JFA Blog

Reflections, studies and news for your walk with God.

February 14, 2023·Ana Julia Luiz

Attracted by the Presence

I wasn’t born in a Christian home, quite the contrary. Whenever I tell our testimony, I like to say that we didn’t meet Jesus, He found us, or rather, He attracted us to Himself. So many times we have the feeling that we are going after Him, but the truth is that it is very difficult for you to look at a church, a bible or whatever it is and say “I found Jesus”. He finds us, he attracts us and when we realize it, we can say “I found what I needed”, not because we looked for it, but because He called us. Moses and the Burning Bush “Meanwhile, Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. Then the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire within a bush. As Moses looked, he saw that the bush was on fire but was not consumed.” – Exodus 3:1-2 What was going on in this situation? Well, the title my bible gives to this text is “God Speaks to Moses” which if […]

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February 09, 2023·Rapha Abreu

How to know God?

Do you know what a house of prayer is for? Do we need to “consecrate” a space as a place of prayer? I wanted to bring some thoughts about the text of Isaiah 56: “For my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations”. Go to him “If you seek Him, He will be found by you, but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you”. 2 Chronicles 15:2 The Father’s house was not called the house of “preaching” or “mysteries”, such as miracles and prophecies, but of “prayer”. Pointing directly to a relationship with God and the way worship should be performed. Several times I come here to talk about one of our actions. That’s because a lot is heard about what He does and we already know His promises, but it’s important to remember daily what needs to come from us. Knowing God through preaching and miracles takes away our action to build a relationship with Him. Receiving is easy, watching God speaking and doing is easy. But being willing to seek Him requires a step on our part. Listen and do “My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you”. Job […]

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February 07, 2023·Ana Julia Luiz

The God’s Time

I’m sure you’ve heard the advice several times: “calm down, wait for God’s time, everything will be fine”, but it’s never easy to wait, quite the contrary, you always think that a certain thing should already be happening, but still nothing. But don’t worry, I assure you it’s always worth it. I’ve been through some situations of God’s time not being the same as mine, and honestly? If I didn’t wait, I wouldn’t be ready to live what He gave me, I don’t regret waiting one bit. Life is made of processes “There is an occasion for everything, and a time for every activity under heaven:. a time to give birth and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to uproot; a time to kill and a time to heal; a time to tear down and a time to build; a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance; a time to throw stones and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace and a time to avoid embracing; a time to search and a time to count as lost; a time to keep and a […]

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February 02, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Does God punish us?

Have you understood the weight and responsibility of freedom or have you constantly tried to sign your decisions with the name of God? Have you remembered that even though everything is released to you, not everything builds your life? “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive“ 1 Corinthians 10:23 Divine punishment “You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh. Father, serve one another humbly in love“ Galatians 5:13 It is normal (but should not be) to hear the phrase “God punishes” as a warning to stop acting in some way, transforming the fear we should have into God by fear, distorting the image of a loving God and merciful, placing in His hands a whip. I see that this phrase arose in the face of a difficulty that human beings have in assuming responsibility. We celebrate the freedom of choice that God gives us, but after we choose, we want Him to take the blame for our bad choices. It’s not fair to blame the tools if we are the ones operating them. The […]

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January 31, 2023·Ana Julia Luiz

Don’t be like a fish out of water

It is very common to hear or use that expression “I feel like a fish out of water”, but at this point I would like to use this phrase with a different meaning. Our Christian life is like being a fish, living in a pond or in the sea. Just like a fish out of its natural habitat, when we leave God’s presence, we end up dying, not physically, but in our interior. The absence of God generates discouragement, anguish and emptiness, because only He is able to fill us completely. As Psalm 16:11 says: You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. That is, a path of life is only found in God. He is the source. It is in His presence that we find full joy. Responsibility in Life with God During our Christian walk we constantly hear the phrase: “Jesus loves you”, and that is a fact, because it was for love that He laid down His life for us. However, several times we end up using this as an excuse, after all “if He loves me regardless of doing something wrong […]

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January 26, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Have you turned the key?

