God’s Canvas
July 2010 Love the Lord your God...
Key Verse:
“And do not be con-
formed to this world, but
be transformed by the re-
newing of your mind.”
Romans 12:2
Family Fun:
Balloon Brigade
You will need: balloons, a
whistle, 10 people. Water is
optional.
For this game you need two
teams, each assembled in a
single file line. The first
player in each line begins by
holding a balloon. When the
whistle blows, the first player
passes the balloon between
her legs to the next person in
line. The second person
passes the ballon over her
head to the person directly
behind her. Each player then
alternates passing the bal-
loon over their head or be-
tween their knees. When the
last person in line receives
the balloon, they race to the
front of the line and pass the
balloon back. The relay ends
when the original starting
player of a line travels all the
way back and to the front
again. That player signifies
that her line has won by pop-
ping the balloon. For added
fun, try using water balloons!
...With All Your Mind
Please take the time to read the Bible verses below.
In “Loving God with All Your Mind”, Eliza-
beth George hits on six key verses that
teach us how to love God with our minds.
Every day we use our minds in different
ways when acting out our opinions and
reasons for set behaviors. Noah Webster
originally used these words when defin-
ing mind; “intention; purpose, inclination,
opinion, remembrance, the understand-
ing, the intellect, and the power that con-
ceives, judges or reasons”. It’s important
to realize that the use of our minds in
loving God means that we have the right
view of the past, present, and future. Fo-
cusing on the six Bible verses mentioned
above, we’re going to get a glimpse of
what God says about the use of our
minds.
The first verse is Philippians 4:8. It is a
basic list of the right things to fill your
mind with. If you cannot match your
thoughts with any of the categories on
this list then your mind is not in the right
place. We may not always have control
of the thoughts that flash across our
minds, but we can control what thoughts
stay and what thoughts leave. This is the
practice of taking every thought captive
in obedience to Christ (2 Corinthians
10:5) . Dwelling on negative thoughts is
poisonous. Whether it’s wrongful
thoughts towards another person or
wrongful thoughts about a situation, your
entire being is affected. By choosing to
filter your thoughts so the wrong
thoughts are thrown away and the right
thoughts are nurtured, God is able to
open you up to experiencing His full-
ness.
The second verse is Matthew 6:34. Wor-
rying about the unknowns and getting
wrapped in fear is the same as telling
God you don’t completely trust Him. It
becomes a battle between what you
know is true and what you actually do.
The truth is that God says not to worry
about tomorrow. The contradiction is
that it’s often difficult to let go of our
worries even when believing God is in
control. The movie “Facing the Giants”
has a beautiful illustration of this princi-
ple. In the movie, the high school foot-
ball team was in the locker room prepar-
ing for a championship game. As the
team knelt in prayer, the common plea
was “Whether we win or whether we
lose, we give You praise.” Imagine that
the football game is your life and the
possibility of losing is your fear. Being
able to say “I’ll praise you if I win and I’ll
praise you if I lose” is the picture of
trusting God. If you really believe that
God is in control, Jesus will give you the
strength to act on it (Phil 4:13).
The third verse is Philippians 3:13-14.
Whether good or bad, the past can’t be
erased but you need to learn to forget it.
Sometimes we struggle with regrets
about the past, wanting to erase deci-
sions and memories. Sometimes we
struggle with the successes of the past,
unable to let go of yesterday’s glory.
Whatever side of the fence you may fall
on, it is wrong to live in the past. God is
the God of the present; His name is I
AM. The sins of the past have been
nailed to the cross, covered by the
blood of Jesus Christ. At the time of re-
pentance they were removed from you
and no longer have a hold on you. The
next step is to press on toward fulfilling
the calling God has on your life. Every
born again Christian is called to live a
life glorifying to God, speaking his truth
to a lost world.
Continued on Page 2
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Love the Lord your God...
...With All Your Mind
Continued from Page 1
This is your new focus, your reason
for never giving up. “Set your minds
on things above, not on things on the
earth” (Col 3:2). By doing this, your
reward is waiting for you in heaven.
The fourth verse is Romans 8:28.
Expecting the worst to happen is not
how God wants you to live. It be-
comes an obsession and poisons
your mind. This behavior is evidence
of accepting the lie that God wants
His children to hurt. This lie comes
from the assumption that you must
accept being wronged because you
expect to be wronged. The truth about
God is that He is the loving Father
who wants to give good gifts to his
children (Mathew 7:11). Though there
will be times of great grief and sorrow,
we need to not only believe that God
is working to the good but also expect
it. Sometimes it may take clinging to
Isaiah 55:9 because it is too hard,
even painful, to understand God’s
plan. Still the truth remains; God’s
ways are always good and His work-
ing in your life is good.
The fifth verse piggy-backs off the
fourth and that is Jeremiah 29:11. Life
without a purpose is bleak. Without a
sense of purpose you lose hope for
the future. It’s common to wrestle
with knowing your purpose, feeling
insignificant in a big world. That is
why you need to own the fact that
God has a plan for you, a good plan.
He already knows the work He wants
you to do (Eph 2:10) and that gives
you purpose. Every experience puts
another tool in the toolbox needed to
fulfill God’s calling on your life.
“For as the heavens are higher
than the earth, So are My ways
higher than your ways, And My
thoughts than your thoughts.”
Isaiah 55:9
God’s Canvas
Though we cannot see the finished picture of our lives today, we can trust that
God is using our experiences each day as a training ground to gain the skills
we’ll need for the service He’s called us to. The great thing about this is that
God has created each person for a unique work and none is more significant
than another. In doing the work God prepared for you, you are doing the most
significant work of your life. All good works are needed to touch the world for
Christ.
The sixth verse is Romans 11:33. The evidence of God is all around us, espe-
cially in His creation. The more science reveals about our bodies and the world
we live in, the more intricate and delicate we discover life to be. The intelli-
gence that is in the creation of life is amazing. More than that, this God of all
creation reveals Himself to us personally. You cannot have life apart from God
and He uses life to teach us His ways. Through the consuming fire of the Spirit,
God works a passion in the lives of those who love Him that is beyond com-
parison. When you surrender yourself to seeking God’s face and simply com-
ing to know Him, your desire for Him will never die. The act of discovering the
truth about God is intense and so wonderfully good, yet just a glimpse of Him.
“O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God!”
Loving God with your mind is very important because your mind influences
everything you do. God has given us the opportunity to choose what we fill
ourselves with. Your life is a reflection of what is inside you and God wants to
transform you so that your life is a reflection of Him. The beautiful part about it
is that God does not expect you to work this transformation in your own life. He
simply wants you to choose to fill yourself with His truth and He will work the
transformation in you. Set your mind to knowing what God’s word says, then
choose to live like you believe it’s true and be transformed into His likeness.
A Clipping From the Heart…
...of Dorothy Brady
A man was all his life an atheist. In word and action he said, “There is no
God!” One morning he was found dead in his bed. In one hand he held a
piece of white paper. On it were written in a scrawling hand-writing the fol-
lowing words:
I’ve tried in vain a thousand ways
My fears to quell, my hopes to raise
But what I need the Bible says
Is ever only Jesus!
My soul is night, my heart is steel
I cannot see, I cannot feel
For light, for life, I must appeal
In simple faith in Jesus!
His atheism may have brought a slight measure of satisfaction to the man in
life, but it failed him in death. The he apparently turned to the only One who
can help us when we come down to the valley of the shadow of death.
- Selected
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 July 2010
God’s Canvas
Love the Lord your God...

