JFA Blog

Reflections, studies and news for your walk with God.

June 01, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Access to salvation

The word says that we must confess our sins and that, through this, He forgives us. But if He already knows everything before we even speak, why do we need to say? He has the password “According to His eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. In him and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.” Ephesians 3:11-12 Salvation has been offered to us, but grasping it is in our hands. Jesus died for us and we now have full access to God, but if there is no movement from us, we are not saved. We need to receive Jesus! Do you know what I mean? It works for other areas as well. God won’t do anything if we don’t want to and if we don’t hand it over to Him. I look at all of this like a bank account. Imagine that someone deposited a very high amount in an account that you don’t have access to, because you lost your password. This money deposited makes no difference in your life if you cannot access it. You will need to go to a bank to solve the access impasse. God has already poured […]

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May 30, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Slaves of Desire

Immanuel Kant was one of the greatest philosophers of the 18th century. In one of his works (Foundations of the Metaphysics of Morals, chapter 2), he brought the idea that being free is not doing what you want, but doing what you don’t want. And today I want to talk about this idea and how it appears in different ways in the bible too. The power to evaluate “You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh. Rather, serve one another humbly in love.” Galatians 5:13 As humans we have the false feeling that, if we do what we want, we are free. Kant breaks this pattern and shows that, if you do what you want, without measuring consequences, you become a slave to desire and, from that, it is impossible to be someone free. To be free is to do what we don’t want to. For example, I train in a gym. If someone offers me a lot of candies and fried foods after a workout, my craving would be immediately accept it and eat it all at once. But that way I would become a slave to desire, which […]

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May 25, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Used or approved?

Many times we confuse God using us with approving us and we end up taking paths that are not what God wants for us. We seek to be used and do not act to move towards approval. Used by god “For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.” Philippians 2:13 To be used by God is to be a channel for a certain action. For example, at one point the Lord used you to say something to someone who was asking for an answer. When you minister over someone’s life, it doesn’t come from you and your knowledge, but it is an act of God through your life. And He can use anyone, any place, any situation. As in the book of Numbers, where the donkey that belonged to Balaam is used to send God’s message and guide the man in the opposite direction, where his mission would be. In many situations we seek to be used, but this is so momentary. The animal didn’t keep talking and having words of wisdom coming out of its mouth for the rest of its life. It was just that moment, and […]

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May 23, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Understanding God’s Wisdom

The quest for wisdom is something that goes far beyond the accumulation of knowledge on a subject. Wisdom leads us to a deep understanding of life and divine purposes. It guides us to a full and meaningful existence. The source of all understanding “For the Lord gives wisdom. From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He holds success in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless.” Proverbs 2:6-7 When we are anchored in the wisdom from on high, that which comes from the Father, it becomes a sure lighthouse in the midst of dark moments and storms. True wisdom is not found in human sources, it comes as the gift and gift of God. It is revealed through the scriptures and by a communion with the Holy Spirit of God. It involves understanding God’s ways, purposes, and principles. It allows us to discern between right and wrong, choose wisely, and act with integrity. Divine wisdom guides us in all areas of our lives, whether in relationships, financial and career decisions, among others. It also helps us to find balance at times when our emotions struggle to rule our lives. God is the source of true wisdom. […]

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May 18, 2023·Rapha Abreu

The power of prayer

I have watched some sermons and read a lot about the power of prayer. Unfortunately we often forget about this. We have access to such a powerful tool. Our first step should always be to pray, but often, in the face of situations, we leave prayer for last. Prayer makes things possible “So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him. The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. ‘Quick, get up!’ he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists.” Acts 12:5-7 Last Friday I brought the story of Peter’s arrest and the church’s fervent prayer for his release. The text in Acts 2 says he was in prison between two guards and bound with chains. There was no way he could get away from there, much less get out unnoticed. But while he was in that difficult situation, the church prayed to God for a miracle to be done. Then […]

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May 16, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Action or reaction?

