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Posts by Gaspar Anastasi

Jesus: Made in America

March 30, 2019 Gaspar Anastasi
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Making positive change, Success & victory

Whatever became of the Jesus we read about in the pages of the Bible? And who replaced Him with the modern American version?

Many still believe “Jesus is the way the truth and the life and there is no other way to the Father except by Him (John 14:6).” Yet many Christians have mistakenly embraced the heretical belief that God’s grace has done away with His laws.

Jesus Himself said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them (Matthew 5:17).”

We’ve made grace a license to do whatever pleases us instead of the ability to do whatever pleases Him! Some seem to believe that, when we accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, there’s no need to repent since sin is no longer an issue.

Belief in these heretical doctrines results in acts like:

1) Marking, cutting and defiling our bodies with tattoos. The word clearly says it is an abomination to mark our bodies with tattoos like those who follow other gods. It also tells us our bodies are not our own; they are the temple of God.

2) Walking away from strong committed relationships because of offense, ignoring the mandate to resolve differences and to love one another as Christ loved us. Meanwhile, our love and honor for one another is proof to the world that the “Bible Jesus” is real and alive in us.

3) Failure to attend or commit to a local church and using our time, talent and treasure to help advance its God-given mission for our community. God hasn’t changed His mind about having a prosperous church. But we ask our church to serve us instead of serving others in the body to manifest God’s kingdom to our local community. So we come and go from local churches, shopping for the best deal to help us build our kingdom, instead of committing to build God’s.

4) Refusal to submit to godly authority and be spiritually fathered. Some see any spiritual authority as a hindrance to advancing their own agenda. Maybe one reason there are so few spiritual fathers today is the lack of sons and daughters willing to submit to godly authority. Please note: There are times when the “Bible Jesus” will say no and stop us from doing what feels and looks good to us.

What does Jesus say about all this?

The “Bible Jesus” says about His word: “Heaven and earth will pass away but my word will never pass away.” And in John 14:21: “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” First John 2:3 says, “Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments.”

There is no tension between God’s grace and His laws (His word). God’s grace (defined as His ability given to us to do His will) makes it possible to obey God’s commandments, not do away with them.

What a great deception Satan has sown! And he has covered it up by offering us an alternative Jesus. Don’t fall for that lie!

We love to hear from you! If this blog post has blessed you, please take a moment to comment below.…

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Know what’s yours!

March 23, 2019 Gaspar Anastasi
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Uncategorized

You can’t give away what you don’t own (or don’t know you own). I say that because Heaven is invading earth through those who know what they possess. And too many Christians are ignorant of what is theirs through Jesus.

Ephesians 1:3 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.” Every spiritual blessing have been given to us (past tense, meaning already done). God’s grace (provision for every human need) was given to us 2,000 years ago and is available through our faith in Jesus (Romans 5:2).

You can tell when people don’t know what’s theirs by 1). the lack of faith in their prayers and 2). the lack of God’s presence in their lives.

They pray with unbelief for things God has already promised us. For example: “Lord, please give me more of your power to overcome the trials I’m facing.”

The kingdom of God (His power, authority and might) came to reside in you and me the day we declared Jesus as Lord and Savior (Luke 17:21). “He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4b).

They also pray: “Lord, be with us” when God already told us in Hebrews 13:5 that He would never leave us nor forsake us. Let’s find out what’s ours in Jesus’ last will and testament (the New Testament).

The other sign of not knowing what’s yours is a powerless, ineffective Christian life because you live without the tangible, manifested power and presence of God. We have the form of godliness but lack God’s power as described in 2 Timothy 3:5. We can’t release what we don’t know we have!

Paul warns us in 2 Corinthians 4:3 and 4 that Satan tries to blind us from seeing and believing what we possess through Jesus Christ. It’s like having an uncle who leaves you a million dollars. But you can’t enjoy it or give it away if you don’t know it’s yours.

The Apostle Peter knew what he possessed. In Acts 3:1-6, he and John meet a man, crippled from birth, who every day begged at the gate called Beautiful. Peter responds to his request, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.”

The disciples understood that they carried Jesus’ presence and they were commissioned to give it away to anyone hungry for it.

Transformed minds will transform people who, in turn, transform cities. When you get the revelation that you possess God’s precious presence through Jesus, wherever you go you will release solutions, healing, deliverance, and breakthroughs which will change regions!

The ministry of the gospel isn’t just in words. Jesus came into this world to reveal His Father to His creation by releasing His presence to heal the sick, raise the dead and preach the gospel of the kingdom!

First John 4:17 says, “…as He is, so are we in this world.”  What you are possessed by is what you possess, and what you possess you release through your life. Do you know what you possess? To know it is to show it.

If this blog post has been a blessing to you, please let us know by leaving a comment below. We love to hear from you!…

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Get rid of negative labels

March 16, 2019 Gaspar Anastasi
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Finding significance in life, Getting past the past

At one time or another, every one of us has been labeled, often by a frustrated, immature parent who didn’t understand that “Death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Proverbs 18:21).