It is true that God opens doors and paths. But we are so preoccupied with His opening that we forget the importance of the passing action. It is necessary and essential that we trust in God’s work, but we also need to remember certain steps that depend on us. We must move Whoever watches the wind will not plant; whoever looks at the clouds will not reap. Ecclesiastes 11:4 Doors separate places. To access one place, we need to leave another. For example, you live in a condominium where there is a guardhouse with a doorman controlling entry and exit. If you need to leave the house, you’ll need to go through the gate. Even if the doorman opens it for you, is it any good if you just stand there and not move? We can’t just watch! God opens doors, but the choice to go there and enjoy what’s on the other side is completely yours because the Lord gave you freedom of choice. He can only guide you on a path if you want to walk towards it. God will not force you. Trust comes from knowing Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those […]

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January 24, 2023·Ana Julia Luiz

God is not a genie

I would like to invite you now to close your eyes for a moment and stop to think about your prayers and the hours/minutes you spend with God. Analysis: what do you usually talk about? Do you ask for more or do you have quality time with the Father? Did you think about it a bit? Have you opened your eyes yet? Excellent! Let’s talk about it then. We can easily live a theology in which the human being and his will are placed above everything and God (I hope unconsciously) is reduced to a servant or a genie, etc You may be wondering where I’m going with this and if I’m implying that presenting your needs to God is wrong, but no, that’s not the point. It’s not that you shouldn’t ask, but you can’t summarize your life with the Father in just requests and more requests. Ceaseless search I recently started reading a book that is quite famous here in Brazil, called “The God Who Destroys Dreams – Rodrigo Bibo”. He has several analogies to things in our daily life to explain the central theme of the book, that no, it’s not an evil God who doesn’t let […]

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January 19, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Has your heart agreed with God?

God says in the bible that whatever I ask in faith will be given to me. So why have I been asking with all my strength and He won’t give it to me? Does he not hear me? This has happened to everyone at least once. Praying and waiting on God, but not receiving what was asked, thinking that the Lord is not listening to us. But that’s not true. On the opposite way “Before they call I will answer. While they are still speaking I will hear” Isaiah 65:24 The Father always hears us, His ears will always be turned towards the children. And even stronger than that, the heart of God hears our insides before we even speak. In all your prayers He was always by your side listening to every word. But He will not give you what is not linked to what He dreams for your life. God has a plan for every person even before birth. All life has a purpose, because He doesn’t do anything “just in case”, every detail has already been dreamed up. And our prayer may not be aligned with this desire of the Father, which makes us think that He closed his […]

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January 17, 2023·Ana Julia Luiz

Watch out for distractions!

I’ve been playing a mobile game called Candy Crush for a while now. I like him because he helps me distract my head and even de-stress. I noticed that, as you progress through the levels, the game starts using a new strategy to make you lose: distraction. Each level always has a goal, but it is common for other things to appear so that I focus on them and forget about the target of that stage. Us and the distractions In our lives this is exactly how it happens. We live our days often focused on what is not related to our goals. The Lord may have given you some targets: to dedicate yourself to His work, to do something He ordered, to follow the call He gave you, among others. Anyway, He can direct us to so many purposes to fulfill in Him. But the devil has many ways to divert us from our goals. The main one is distraction. How many times have you seen yourself on a path that seemed to make so much sense in your eyes, but when you turned to the Lord, He showed you that it wasn’t that? It is usually a slow […]

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January 12, 2023·Rapha Abreu

When is the right time to pray?