When we know God, He reveals to us our identity, His ways and His dreams. That way, it becomes much easier for us to surrender control into His hands. He is our origin “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them. Male and female he created them.” Genesis 1:27 When we want to know more about a fish, we need to dive into the sea and understand more about how the sea works. Just studying the fish won’t tell us much. It’s like that in our lives too. If we want to know more about ourselves, we need to delve into God first and in Him we will find answers. For if we dive within ourselves to find ourselves, we will lose ourselves more and more. We don’t have the answers inside us, they come from our Creator. Our paths and the steps we take should not be based on our own experiences, but on our origin. That origin is God. It was in Him that we were born even before we came into the world and it is in Him that we exist. Nothing stops Him “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in […]

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May 11, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Resting in uncomfortable situations

In Acts 12 we have access to a very interesting story. King Herod was persecuting the church and going against what it taught. In this persecution he ordered James to be killed and Peter arrested. But what seemed like the end for Peter became the story of a great miracle… Calling on the strength of the Father “It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. When he saw that this met with approval among the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Festival of Unleavened Bread. After arresting him, he put him in prison…” Acts 12:1-4 I imagine the fear of Christians at that time. Seeing relevant leaders being forcibly and violently taken away from them because of everything they believed in. If our faith is not firm and strengthened in God, in moments like this it can be shaken. Our minds can begin to question the Lord. We may think He is silent. Faced with that scenario, the church entered into intercession. The bible describes the church’s prayer for Peter as “fervent“. I can […]

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May 09, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Forged by fire

In the book of Daniel there are 2 very important passages, in chapters 3 and 6. One of them talks about when 3 men were thrown into a blazing furnace and the other talks about Daniel being thrown into a den of lions. The stories are different, but there is something in common in them that caught my attention… There was a 4th man “Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?” Daniel 3:15 In the passage of Daniel 3, King Nebuchadnezzar commanded that nations and peoples of all languages should prostrate themselves before the golden image that he had set up, when they heard the sound of the instruments. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego did not prostrate themselves before that image, for there was only one God whom they worshiped. Even knowing the risk they were taking, they didn’t go against their faith at any time. On the […]

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May 04, 2023·Rapha Abreu

What is greater than God?

Have you heard of Billy Graham? He was a pastor who was at the forefront of revivalist movements that took place around the world. He was a channel for approximately 2.5 million people to convert. This wise man, who lived the Word of God so intensely, said a sentence that really caught my attention. I always try to remember it when I’m having a hard time. “Anxiety is the natural result when our hopes are centered in anything short of God and His will for us.” Billy Graham Change of Measure “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding” Proverbs 3:5 When our expectations and faith are focused on things other than God, it is normal for us to be exposed to fear, anxiety, hopelessness, and thoughts of giving up. Understanding that the greatest strength man can achieve would still be weakness before God, is also understanding how He is greater than everything and how we are nothing. If we are so small and fragile close to the Lord, our thoughts and feelings are also smaller than His and that’s why we can trust completely in this love and care from heaven. Just as we […]

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April 25, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Scars are Stories

In times when we go through turmoil, if our minds are not connected to the Father, they will make us believe that we will be known by our pains. But that’s not what He promised us. Tagged “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.“ 1 Peter 2:9 “Is the glass half empty or half full?” Do you know this phrase? You can focus on your pain and you have complete freedom to do that, although it is a bad path to choose. Such decision can stop you and lead you to a place of stagnation. That’s not what God called you for. The situations He allows us to go through are not to stop us, but are to mark us. And that doesn’t mean that we will be marked by pain, but by a victorious passage through difficult times. Pointing to a miracle When Jesus was resurrected, He didn’t come back unscathed. His hands still had the nail marks. Christ went to meet His disciples when Thomas was not there. So the disciples told Thomas that Jesus had […]

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April 25, 2023·Ana Júlia Luiz

