Where you need to be

Hello my name is Jasper, praise the Lord.

I went recently to view my new apartment. This will be the first apartment of my own since my accident in April of '09. Since that time I've been living from the hospital to the rehab. I've lived in a wonderful rehab for some 5 years. I've had the blessing of good caring people, beautiful and clean surroundings, but I feel that now my spirit has moved me to go in another direction. As I'm thinking about my new apartment and how nice it is, and I believe I'll be cared for by more caring and committed people. As I thought more about this, what's going on in my life right now, I can see that none of this is my doing. I didn't have some great strategy to leave the rehab, but because of the supportive people that the Lord put in my life, all I had to do was point the direction I wanted to go and God has done the rest. Looking back at my past life I can see where He's always put me exactly where I needed to be. He's always given me the support that I've needed to go a step further. A supportive family, a supportive NA family. He guided me to a good solid church home where I could learn more about life, myself, and Him. When I had the accident yes it was a terrible thing, but again the Lord knew what He was doing. I could've died on the expressway that evening, but He allowed me to live. I had to go through a rough time but He changed my life and He brought me closer to Him. Before that I was running around too much, to spend quality time with Him. I believe He was displeased so He chastised me to bring me into submission to Him. But still He's always had me right where I needed to be. I made a decision that I will be willing to accept any challenge that He brings my way. That's why when I'm presented with new ideas, new paths to walk down, I readily accept because He wants me to live a fruitful life. Not to be held down by the cares of the world or bound down by drugs. He wants me to see life clearly and all the wonderful blessings that it has in store. That's why with the support of others I decided to write blogs, write a book, move to a new apartment, perhaps one day do public speaking, and do it all in His blessed name. Yes, I'm sure that if you look over your life you can see where the Lord has always had you right where you needed to be. When we look at our lives sometimes and we think it's falling apart, through God it's actually coming together. So I encourage you to keep reading the word, pray on a daily basis, and examine your life.

My name is Jasper, peace and love.

It's God's World

Hello my name is Jasper, peace and love.

As I go through the hallways of where I live, I hear lots of comments concerning the weather. Only a couple days ago the temperature had turned warm. As a matter of fact one day it hit the 70s. I remember because I went out to the doctor that day and I had taken my cap and jacket, and thinking I wish I had left both of them at home because it was so warm. But the very next day when I arose from my sleep, I realized what the weatherman predicted was true. It snowed the very next day and we actually broke a record. Here it is the middle of April and we broke a record with snowfall. I hear comments both of surprise and what a bummer the snow is, but using my inner spirit and focusing on God and who He is I'm just thankful to be here to see the snow. I'm thankful each day that I am here on earth to see whatever God brings my way. As I looked outside the pine trees and everything covered with snow- it was actually quite beautiful. Everything looked so clean and fresh with the fallen snow. It just confirms to me that God is still in control. He is showing us that this is His world, He alone controls the temperature. He alone controls the elements. He is showing us "it's my world and I do with it whatever I desire". Think about this- how can it be 70 degrees one day, and then it's snowing the very next day? Think about it. Only God can do that. Don't get so miffed about the weather or any other natural disaster, but remember God created this earth, and He is still in control of it. We may not always understand what He does, but He already told us. My thoughts are above yours as high as the heavens. We cannot figure out what God does or why, all we can do is stand still and know that He is God. You don't have to agree, but these are my thoughts.

Again my name is Jasper, peace and love to you.

Expectations

Hello my name is Jasper, praise the Lord.

Most of us can remember a time when we were expecting something to happen in our lives. When we were young kids at Christmastime we all expected to get the toy that we wanted. As we grew older we may have our first relationship, and we expect the girl or young man to like us. Often times we expect certain things from our job, or we may expect to be rewarded for good deeds that we've done. When we pray to the Lord we pray honestly, and we expect Him to give us what we're asking for. He is our Lord and our father, and like any good father when we do good and we're obedient, we expect our father to be good to us. Father God is no different. He wants to be good to us, He wants us to ask Him for things, He wants us to be obedient to Him so He can be good to us in return. There is absolutely nothing wrong with praying and expecting good results, but it takes strong faith. This is what pleases God. It is written "you cannot please God without faith". That is the one thing that He requires of us more than anything else. When we have strong faith in His word and we pray sincerely to Him, we should expect excellent results because He is a perfect God and He cannot lie. When He makes promises to us and we have faith, those promises will be kept. This should be a very exciting thing to know. This should be something that we can look forward to in our lives, just knowing that when we pray to God He will do what we ask Him to do, as long as we have faith in Him and are obedient to His word. So be of good cheer, for we have the Lord on our side and He will do exactly what He has promised. So I encourage you to take a good look at your faith, keep your spirits strong, and always trust in the Lord.

