight or power in your life than yours! Why? Because next to GOD, you have the greatest amount of authority in and over your life. Words spoken out of your mouth will either produce death or life (Proverbs 18:21).

 

Love & Blessings,

Pastor Bruce and Suzi Elman

L’Chaim Messianic Congregation

Exchanged Life

Encouraging Words with Pastor Bruce & Suzi Elman

Each Messianic believer’s journey is unique! Yet certain stages of growth should be common to all believers. Example: GOD wants to use us through our walk with the Lord to show new believers the basic principles for the foundation of their new life in MESSIAH!

Next, we were created to do good works and this becomes evident as growing believers use their talents to glorify YESHUA!

Then because pride and self-confidence are threats to our spiritual growth, GOD will bring us to a place where we realize we can achieve nothing of value without His guidance and power. The LORD teaches us how to live the exchanged life, check it out in (Galatians 2:20).

Looking back you can recognize these stages, maybe you can see an area where GOD is still working with you. If there is anything standing in the way of allowing Him to live fully through you, then ask the RUAH HAKODESH to help you be everything GOD created you to be!

Love & Blessings,

Bruce & Suzi Elman

L’Chaim Messianic Congregation

Click here to read more blogs from Pastor Bruce & Suzi

God’s Amazing Love

Encouraging Words with Pastor Bruce & Suzi Elman

Without a sense of purpose, there is no hope. But the LORD has created each one of us for a reason and also to love Him and be loved by Him! He pursues us and does everything in His infinite power to reveal Himself. He wants each person to understand who He is and then respond by worshipping Him being fully devoted to Him!

GOD’S love is personal; His desire is to have a personal relationship with every man, woman and child. His love for us is always unconditional; there is nothing about your character that can make Him love you more or less. Our scripture today tells us that love is who He is, not just what He does.

{1 John: 4:8…He who does not love does not know God, for God is love}…

ABBA doesn’t just say He loves you, He proved it by giving His Son as a sacrifice for your sins. His amazing grace is unending and then His divine blessing on us for the forgiveness of our sins through MESSIAH. What a waste to live life feeling unloved when GOD’S infinite and eternal love is offered to each and every one of us!

Love & Blessings,

Bruce & Suzi Elman

L’Chaim Messianic Congregation

Click here to read more blogs from Pastor Bruce & Suzi