The Cycles of Life

It’s interesting to think about how our life is made of cycles. People come, people go, situations come and situations go. Hardly anything that comes stays forever. There are exceptions, but often that’s not how it works. If you say you’ve never gone through a cycle closure in your entire life, I’m sure I’ll find it very strange. Chapters I love to read and even more to write. I like to think of our lives as a book. At first, for us it is blank, but for God (the Author) it is filled with stories, situations, twists and much more, from our first little steps to the biggest decisions. God sees from the moment we arrive in this world, still in our mothers’ wombs. Closing cycles can often be a very tense chapter in life. Situations or other characters can leave the protagonist (me or you) confused and make him question: “why am I living this?” I was once talking to a friend, venting about a bunch of things that were going on. She looked deep into my eyes and said: “you are in despair because everything got out of your control, but that is normal, it is part of […]

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April 18, 2023·Rapha Abreu

God doesn’t need time

I’ve heard some people say the phrase: “God isn’t taking too long, He’s doing his best“. Yes, He is doing the best. But He doesn’t need time to do something better, in that situation you need that time… Omnipresent or busy? “The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord.“ Proverbs 21:31 God isn’t like a super busy person who needs a longer deadline to do something better. As if He were telling you: “Wait just a little bit more, I just need to do this detail here“. It’s not time that changes what He gives you, it’s you who needs to change so that what He’s doing comes to you at the right time. God can give you the promise He made you in a snap of a finger, because He has the power to make the perfect in milliseconds. But you would not be ready to receive. The time it takes for you to reach that promise has to do with how much He needs to prepare you so you don’t waste it. Ripe to the Whole “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens. A time […]

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April 18, 2023·Ana Júlia Luiz

Prayer: Cleanse me Lord

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” – 1 John 1:9 We are human beings, full of sins. The Word itself says that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23). We are in need of the Lord’s forgiveness. And for that we need to repent. Today, I invite you to pray with me, asking the Lord to purify our hearts from any and all sins. Remembering that you don’t need to pray exactly as I wrote here, because everyone has their own way of talking to the Father. But if you want, I’ll be happy to accompany you. Prayer “Lord, my God and Father, I thank you for this day, Thank you for the chance to pour myself out in Your presence and for Your Amazing Grace that tore the veil that used to separate us. Father, I ask forgiveness for my sins, all those that I have committed. Forgive me, for I am flawed and need correction. Cleanse my heart, purifying it of all the evil present in it and help me to become someone better. That every […]

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April 12, 2023·Rapha Abreu

You only have this life

You only live once. I know this is nothing new. But that also means you only have one life to have faith and follow Jesus. This is not carried into eternity, because there is already everything. The eternity “But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.” Jude 1:20-1:21 We understand eternity as a life after our earthly death, a life that we will spend physically with God. In a paable way like never before. So we can only work on our faith and prayer while we are here. When we go there, we won’t need it anymore, as it prepares us for a life of worship in Eternity. It is here on earth that the Kingdom is prepared and has its members well aligned and adjusted. Our life here must be based on the search for closeness to God. If we are going to be living with Him, this search will no longer be necessary in eternity. But it is our pursuit here that leads us to Him there. Bring […]

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April 11, 2023·Ana Júlia Luiz

Wonderful Grace

Last weekend, we went through the Easter holiday and honestly, it’s one of my favorite dates of the year. I like to reflect on what brought us to celebrate this very important date. How did it start? Easter started long before Jesus, actually the celebration started in the book of Exodus. Hebrews were slaves in Egypt and I believe you remember that God raised up Moses to free them. Before the Red Sea miracle happened, we know that the Lord sent the famous 10 plagues. We started with the waters that became blood, then the frogs, the lice, the flies, the plague in animals, boils, hail, the locusts, darkness over the land of Egypt and then the tenth plague: the death of the firstborn. God guided, through Moses, that each family of the people of Israel killed a lamb, male, just one year old, without defects, and spread the blood on the doorframes. That way, the firstborn of that house would not be harmed. The lamb delivered in place of the first born symbolized what would become the work and sacrifice of Christ, our Paschal lamb, delivered in our place. By Grace Today, we celebrate Easter because we are freed […]

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April 06, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Have you been focusing on death or resurrection?

