God is your matchmaker..

Revisiting the  “letting love go” series.

Joshua De Gracia

We like to think of ourselves as always being in control. If we wanna get this girl’s number, we’ll go get. If we wanna have sex with someone we just met, we’ll try to achieve it to the best of our ability. It’s all about what makes “me” happy and how soon can I get “it” right?  As men, we hunt and try to find that special someone. Trouble is, we are looking in all the wrong places.

Take a second and ask yourself, “where do I go looking for love?”—- Bars, parties, clubs, the gym, strip clubs?

Besides the half naked attractive people, are you really hoping to find that special person at those places? Well, you might be saying “special for my hormones and for the flesh,” but it is filling and satisfying  for your spirit?

The truth: God doesn’t want you to actively pursue, but He’ll bring that person to you on His timing.

Genesis 2:21-22

“So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and closed up the place with flesh. 22 Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.”

If you feel like you are the only person on this earth than can’t find a mate, let me tell you that God has someone for everyone. He looked at Adam sleeping in the garden and saw that he needed someone to accompany him and gave him Eve. Man was not hunting and looking for girls when God blessed him. No, the Bible says man was in a deep sleep.

Now you must be asking, “so you want me to go to sleep and when I wake up, Megan Fox will appear?” No. This “sleep” time is our preparation prior to being ready for that person. This is the time that God wants to work in us and to do His will. During this preparation time, we need to work on character flaws, junk that’s in our heart and rid ourselves of the baggage that act as strongholds in our lives. It’s better to get rid of all the toxins in your life than take it into your next relationship.

Rather than you be in control and searching for love in all the wrong places, sow into Godly character, pull the weeds out of your life and allow God to be your matchmaker.

knowGodknowlove808@gmail.com

a pink carpet event..

Hosted by the God loving, talented, beautiful Jessica Hoffman (founder, Pure Beauty Ministries)

Fashion show, fashion giveaways, live music, video documentaries, and inspirational guest speakers.

This Pink Carpet Event is where fashion collides with the message of purity and beauty.

It happens Thursday, Nov 19th from 5:30- 9:30 pm at the Ko’olau Golf Course in Kaneohe!

Girls… buy your tickets starting Monday online at www.purebeautyministries.org or go to Fashionista’s Market downtown. First 50 girls in line, get a beauty swag bag!!

I highly encourage all of you women out there to attend. Since I am unable to make it out to this all female event, I am looking forward to hearing some awesome testimonies of how this event transformed you!!

knowGodknowlove808@gmail.com

recaptured..

imb22

Joshua De Gracia

Abandon all I am, to have you capture me yet again..

Isaiah 55:8-9

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD.9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

Psalm 139:23

“ Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.”

I Abandon all I am  to have you recapture me again. No matter where we are in our walk with God, sometimes we need to come to a state of brokenness. In that state, there is no better place to be than in the Father’s will. In His perfect and pleasing will.

How do you get there? By dying to yourself and reaching out to Him with all of your heart.

knowGodknowlove808@gmail.com

doin’ it with love..

love

Joshua De Gracia

John 13:34 (NIV)

“Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love another.”

1 Corinthians 6:14 (NIV)

“Do everything in love.”

One of the beautiful things about love is that it is all around us. You might be wondering, “What do you mean by all around us?”

1 John 4:8 states that “God is love” and thus, love is all around us, which might also remind you of the phrase “love is in the air.”

God is everywhere and so is love. One of the awesome things about God is that His unfailing love is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Since we are filled with the love of God, I challenge you to go out and live it. One kind gesture such as smiling at someone, opening a door for a woman (yes, for you mighty men of God), asking a friend how their day is going or even giving a loved one a hug can make their day.

Love and good acts are contagious and it is amazing how far a little love and kindness goes. When you give out love to someone, it’s like they catch it and instantly have the desire to pass it on to someone else. So get out there, love and be loved in Jesus name.

knowGodknowlove808@gmail.com

give Him all..

Take_it__by_VinTage90

vintage90 photography

Joshua De Gracia

Proverbs 3:4-6

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;  in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.”

Keyword here is “ALL.” If you want His blessings, God calls for us to follow and trust in Him in every area of our lives.

Now ask yourself,

“are there any areas in your life that you need to completely trust in God?“

knowGodknowlove808@gmail.com

concluding “call of duty:spiritual warfare”

KGKL_CoD_continued

team Know God Know Love

Concluding the “call of duty:spiritual warfare” series..

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Thank you to everyone who has took the time to read this series and visited our ministry. I especially want to thank God who without giving us a second chance, none of this would have been possible. I thank my team for their hard work, dedication, perseverance and the ability to meet deadlines on time. I love you guys.

We pray that it has encouraged and impacted your lives in one way or another.

I want to leave you with this..