Labels define a person according to our personal view of them and their inability to perform according to our expectations or standards. But maybe they’re unaware of what we expect, or our expectations are unrealistic, or perhaps their past hurts make them rebellious or incapable.

We define people based on our perception of them at that moment instead of God’s mercy and His view of who they are in Jesus.

When we speak condemning, critical words about a person’s character, we release a curse over him or her and their destiny. Such words spoken early in life are buried deep in their subconscious mind. As they grow older, the buried message leaks out in every thought about themselves. That’s how many miss our destiny. We live the labels.

The father of a famous 1920’s industrialist labeled his young son “stupid” and told him he would never succeed. When the boy was 16, his teacher looked at his poor grades and agreed with his father, advising him to quit school and get a job. The teacher said he wasn’t smart enough to graduate. So the boy accepted the label, quit school and held a menial job.

Then one day his company gave every employee an IQ test and the boy discovered that he was a genius! From that day on, he exchanged the “stupid” label for “genius”. His whole life changed and he became a wealthy and famous man.

Think of labels people have put on you. Some can just be laughed at and shrugged off. Others still make you shudder. Today, many of us live under the curse of negative labels that have set false boundaries and limited our God-given potential. Labels also forge an assignment from hell over our life that supports the curse it created. People see us and treat us accordingly.

So what should we do about it?

  • Ask God to reveal the labels that were placed on you by a parent or by someone you respect. It becomes a curse the moment you believe what it says about you.
  • Forgive the person who labelled you. Then repent for believing those labels and for repeating them over yourself. Then appropriate the blood of Jesus and declare that curse to be broken over your life.
  • Accept your identity in Jesus. Know the great life, power and destiny of Jesus that’s in you. Second Corinthians 4:7 says how God sees you: “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.” Always see yourself through the eyes of Jesus, not the label someone else put on you.
  • Begin to dream again and break free from the false boundaries of those labels by consistently seeing and talking about yourself the way Jesus does. Research the many scriptures that talk about who you are in Jesus and confess them daily until you become them.
  • Finally, avoid people who only see and talk about you in those negative labels. Some people will view you that way all your life. Surround yourself with people who can see you through the eyes of Jesus.

Negative labels are satan’s way of holding you back from your God-given right to succeed at what He’s called you to. Let this be the day that every label is broken and then refuse to allow anyone to ever label you again!

We love to hear from you! If this post has blessed you, please take a moment to let us know by commenting below.…

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God’s grace in your cycles and seasons

March 10, 2019 Gaspar Anastasi
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Uncategorized

Everything in life operates in cycles and seasons, as we are told in Genesis 8:22: “While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease.”

Recognizing where you are in life’s cycle will give you an advantage over Satan. Why? Because there are certain things you can and can’t do in certain cycles. Knowing the grace God has for you is the key; but recognize that His grace comes in many different ways. 

Let me list of a few ways that God’s grace can be working in our life.

Through desires and pas­sions: The Holy Spirit will place desires and passions that weren’t there before to accom­plish God’s will in your life. For instance, He will rekindle a de­sire to work on your marriage, lose weight, overcome bad habits or addictions, change ca­reers, press into God more, etc. They can be things you always wanted to do, but you just never could. But, now you see that God placed those desires and passions in you and He also gave you the grace to accomplish His will.

Through divine appointments: Someone suddenly comes into your life, seemingly out of nowhere and you see that they’re a good influence; encouraging you to do things that are right in the sight of God. For instance, you connect with an old friend you haven’t seen in years and learn that they’re on fire for Jesus! By connecting with them again, you’re en­couraged to re-commit yourself to a stronger walk with God. Or you make friends with a co-worker who has a great marriage and fam­ily life, so now you decide it’s time to put your marriage and family first. These aren’t coin­cidences; they’re by design and are proof of God’s grace for this season.

Through unexpected trouble: It may sound strange, but many times God allows trouble in our life so we’ll change our current course and realign it with His plans for us. Maybe we’ve been comfortable in our job for years and wouldn’t think of changing, but, because God wants to give us a better job with more influence for His kingdom, trouble comes and we are forced to leave. Or perhaps God’s al­lowing conflict in certain friendships because they aren’t beneficial to us and are actually keeping us from fulfilling His purpose. In fact, these relation­ships may be the very thing holding back God’s blessings.

These are just a few of the ways that God’s grace is released. They can help us to recognize the season we’re in… a time we can accomplish things to align us with His plans and destiny. This grace is not just coinciden­tal; it’s God’s divine intervention in our life. They are His open doors and, if we walk through them by yield­ing to Him, we will accomplish life changes we’ve struggled with in the past. We will do things we always knew were right, but could never succeed by our own will power.

Everyone goes through life cycles and seasons. Don’t miss your great victory by not recognizing God’s grace to do what you could never do yourself. Start looking for His grace in your life and focus on that area, knowing that every cycle and season has a beginning and an end. You don’t want to miss the opportunity to accomplish things you know you can’t do on your own, because you’ll have to wait for that cycle to return again. God’s grace is just for that season, so enjoy your God-given opportunity for victory and success!

We love to hear from you! If this blog post has been a blessing to you, please let us know by taking a moment to comment below!…

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How big is your God?