At Easter time we remember how loved we were by God, who sent His own Son to suffer and die for our sins. The sacrifice of an immaculate lamb that cleansed us and made us the Father’s family. But what about in our day-to-day life? Have we been focusing on the resurrection? The lost “At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. And at three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’)“ Mark 15:33-34 It’s beautiful how Jesus gave Himself for so many people who didn’t deserve even a drop of His sweat. The sixth shows us this pain and makes us recognize His sacrifice. But when we focus only on her, losing hope is inevitable. People who loved Jesus suffered with Him, saw the Man they trusted and followed being killed in a cruel way. We humans know that death is the end here on earth. The people who were close to Him thought they would never again see the One who “was” the promise. In our lifetime, in the midst of what seems like death, finding hope for […]

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April 04, 2023·Ana Júlia Luiz

Ecclesiastes and Vanity

During the month of March, some friends and I set out to read the book of Proverbs. We liked it so much that we decided to continue and started Ecclesiastes. In just one chapter, we all felt impacted. Everything is Vanity The “Preacher” begins in the first few verses by saying: “Absolute futility, says the Teacher. Absolute futility. Everything is futile. What does a person gain for all his efforts that he labors at under the sun?” – Ecclesiastes 1:2-3 He basically talks about how we get tired day after day for fleeting things. One day this world will end, Jesus will return and what will we take? Nothing. I’m not saying don’t go after a good and comfortable life, but that’s not all. So many people live their lives in pursuit of riches and goals that will have no value in Eternity. The Eternal Sameness The “Preacher” then continues and the title my Bible gives to the passage from verses 4 to 11 is “The Eternal Sameness”. “All things are wearisome, more than anyone can say. The eye is not satisfied by seeing or the ear filled with hearing. What has been is what will be, and what has […]

bible devotional ecclesiastes vanity

March 28, 2023·Ana Júlia Luiz

Friends that are like brothers

During 2022 and early 2023 I have experienced what in the Bible is called “friend who sticks closer than a brother” in Proverbs 18:24. And I had never understood exactly what that was like. I mean, are these friends really closer than my brother? How do I find a friend like that? There were always questions that hovered in my head. In the last two years I started to understand better. How is a friend closer than a sibling? Do you know that friend you can just count on for everything? That’s the kind of friend that is like a brother. A friend who is there to listen, advise, help in moments of anguish, but I believe that mainly, the one who takes you closer to Jesus. I found friends who truly pray for me, just as I pray for them. This is not just any friendship. It was in a service when we took each other’s hands, formed a circle and started to pray, that I began to see how healthy and wonderful it was to be with them. If you’ve already met a friend or a few friends of this type, maybe when it happened you weren’t even expecting […]

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March 23, 2023·Rapha Abreu

Have you been dreading your call?

Do you know what your calling is? What did the Lord form you and call you for? It is important as Christians to know this, because God counts on us. Your calling won’t do anything for you if you don’t say “yes” to it. God does not suggest “He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time.” 2 Timothy 1:9 It all starts with understanding that your calling is not a suggestion from God. It’s not like your life is a suggestion box, where God puts little slips of what He thinks could be better. We need to begin to understand the voice of God as a duty. Not that duty that tires us and is a boring obligation. But listening with obedience and devotion. When our obedience is activated, so are God’s graces and blessings in our lives. And it is through our calling that many of them are poured out on us. Obedience is faith “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.“ James 1:22 […]

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March 21, 2023·Ana Júlia Luiz

Prayer for love

“Because lawlessness will multiply, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. This good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” – Matthew 20:12-14 We have seen exactly what this verse says happen. Love has grown cold in all parts of the world, hatred has spread in an overwhelming way, reaching the point where the Church is being contaminated with it. Today, I want to propose that we pray together so that the Lord may pour out His love on the earth, on the Church and on each one of us. Remembering that you don’t need to pray exactly like I’m doing here, after all, everyone has their own way of talking to our Father, but I’ll be happy to accompany you. Prayer “Lord, my God and Father, I thank you for this breath of life that you have given us today. Father, we have seen so many bad things happen, so much hatred and bitterness among people, even among my brothers. He comes with His overwhelming love for us, a love that constrains […]

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March 16, 2023·Rapha Abreu

What have I done for God?