True spiritual warfare is not binding and demolishing the enemy but knowing the majesty and supremacy of God.

Stay tuned for more original Know God Know Love series in the future.

God bless

reflection..

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Hey everyone. I hope you are enjoying the “call of duty: spiritual warfare” series. My team and I have worked hard on it and we appreciate every life that takes the time to read what God speaks through us.

I have one thing to ask. If any of you readers, followers out there have learned something from this series and/or have a testimony to share about, questions, comments, please send it to us.

We would love to read it and post it here on Know God  Know Love.

Don’t be afraid to step out in faith and remember, there is no fear in God.

knowGodknowlove808@gmail.com

fasting..

fasting

Part IX of the “call of duty: spiritual warfare” series.

By team KGKL Arnel Data

Prayer and Fasting: Preparing for Spiritual Battle.

What is fasting?  One definition simply states it as abstaining from food. The origin of the word states that it is “firmly fixed, steadfast”.  So fasting simply means to not eat and avoid food right?  If you answered YES, you are correct.  Even the word “breakfast” implies that fasting was done.  That is why every meal in the morning is called breakfast. It means to breakfasting.  So how does not eating prepare you for a spiritual battle?  It doesn’t. Not eating by itself is starving. This is why it is called prayer and fasting.  People tend to forget about the prayer aspect when it comes to fasting.

Prayer and fasting is a very powerful tool when it comes to going into spiritual battle.  It is a conditioning process.  One deprives the flesh in order to gain more spiritual food from God.  The only way we can feed off from God is to pray and be in our word.  The greatest example of a person who fasted was Jesus Christ.

Luke 4:1-4

“Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry. The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.” Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone.’”

Why did Jesus fast?  He did it to prepare for His journey.  After the 40 days and 40 nights out in the desert, Jesus went on into His ministry and ultimately took up His mission to defeat death at the cross. It still amazes me how powerful prayer and fasting is.

Fasting is not for everyone, if you have health problems please consult a Doctor before fasting.  The worst thing you can do while fasting is not praying. It is also not something to boast about, if you are fasting let a couple people know.  Don’t tell the whole world and watch how you carry yourself.

Matthew 6:16-18

“When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.
But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face,so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”

When do I stop fasting?

It all depends on you.  Some have a set amount of days that they fast, others just fast for a day, there are even others that have done the 40/40.  Fasting is a way to hear God voice more audibly.  It may not even be an audible voice; it can come from visions, revelations, word, etc.  There are two things to take away from fasting. The first is God’s strength and second is direction.  I believe that if we observe fasting along with prayer, great things can be done.  While fasting, lift up your prayers to God, ask for direction, strength, answer or miracle and give it all to Him. God Lives..

belt of truth..

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Part VIII of the “call of duty: spiritual warfare” series.

By team KGKL Jayson Reynon

Ephesians 6:14 Stand firm with the belt of truth buckled around your waist….

What’s the first thing you think of when you think about the pieces of armor on a knight?  Most likely a sword and shield. All knights must have full body armor: a helmet, a metal breastplate, and shoes.  In Ephesians 6:10-18, the bible also talks about armor that God wants us to put on.  Ironically enough, the bible lists the exact same pieces of armor, with the exception of one difference: God’s armor has a belt. Not just any belt, but a belt of truth.

Now you have to be thinking to yourself, “Why the heck would a belt be so important for a warrior?”  A belt obviously can’t hurt the enemy, nor can it defend against the enemy’s attacks.  The belt seems like such an insignificant and small piece of the armor.  So why would God’s armor require a belt?

Let’s imagine what you would look like if you walked around with a belt.  Almost every pair of pants that you buy requires you to wear a belt.  If you forget to wear your belt, what’s going to happen?  Well clearly, your pants are going to fall down and everyone is going to see your undergarments and you’re going to be waddling around as you walk with your pants at your ankles, looking just absolutely ridiculous.

But now imagine marching off to a battle and forgetting to wear your belt.  Your pants fall down, you have no place to hold your weapons, and you’ll be so useless in battle because you’re going to be too busy trying to hold up your pants with one hand that you’ll only be able to hold your sword OR your shield with the other hand, not both.  Now try to imagine yourself trying to fight off Satan with one hand while using your other hand to hold your pants up.  That’s one battle you’re doomed to lose.

More importantly  is that we’re told to put on “the belt of TRUTH.”  It’s not just any regular old belt, but a belt of TRUTH.  One of Satan’s favorite and most common tactics to steer you away from your purpose and destiny is to feed you lies.  He likes to tell you things like “you’re not good enough,” “you suck,” or “you’re a waste of space.”