When is the right time to act? To what extent is risk taking the right decision? How long should we wait for something? With each passing day, the answer to these questions becomes clearer to me. The answer is always Jesus. Who knows more “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you”. James 1:5 A while ago my car started making an unusual noise. Instead of consulting a mechanic right away to find out what that noise was and what to do, I postponed it for a few long days. The noise was coming from the damper. If I had changed it when it was defective, I would have had to change it alone. But as several days passed, the bad shock absorber ended up overloading the other 3, so I had to change them all. Conclusion: I spent more, I needed to spend more days without a car and I almost had problems with other parts of the car. If I had changed it too soon I would have thrown a still good shock in the trash and had unnecessary work. So who […]

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January 10, 2023·Ana Julia Luiz

Prayer for the weary and burdened

The year is starting, but we came from a very troubled year for many people. It’s common to feel tired and overwhelmed, even if 2023 is just beginning. In Matthew 11:28-29, Jesus says: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am meek and lowly in heart; and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:28-29 May we cling to Jesus and learn from Him to be meek and humble. Today, I invite you to pray for your neighbor and maybe for yourself so that God will bring you rest, remembering that you don’t need to pray the same way I will leave it here. After all, everyone has their own way of talking to our God. Prayer Lord, my God and Father, we thank You for another breath of life that You have given us. It was through Your grace that we came this far. Holy Spirit, we cry out to You to bring relief and comfort to our hearts. Bring peace and rest into our lives. That rest that can only come from above. Father, we ask for […]

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January 05, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Seeing with Eyes of FAITH

Claude Monet was one of the most important impressionist painters of the 20th century. He once said a sentence that always caught my attention: “To see, we must forget the name of the things we are looking at”. I don’t know about you but, in addition to using it for many areas of my life, I can see this phrase in the gospel too. Discernment and vision “To humans belong the plans of the heart, but from the Lord comes the proper answer of the tongue’. Proverbs 16:1-9 To these four young men God gave knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning. And Daniel could understand visions and dreams of all kinds“ Daniel 1:17 We are the only beings who receive from God rational abilities to plan, decipher codes, dream… This characteristic leads us to always seek the path of reason. We often rationalize too much, question and wish that everything makes the most sense to us. We want to have complete knowledge of everything that happens in our lives. However, God in different situations will use what makes no sense to us. He breaks the mold and invites us to see through faith and understand through His voice. And faith […]

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December 21, 2022·Ana Julia Luiz

Prayer for the New Year

2022 was quite a year! So many things happened: elections here in Brazil, the World Cup, among other international events, not to mention what happened in our personal lives. We can say that we only got this far because the Lord kept us. Taking that into account, I believe it’s important to pray for this year that is starting too. May 2023 be a year of blessings and joy in the presence of God. Today I invite you to pray and intercede for the new year, remembering that you don’t have to pray the same way I will leave it here. After all, everyone has their own way of talking to our God. Prayer “Lord my God and Father, We thank you for this day and for another year that You Lord is giving us. Thank you also for Your faithfulness and love. Thank you for taking care of us this past year. Despite adversity and difficulties, we know that You were always present and never abandoned us. Father, we ask you for this year that is beginning. May days of joy come! May we learn to find joy in living Your purposes and Your will. May we love our […]

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December 19, 2022·Ana Julia Luiz

A new life

I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve heard the phrase: “New Year, New Life”. At the end of the year, here in Brazil this sentence is posted on the social media and said by family members, friends, pastors… It is a typical end-of-year sentence. During this period of the year I have the habit of briefly reflecting on my year: what got better, what got worse, the best moments, the worst, among other points. A former leader once also encouraged me to think about something I take into my life: what about my relationship with God? Has it improved, worsened or stayed the same? After all, regardless of all the other things that happened (if I got a job, got into the school/college I wanted, got a car, moved house), what matters most is my relationship with God. Everything loses value if I don’t dive deeper. Relationship with God Sometimes I find myself thinking about the ups and downs I’ve had throughout the year, including my relationship with God. After all, I’m not perfect. I always end up sinning and moving away from His presence a little, but the important thing is to always return to the Father’s feet. […]

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December 19, 2022·Rapha Abreu

Have you been grateful?