We go through some afflictions in our lives. We are human and it is normal that not everything is perfect. Even if your neighbor’s grass looks greener, it isn’t. We all go through difficulties. Highs and lows “For hardship does not spring from the soil, nor does trouble sprout from the ground. Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward. “But if I were you, I would appeal to God. I would lay my cause before him.” Job 5:6-8 There are times when difficulties are minor and quickly resolved without headaches. There were times when my family and I were at the best of our lives, spiritually as well as emotionally and financially. Soon after, everything seemed to fall apart. It felt like we were being forcibly pulled out of that quieter moment. And then came the difficulties. In difficult times, if we don’t focus on God, we may lose a few nights of sleep. In those moments we always questioned ourselves with the title question: “What have I done for God?“. Do not hinder photosynthesis You have done nothing for God, for He does not change according to our works, whether they are good or bad. In […]

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March 14, 2023·Ana Júlia Luiz

Supporting the Process

During the last weekend, I was talking about this with some friends. Our life is full of processes, many of them are difficult but necessary. The process can be defined by a desert you are going through. It can also be a period of waiting for a promise to be fulfilled. You can now be at any stage of a process. Maybe you’re at the beginning, starting to realize the difficulty of going through something; or else in the middle, already tired and not in the mood to continue; or at the end, where you start to look forward and see what you’ve been waiting for. It’s hard, but it’s worth it! One of my friends said a sentence that is still in my mind: “The process serves to generate testimony. It’s great to hear our brother’s testimony, but that’s not enough. We need to have ours too.” Is very difficult. In my not so long Christian walk, I could already see one thing: generating testimony hurts. There are many situations we face along our journey. Some are so difficult that we think we will not be able to bear it, but the Lord comforts us: “…You will have suffering […]

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March 09, 2023·Rapha Abreu

The strength does not come from you

We are in women’s month, which is celebrated on March 8th. In today’s times, much is heard about the strength of women. This subject is in great evidence and there are millions of people fighting for this force to be recognized. I think it’s important that we talk about it. Identity in Him “Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting. But a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised” Proverbs 31:30 I want to start by saying it’s not through your strength, woman. I don’t know about you, but a lot of issues about women being empowered sometimes overwhelm me. I feel as if I need to produce, do and create at all times, because that way I don’t express my vulnerability, something that every human being has. I understand that people’s struggle has many points and arguments. This is not what I want to discuss or judge, because I understand that this role is not up to me. But I want to remind you that you don’t need to burden yourself with an identity that God has already given you. Graced by Him “And now, my daughter, don’t be afraid. I will do for you all you ask. All […]

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March 07, 2023·Ana Júlia Luiz

Know your why

I’m sure you’ve already wondered about your purpose in life, your mission, why you are where you are. I’ve wondered about this myself many times! After the conversion of my family, when I was 10 years old, I grew up seeing leaders, pastors that I love until today, exhaling their wisdom, teaching and showing the Glory of God through their lives. I confess that I often wanted to be like most of them. However, I need to discern what the Lord wants for my life in particular. As much as someone’s ministry is amazing and admirable, God may have something totally different for me. My purpose is not the same as yours I still remember my first supernatural experience with God. I must have been 11 years old and they decided to play a song during EBD. I closed my eyes listening to the song and said, “God, I don’t want anything but You. Come live in my heart”. When I realized it, I was sobbing from crying, feeling all the Father’s love enveloping me. After this experience, I went through a process of a few years until I understood that the purpose of the other is different from mine. […]

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