My name is Jasper, and He is worthy of all praise.

Feed Your Inner Spirit

Hello my name is Jasper, praise Him He's worthy.

I was speaking with a young lady this morning and she was telling me that she had missed a lot of church lately. She had always been an active member in the church, but I suppose because of her work schedule she hasn't been able to go for quite a while. She said that she was kind of annoyed with herself because she got up and left the service. She felt that she just didn't want to be there. I thought about that and I told her that "if you believe in Jesus, then you have to believe in Satan because the scriptures speak of both". I said that Satan does not want us to go to church period. He does not want us to hear the word of God preached to us by the man of God. She said that if she doesn't go to church then the children don't go. I replied that's exactly what Satan wants. If he can stop you from going, then he also stops the children from going. He doesn't want them to be raised up in the word of God. It's just this simple- if you're not serving Jesus, then you're serving Satan. So you have to ask yourself, who is Lord over your life? Lord Jesus has a certain plan all mapped out for our lives. It is our duty to find out what that plan is and then carry it out. The only way that you can find out these things is to get as close to Him as you can. God said "I will give you pastors, and preachers, and teachers, and the like". It is not the man that you're actually listening to, but if he is a man of God it is God's word that is being spoken through him. The Bible states that "how can the people hear without a preacher?" Meaning He speaks to us all through the spirit, but He has commissioned preachers, and pastors, to feed his people, His word. It is actually the word of God that you are listening to through the man of God. So I encourage you to put aside all these little petty things, like "I'm too tired", "I'll go next Sunday", "I don't feel like getting dressed", and all the excuses we make not to go. Remember, it is the enemy's job to keep you from the word of God. When you get active in the church and you're there on a regular basis, when you stop going you should feel something is wrong. You may feel like something is missing, and you're out of place. The word of God draws you closer to Him. He said in His word "I will reveal myself to those who diligently seek me". The more Jesus that you get inside you, the more of Him you will see. He will reveal himself to you. We need to be around people who believe the same things that you believe. We go to the church house to fellowship with believers like ourselves so that we can be on one accord. That is why the church is so divided today. Everybody wants to do something different. We have so many different denominations and different views on God's word, when actually it's all very plain and straight to the point if you search your Bible. This is what the enemy wants- the church to be divided. One against the other in the name of the Lord. What a mess. So read the scriptures for yourself. Read them over and over, for the more you read the better you'll understand. Find a good church home where they believe in practicing the scriptures, where they believe in rejoicing and honoring God for who He is. This is just my suggestion to you.

Thank you, my name is Jasper, praise the Lord.

Count it all joy

Hello my name is Jasper, all praises to the Lord.

I am a native of Detroit, Michigan and I've gotten used to the Michigan weather. Michigan weather can be very strange at times. Growing up in Detroit I've heard it said "if you don't like the weather, just wait a few minutes and it'll change". With all the storms we've been having lately across the country, Michigan has been suffering a lot of snow. I hear people complain about the frigid temperatures, about how tired they are of the snow, they're ready for the weather to break and can't wait till spring comes. All their feelings about the weather are valid, but I feel that God's people learn to take every day and everything that comes with that day in stride. I don't complain about the weather, how much snow falls, or how much rain comes down, because I'm just glad to still be here to see it. I remind myself that the Lord makes no mistakes. Whatever He decides to give us is good for us and He gives it to us for a reason. God controls the weather and this is His earth, not ours. He knows exactly what it means. Actually when the snow falls it's very beautiful. Just think, after a fresh summer rain does the earth smell good? It has a clean feeling about it as if God just pours down the rain and washes everything clean. The snow falls and covers the ground, and when it melts it saturates the earth with moisture to prepare the trees, and the flowers, and everything to flourish. God does not like for us to complain or be upset when He does something in the Earth. He said "count it all joy" because everything that He does He does it for our best interest. We may not understand the harsh weather, the earthquakes, the tidal waves, fires, etc. But remember; He also said "my thoughts are far above your thoughts, and my ways you cannot understand". We don't try to figure out why or how God does what he does, we just accept it, deal with it, and accept Him for who He is. Don't be so quick to complain about life's situations and conditions. God always does what is best for us.

My name is Jasper, praise Him.

What About Todd?

Hello my name is Jasper, praise the Lord.