“Weight”-Less
Spiritual “Lettuce” - by T.A. McMahon
American Heritage
More and more today we are being advised by various health and medical
Ref: http://www.allabouthistory.org/
associations to eat more fruits and vegetables. That’s a good thing. Yet our
spiritual health is even more important. Therefore, “let us” not forget to feed
As we look around the world we see
upon the Word of God’s spiritual “lettuce”
countries that have remaining evidence
of their past and the cultures that defined
Here are some morsels: “Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which
them. China has the Great Wall. Italy
doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set be-
has towers and fortresses. Across all
fore us” (Hebrews 12:1); “Let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continu-
Europe are majestic castles. Israel has
ally, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name” (Hebrews 13:15);
the remains of the Wailing Wall. The his-
“Let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth,” (1 John
tory is remarkable.
3:18); “Let us love one another: for love is of God” (1 John 4:7); “Let us
therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of
American history isn’t like the others. We
light” (Romans 13:12); “Let us therefore follow after the things which make
don’t have centuries of stories and sa-
for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another” (Romans 13:12);
cred buildings, but we have something
“Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting
richer. America has a heritage that was
holiness in the fear of God” (2 Corinthians 7:1); “Let us also walk in the
founded on the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
spirit” (Galatians 5:25).
The Mayflower landed at New Plymouth
in November of 1620. That ship carried
the pilgrims who wrote and signed the
A Taste of Heaven Mayflower Compact, their governing au-
thority and law. This is how that docu-
Lemon Cheesecake Squares ment begins:

Ingredients. Makes 9. “In the name of God, Amen. We, whose

names are underwritten, the Loyal Sub-
6 tbsp butter mix the butter with the graham jects of our dread Sovereign Lord, King
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs cracker crumbs and 1/4 cup sugar. James, by the Grace of God, of England,
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar, di- Press the mixture into the prepared France and Ireland, King, Defender of
vided baking pan and bake for 10 min- the Faith & Having undertaking for the
1 package (3oz) lemon gelatin utes. Let cool. Glory of God, and Advancement of the
1 package (8oz) cream cheese, Christian Faith, and the Honour of our
softened 3. Place the gelatin in a small King and country, a voyage to plant the
1 tsp. lemon extract bowl and add 3/4 cup boiling wa- first colony in the northern parts of Vir-
1 can (14 oz) sweetened con- ter. Stir until dissolved. Let cool. ginia, do by these presents, solemnly
densed milk, chilled and mutually in the Presence of God and
Thin lemon rind strips, to garnish 4. In a large bowl, whisk the one of another, covenant and combine
cream cheese, 1 cup sugar and ourselves together into a civil Body Poli-
lemon extract until smooth and tick, for our better Ordering and Preser-
Easy Step-by-Step Instructions fluffy. Add the condensed milk and vation, and Furtherance of the Ends
cooled gelatin; whisk until com- aforesaid.”
1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Lightly pletely smooth.
grease the bottom and sides of an 8 This document was referenced by John
-inch square baking pan. 5. Pour the cream cheese mixture Adams and other historians as the foun-
onto the graham cracker crust and dation of the U.S. Constitution. The
2. Melt the butter in a small sauce- chill for 2-3 hours. Slice into 9 United States of America was founded
pan over low heat. In a large bowl, squares and garnish with strips of for the purposes of spreading the Chris-
lemon zest to serve. tian faith. That is a heritage we can all
be proud of.
Contact God’s Canvas Newsletter by e-mailing GodsCanvasNLBC@gmail.com
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