A common scene in a lot of sword-fighting movies is when the hero cuts off the belt of the bad guy and his pants fall down, revealing his underwear.  And most times, the hero never explicitly kills the enemy.  He just leaves him helpless and embarrassed, tied-up, self-defeated, and ineffective.  That’s exactly what Satan does when he feeds us these lies.  Of course he’s not the “hero” but one of the first things he aims for is to cut off our belt of truth.  He makes us begin to doubt ourselves, who we are, and sometimes even if the truth of Jesus Christ really is the truth.  The enemy will never kill us directly, but if he can successfully cut our belt truth off and get us to begin doubting what is really true , then he leaves us like the enemy in those movies: helpless, self-defeated, and ineffective.

It is during these times of struggle and battle that we must really hold onto what we know is the truth.  So what is truth?  Is there such a thing as absolute truth?  YES THERE IS!!!  And that truth is found in the hope and life of Jesus Christ.

John 14:6

“I am the way the TRUTH and the life.”

Psalm 40:11

“Do not withhold your mercy from me, O Lord; may your love and your TRUTH always protect me.”

3 John 1:4

“I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the TRUTH.”

When we accept Jesus and everything that He says as truth, and walk in that truth, then we are assured to have the blessings and everlasting, eternal life that He promises.  When we can distinguish God’s truth from Satan’s lies, we have a decided advantage in battle over the enemy.  We’ll be able to recognize his lies and quickly dismiss them, helping us to be victorious in battle, allowing us to push forward and pursue the plans and purposes that God has intended for us since we were formed in our mother’s womb.

That’s why we need our belt of truth on at all times. The belt of truth holds all of the armor together.  Not only does it hold your pants up, but it also holds your breastplate of righteousness on.  It also has the sheath to hold your sword.  So buckle your belt of the truth of God on, and use that truth to extinguish Satan’s lies.  Remember, without a belt on, you’re basically just a naked penguin waddling around.  But with your belt firmly wrapped around your waist, you are firmly wrapped in the power, the truth, and the everlasting life of Jesus Christ.

why forgive?

1Forgiveness-1

Part VII of the “call of duty: spiritual warfare” series.

By team KGKL Joshua De Gracia

While looking over our e-mails from last night, I came across an interesting question from a long time reader. Rather than e-mail a response back to the person, I decided to make it part VII of our series.

The question: “Why is forgiveness important for my spiritual life? I can do fine without it right?”

Ohh boy, believe me when I say we could do a series or two alone about the issue of forgiveness.

First of all, unforgiveness is a very powerful stronghold that Satan uses to cut and pick away at our heart. A stronghold is a mindset of wrong beliefs where Satan has control because we’ve given in willingly and repeatedly over time. Unforgiveness can lead to broken relationships and can lead to us walking away from God.

There are many consequences if we choose to have unforgiveness in our heart:

1) If we don’t forgive, Satan takes advantage of us.

2 Corinthians 2:10-11

“If you forgive anyone, I also forgive him. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, 11in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.”

You give Satan even a little way in and he’ll end up taking and corrupting your entire heart. He’s out to kill, steal and destroy and the other way to overcome is with Jesus who came to bring life and righteousness.

2) If we don’t forgive, bitterness and resentment spreads throughout our body and can lead to a “heart attack.”

This is my “heart attack” illustration. Think of your heart relating to your spiritual life. You have a healthy heart as you read your word, dig into prayer and live a righteous life. On the other hand, when we eat bad food and don’t care of our bodies, plaque can build up and this can eventually lead to cardiac arrest or a heart attack. This plaque is represented by sin in our life such as unforgiveness, bitterness, anger, etc. that suffocate life out of us.

When unforgiveness is a major stronghold in our life because of a conflict we may of had we someone, it causes us to obsess over that person/situation and we can end up becoming like them.

Unforgiveness is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.

Proverbs 23:7

“For as he (a man) thinks within himself, so he is”

For all you Star Wars lovers out there, think about Anakin Skywalker while he was still training under Obi Wan Kenobi. He started off as a good guy but allowed anger to overtake his life and that eventually overcame him and Anakin became Darth Vader.

3) If we don’t forgive, we don’t prosper and God withholds forgiveness from us.

Matthew 6:14-15

“For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

This is why the act of forgiving is very important in our spiritual life.

Choose to forgive unconditionally. Don’t wait upon your feelings because your feelings take time to heal. Giving it up to God can set you free immediately.

Ephesians 4:31

“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

The last thing I’m going to say is that forgiveness is not always a one time process. There will be times where the enemy will put thoughts of what happened into your head to bring up the past, but you must choose to get rid of those thoughts and forgive over and over.

Matthew 18:21-22

“Lord how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to 7 times? Jesus answered, I tell you, not 7 times, but 77 times.”

Now the question is: Who do you need to forgive to allow God to allow breakthrough in your life and Satan to lose his stronghold in your heart?

Is it yourself? A family member? A friend? A past relationship?

Any other questions, please e-mail us: knowgodknowlove808@gmail.com