When a new year begins, we always look for dreams in the drawer to put them into action during the new months and not let them stand still. And filling our heart with hope is great! Having a goal moves us and, when we hear His voice to know the best path, it also takes us closer to Him. The problem is when we transfer our happiness to our dreams, putting the responsibility of making us happy on them. Gratitude in the now “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus”. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 It makes me question whether I’ve been grateful for what I already have. Have I been seeing the little things that God has already poured into my life or am I busy waiting for a hyper event that takes me off the ground and makes me lose my breath? When we plan big things, we end up focusing too much on them and forgetting about the small pieces that put together such a bigger and amazing puzzle. As human beings, we are used to easily noticing the big and we let go unnoticed or with less attention to what is […]

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December 16, 2022·Rapha Abreu

The meaning of the gifts

When Jesus was born, the story tells that the wise men went to the baby and presented him with some objects. Have you ever wondered about the meanings of each gift given by them? “On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.” Matthew 2:11 The gold This gift represented and reaffirmed the royalty of Jesus. “The Lord reigns, he is robed in majesty. The Lord is robed in majesty and armed with strength. Indeed, the world is established, firm and secure. Your throne was established long ago. You are from all eternity”. Psalms 93:1,2 The boy was born in a manger, surrounded by animals and hay. But he was still the Son of the King of Kings. Jesus was King right there in Mary’s lap and King in every heart that recognized Him as Lord. He just wasn’t a king who would reign in a palace. As stated in Philippians 2:6, He was God Himself in human form but, even though He was the greatest in the world, He did not attach to titles, but came to earth to fulfill His purpose […]

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December 16, 2022·Ana Julia Luiz

Our Gift

This week I heard a sentence that I found very interesting. “At Christmas, it is Christ’s birthday, but we are the ones who receive the gift of love, grace and care coming directly from the Father”. And this is a fact. Thanks to the birth of Christ we are entitled to the greatest gift there is: redemption, grace and being able to enjoy the Father’s love. Tradition Have you ever wondered what is the origin of this tradition of exchanging gifts? According to what the stories say, it began with the birth of Jesus. In Matthew 2:1-12, it is told of the three wise men from the East. In this passage each of them brings a gift to Jesus after His birth: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. They say that it was Pope Liberius who made it official in 354 a.C. There is also the story of Santa Claus, which began with a Bishop who delivered gifts to needy children on Christmas Eve. All these are stories that started the tradition of gifts, including the most socially accepted and passed down from generation to generation. A proof of this for me is that even if my family is not well financially, […]

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December 13, 2022·Rapha Abreu

Have you been a disciple or one of the crowd?

In the stories of Jesus we see several miracles happening wherever He went. But what most calls my attention in them is where the focus of each character was in the face of everything that happened. We can compare it to our focus on situations these days. The crowd seeks the miracle “And the people all tried to touch Him, because power was coming from Him and healing them all” Luke 6:19 The crowd followed Jesus for His works, often craving what He could offer rather than who He was. After the healings and miracles it was possible to see people worshiping Him with greater vehemence. It always leads me to think that I too am often the crowd. Who asks, begs and hopes for a miracle, but who only has that as a goal. We seek God many times for what He can do for us, and we forget to seek Him just because He is God, our Father. The Master for the crowd was often an attraction. The disciple seeks Jesus “Many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him. ‘You do not want to leave too, do you?’, Jesus asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered him, ;Lord, to […]

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December 13, 2022·Ana Julia Luiz

Worship: breaking the Jar

There are many ways to develop our spiritual life and be constant in our relationship with the Father: reading the Bible, praying, fasting and worship are some of them. But today I want to talk to you especially about worship. Break your jar There is a concept that worship is that time when we are in church or in our room lifting our arms and singing to the Lord. We associate it with that “ideal moment”, when we feel a shiver. But that’s not true. We need to deconstruct the idea that worship requires the right “environment” or the right song. In the Word of God we find the following passage: “And as he sat at the table in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and breaking the flask, she poured it on his face. head.” Mark 14:3 When Jesus was in Simon’s house there was no music, there was no “ideal moment” or anything like that, but there was a sincere heart ready to pour itself out and worship the only one who deserves to be worshiped. Some studies claim that that jar […]

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December 08, 2022·Rapha Abreu