March 2, 2019 Gaspar Anastasi
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Making positive change

When the prophet Isaiah (6:1) saw the Lord high and lifted up and the train of His robe filling the temple, he gained fresh revelation of the awesome power and authority of God. He was overwhelmed by this vision of God! In Isaiah’s day, kings attached to their train the trains of kings they defeated in battle. The length of the train indicated the kings’s authority. Isaiah saw the one and only true God as a king with unlimited power and authority!

Our fears, frustrations, depression and hopelessness come from a lack of revelation of how big and awesome our God truly is. The God with whom we identify determines the amount of fear, stress, worry and hopelessness we experience. If we see God the way Isaiah did, opposition won’t discourage us.

We must never stop desiring deeper understanding of what God can do in and through our lives, because yesterday’s revelation won’t meet today’s challenges. Too many people are living on yesterday’s understanding and they’re filled with fear, anxiety and worry—a sure sign that the God they know is too small.

What God do you identify with? One who is able to do this, but not that? Remember, Isaiah was already God’s prophet before he received that new revelation. If he needed to be reminded of who God really is, how much more do we need a fresh download of revelation from heaven?

Here are some qualities you need to increase your view of the authority of God: 

1. Brokenness, demonstrated by meekness and humility. You can’t expect to get fresh revelation if you are prideful, self-righteous or unteachable. Isaiah was devastated by the death of the friend and king he served for 52 years. But through his devastation, he glimpsed the True King. Trauma or the removal of people we put before God often develops in us humility and brokenness.

2. A desire to know God more. Some people are satisfied with what they already know of God. They stop pursuing Him, but God only feeds the hungry. Ask God to give you a deeper hunger for more of Him. He’ll certainly answer that prayer because He wants to be known by you. Moses served God for many years, but when he cried out to know Him more, he experienced His presence to the point that God’s glory shone from his face!

3. Seeking Him with all your heart. People always say they love God with all their heart, but they’re deceived if God isn’t their main passion. Here’s the acid test: What do you do when no one is watching? Do you spend time just loving on Him? Is He the focus of your attention? Jeremiah 29:12-14 says, “Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the Lord….” The key phrase is with all your heart. Plead with God to turn your heart to Him and no one else.

4. Acknowledgement that we have “unclean lips”. Isaiah knew his language revealed a lack of understanding of how big God really is. Change what you say to your mountain. Stop agreeing with your problems and stop complaining about what God isn’t doing in your life. God’s power is in His word! So, if your God is big enough, your words ought to reflect that. The greatness of your God…

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Don’t leave home without it!

February 23, 2019 Gaspar Anastasi
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Finding significance in life

If you bake a cake and don’t like the way it tastes, you don’t blame the oven, do you? No! You fault the recipe and, the next time, you change the ingredients.

The same is true in life. We need to stop blaming everything and everyone else for our failures and lack of success. Instead, let’s take a good look in the mirror and see what needs to change in us.

The one ingredient missing most in today’s culture is the character trait of integrity. Its absence is especially glaring in religious circles where people claim to live a changed life. That’s why you often hear secular  people say, “I wouldn’t go to that church. It’s full of hypocrites!”

What is integrity? It’s being consistently truthful and honest. It is keeping your word even when it’s inconvenient to do so. Those of us with integrity state our values and actually live out our beliefs in every circumstance.

They say, If you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything. This missing ingredient of integrity not only hinders our success, but also our ability to live a life of significance and positively influence our culture. Success comes and goes, but significance is lasting! Proverbs 28:6 puts it this way: “Better is the poor who walks in his integrity than one perverse in his ways, though he be rich.”

Yet we see this lack of integrity in church, government, families and in us as individuals (because we make up those entities).

Here are some ways a lack of integrity may manifest itself in action:

1. We tell people what they want to hear to avoid conflict or confrontation.

2. We are people-pleasers. We agree with people in their presence, then complain about them to others.

3. We look for opportunities that benefit us with little or no regard for those around us.

4. We don’t keep our promises… and feel no need to even explain why. It reveals a lack of honor and respect for others.

5. We don’t take God seriously enough to live differently than the world and accept our role as Christ’s ambassadors. Many of us have gotten so used to living without integrity that we don’t even miss it until we meet someone who has it.

Integrity pleases God. He expresses it every time His word does not fail, no matter the circumstances. People of integrity face persecution, but I encourage you to keep on keeping on! You make a difference! Know that there are abundant blessings available to people who walk in integrity (Christ’s character).

The Bible promises to those who live with  integrity: Guidance for every day; Divine favor and prosperity; Victory over our enemies; Vindication from false accusations and much more!

This missing ingredient is the one reason we don’t see more of our family or co-workers saved or our churches grow! Integrity is a character issue, not a mental exercise we apply to be successful. We either have it or we don’t.

If you realize you lack this missing ingredient, stop what you’re doing right now and ask God to help change your character. Allow integrity to start flowing in and through your life. As I said, there are great, great benefits in living God’s way. Integrity: Don’t leave home without it!

If this blog post has been a blessing to you, please let us know by leaving a comment below. We love to hear from you!…

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