Many people have said that God works in mysterious ways, well I don't think so. If we read the scriptures He is very definite in what He wants us to do and what He does NOT want us to do. He is not wishy-washy but He is rather straightforward. I would like to dedicate this blog to a friend of mine named Todd. Like most of us I imagine Todd had goals and desires for his life. He probably envisioned his life going a certain way. But Todd ended up in a wheelchair for some 20 or more years. In those 20 years in his wheelchair he faced many obstacles. He quickly learned that the world makes it very difficult for people in wheelchairs. So he began to learn how to get around these obstacles, he learned a lot about insurance companies, people that are in the medical field only for the money. But Todd truly cares about people who have met with unfortunate circumstances and he makes it his business to help people who cannot help themselves. He lets us know when new devices come on the market, he introduces us to people who have learned to live a fruitful life being a quad. Being a quad does not mean that your life is over. It does not mean that you have to stop doing what you love, but rather find ways to do it differently. Sometimes we feel our lives should go the way we planned them, but then fate steps in and everything is turned upside down. It may be an auto accident, it could be the death of a loved one, it could be a divorce, or perhaps a financial disaster. But whatever it is it turns our world completely around. We don't understand it at the beginning but later on when we look back we can see how God put us on a different course. If Todd had not been a quad in a wheelchair he would not be as passionate about helping the wheelchair community. But God changed his life (and also his heart) and made helping seemingly helpless people live a better life. I thank Todd for the wonderful work that he does in helping us have hope, reach goals, and just know that life is not over. Perhaps it has just begun for some of us. Again, thank you Todd. I have another friend who I met because of my injury. I too am a quad in a wheelchair and I have a friend named Ken who is a respiratory therapist. When he was younger he had hopes of joining the military and becoming a ranger, but fate stepped in in the form of a motorcycle accident. He busted his knee and could not be accepted in the military. He had no thoughts of getting into the medical field or becoming a respiratory therapist, but God led him that way because God knew that his services would be needed to help people who are injured. I told him that God did not intend for him to be a ranger, but to be right where he is, in a rehabilitation center where he helps people who can't help themselves. Ken is very good at it and enjoys the reward, the feeling, and the love of helping other people. Above all this is what God wants us to do in our lives- helping one another, caring for one another. The strong should reach down and help the weak. So think about this- if your life is going in the direction that you think it should go but suddenly it takes a sharp turn, it may be God's way of redirecting you to do His will and not yours. It is very satisfying when you see a person recovering from an injury or is in distress and you are able to help them. Helping those who are weaker than you. This is a satisfaction and a feeling that no amount of money can buy. It strengthens your spirit, it gives you a desire to want to do more, it makes you stand just a little taller being able to help someone who needs it. So in closing I want to say again, God bless my two friends Todd and Ken for the wonderful work they do in the Lord's name to help other people.

Again my name is Jasper, all praise to the Lord.

Where do you Stand?

Hello my name is Jasper, praise the Lord.

I pray that my words today don't offend anyone, but I feel that the church is so divided because a lot of Christians refuse to stand up for the Lord's word. I was in a group session recently as someone was reading the current news of the day. There was an article in the news about homosexuality being widely accepted by the younger generation. I presented a comment to the reader and her reply was "that's a very sensitive and touchy subject" and I replied "well that's the kind I prefer to talk about". The point I'm trying to make is whenever we hear or see something that we know is contrary to God's word, we should be about the business of standing up for God. We do not have to argue about His word, but merely correct what we know is wrong and stand on His word no matter what. It should come as no surprise to the Christian when we hear or see certain things happening in the world today. We know that the Lord predicted all of these things many years ago. He said that before He comes back men will turn their backs against God. They won't heed God's word, but they will choose to go their own way, use their own devices, be lovers of themselves, their hearts will be waxed cold without regard for their brother. That's why it seems that anything goes in the world today. Kids killing parents, sexuality, and vile behavior is actually glorified. As I watch the television there are many new shows about zombies, "Walking Dead", eating people, new shows about vampires, new shows about witchcraft. And these things are being piped into our minds. These are not shows that our children and young people should be watching- they do have an effect on certain people believe it or not. I recently was talking to a young lady who watched one of these shows and she said afterwards she couldn't sleep for a few days. Make no mistake about it, we are always in a spiritual warfare and the only weapon we have is the word of God. As we look around at the world today things have drastically changed from the way they used to be- and it's not for the better. The world seems to be moving further and further away from God. They're trying to erase God from everything- the schools, the courtrooms, even the very government is trying to erase God out of the system. We need to be willing to stand up for God at every turn. It has to start at the family level and extend to every facet of our lives. Remember Paul said "we war not against flesh and blood, but the principalities of darkness". We war against things that we cannot see. Some people- even Christians- don't believe, but if you read God's word it will open your eyes and you will see. So I encourage you to be steadfast in the word, keep the faith, and press forward.

My name is Jasper, praise the Lord.