Don’t sell your anointing

These days I heard this phrase from the title of a friend and it was kept in my heart. So I decided to look more closely at God for what that really meant, as I felt it was Him speaking to me through this friend, that it was Him reminding me of my worth and what I was anointed for in the Spirit. Anointing “Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come”. 2 Corinthians 1:21,22 This word means to anoint, to apply consecrated oil to a person. In the religious sense, anointing is practiced with the intention of exerting spiritual influence, sometimes with the purpose of blessing or even healing. An anointed person is under divine protection and the anointing can heal any physical or spiritual illness, bringing transformation through its calling. To sell that would be to give it up for something else. Something non-negotiable is that which we would not exchange or sell for anything, as that is the maximum value for us and nothing would be big enough to […]

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December 06, 2022·Ana Julia Luiz

Me and Contemplation

According to research, children up to the age of five contemplate the lives of their parents to learn and reproduce what they do. At that age, my family was not Christian, but I used to observe what my parents did in their daily lives. I noticed the way my mother took care of the house, how my father participated, how they treated their parents and so on. Many of the things I do today are a reflection of their attitudes. Me, God and Contemplation “But my eyes look to you, Lord, my Lord. I seek refuge in you; do not let me die.” Psalm 141:8 Our walk with God is no different. We are called “Christians”, which means little Christs. Therefore, our attitudes must match this meaning. Not that we will be perfect like Him, but we have a duty to contemplate His attitudes, to know how to act in different situations. We know how He would act when we seek unceasingly, meditating on the Word, to grow and strengthen. To be able to imitate someone, we have to know and live with that person on a daily basis. Our search does not end, because we can be more like […]

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December 01, 2022·Rapha Abreu

What is the difference between fundamental and essential?

We often confuse what is fundamental with what is essential. And this is very dangerous for the progress of our spiritual life, as we end up losing focus. There are things that need to be in our essence, like the air we breathe, and others that are important to give us a base and a path to them. That’s what I want to talk to you about today, the difference between what’s fundamental and what’s essential. Fundamental “You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life”. John 5:39-40 The dictionary brings as “Fundamental” something that forming a necessary base or core, of central importance. A central or primary rule or principle on which something is based. Basic, indispensable. Giving an example about this term linked to the Gospel: Reading the Bible is fundamental. Our goal is not to know the Bible for the sake of knowing it. She is not the end. Many people read the Bible and study it without actually knowing God and having their lives transformed by it. Our goal is to know the Living […]

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November 29, 2022·Ana Julia Luiz

Prayer for consolation

How many times have you lost someone? Whether it’s a matter of life and death, or someone you loved has moved away? Anyway, there are several concepts to lose someone. Perhaps one of the greatest pains we will experience in this life is to see someone we love leave. I do not say lose, for we know that those who serve the Lord are saved and will find themselves in paradise, but it is a departure from earthly life for eternal life. How many times have you lost someone? Whether it’s a matter of life and death, or someone you loved has moved away? Anyway, there are several concepts to lose someone. Perhaps one of the greatest pains we will experience in this life is to see someone we love leave. I do not say lose, for we know that those who serve the Lord are saved and will find themselves in paradise, but it is a departure from earthly life for eternal life. Prayer “Lord, my God and Father, we thank You for this day of life. Father, so many brothers and sisters have lost someone in recent times. Therefore, I ask that You Lord come with Your love […]

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November 24, 2022·Rapha Abreu

There is only One Way

Today I came here to remind you that there is a right path and a wrong path, however hard it is to see and accept. I know that sometimes it becomes more comfortable to think that there is a third way, because then we would have a better chance of getting it right, but there is not. These days I was playing golf and I paid attention to some details. I’m bad at golf. But I’m learning to play by playing. In the race. There is a right way to position your hands, your body and aim. There is a correct force to apply. Details that I wouldn’t have known without the instruction of someone who knows the sport and lives it. We create our own path In the middle of the game I already started to feel pain in my hands, in my back… I could hit the ball with the club, it would go out of place, but it wasn’t getting as far as the golf players next door, because the The way I was playing was a path I created, not the right path. All this out of sheer laziness and lack of patience to learn from […]

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