Living Hope

Knock It Off!

2012-01-31T10:13:00.000-08:00

"5 We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ." 2 Corinthians 10:5 NLT

What's keeping you from truly knowing your God? Is it pride? Is it distrust? Is it past hurts or hangups? Fear? Seriously, have you ever just sat and thought about it? What is keeping you from the only one true good thing that you can always--and I mean always--depend on?

If you would only allow yourself a moment to truly see your God the way He wants you to see Him--it would be worth it's weight in gold. "Just wait a minute!" you may be saying. "Only a moment? It surely would take more than a moment and I don't have the time or energy to spare!"

I have to ask you--do you NOT have a moment to spare? Are you happy with the life you are experiencing now, this very minute? When you wake up in the morning, are you dreading your day? Do you have any joy or happiness? Do you have what I call the "Eeyore" approach--"Oh well, it's going to be a bad day anyway." "Oh, well, if something is to go wrong today, it will be with me."--to life?

Excuse my bluntness, but knock it off! Your God is just a moment away and He wants to bless you so badly. He is just waiting for you to ask Him. You need to capture those negative thoughts, thoughts that say, "God doesn't really care. If He did, He would have taken care of this already." "I'm a lost cause." "It'll hurt too much." "I will have to give up too many of the things I love." "My life is too full now, I just don't have the time." These are just excuses. These are the lies of the wicked one who wants to keep you in bondage with him. He doesn't want you to be set free. He doesn't want you to have a live, warm, growing relationship with your Heavenly Father. No! He wants you to shrivel up and become dead--break it! In the power of God's holy and blessed Name--break the chains so that you can be set free to be the beautiful creation that God has already designed you to be.

"11 And the LORD will guide you continually
and satisfy your desire in scorched places
and make your bones strong;
and you shall be like a watered garden,
like a spring of water,
whose waters do not fail." Isaiah 58:11 ESV

Our God is not dead--He is ALIVE! He wants you to be alive IN & with Him. Are you ready for the journey of a lifetime? Just turn around and cry out to Him--He will be there in an INSTANT! And then just praise Him. You're going to have a blessed day!

Battle Lines

2012-01-16T11:35:00.000-08:00

5 Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you.” Joshua 3:5 NIV

Consecrate. That's not a word you hear much today. But back in the days of Joshua, consecrate was used frequently, usually with reference to faith.

What does it mean? Well, what it means is to set aside. To make clean--holy. To purify.

So when Joshua told the people that, what did they do? They went home, took off their clothes and washed them and then bathed themselves. For you see, in those days, they didn't wash their clothes or themselves everyday. Water was hard to come by--a precious commodity. And what water they had was used for drinking. They may go weeks without washing. So, to go home and do that was a form of honoring. It was also a form of sacrifice. Because in order to do the washing, they would have had to give up their drinking water. And then they would abstain from everything that would take their focus--their thoughts--off of their God.

How this verse spoke to me today was this--I--we--need to consecrate ourselves every day to be ready for our Lord. Every day we should spiritually clean ourselves, set ourselves apart for the glory of God--to be ready for His return. We allow so much to contaminate our bodies, spirit, heart and mind. We need to set ourselves apart from this world. People should be able to look at us and even if they don't know us, know that we are different. Know that there is something about us that is not of this world. That it makes them want to come up to us and say, "Hey, whatever it is that you have, I want it. Please share it with me."

Joshua was instructing his people the above verse right before they were going to go into battle. We need to prepare ourselves to go into our battle. Every day. Every day we are battling for our consecration. For our purity. For our holiness. The world--Satan--loves to take it from us. But we can't let him. Time is too short. We don't know when Jesus is coming back, but we need to be ready. We need to be ready so when that day, that hour, comes, we can say, "Welcome Lord! Hallelujah! I've been waiting for this day forever!" Instead of saying, "Please Lord, not today. I've been dreading this day. I'm totally not ready."

Every day is an amazing day. Every day is a gift from the Lord. Use it and treat it as such. If someone gave you a gift, would you leave it out in a place that it would get dirty or broken, or forgotten? No, if you truly treasured it, you would place it somewhere where it would be protected, a place of honor. Doesn't God deserve the same?

Will there be some sacrifice in doing this? Yes, there will be. But my prayer for you today is that you assume the heart and spirit of the people of Joshua. That you will not let fear to take away your birthright. That no matter what, you will keep yourself holy and pure. That the fear of the Lord, is greater than the fear of this world.Our God is a mighty General! A fortress that no evil can EVER topple.

"13 Moses answered the people, 'Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. 14 The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.'” Exodus 14:13-14 NIV

Rope Tugging

2012-01-10T11:18:00.000-08:00

"Nothing, you see, is impossible with God." Luke 1:37 MSG

Do you recognize this verse? I discovered it again this morning in my devotional time. The angel was sharing with Mary that she was chosen to be the mother of Jesus and of course she had voiced her reasons why that wasn't possible and then the angel told her that her cousin Elizabeth was in her sixth month of pregnancy even in her old age because, "Nothing, you see, is impossible with God."

I don't know about you, but I have read and heard that story so many times. And it is a beautiful story of stepping out and up in faith. But what hit me this morning though was the fact that with my God, nothing, NOTHING is impossible. Do you notice that the angel didn't say, "Some things, you see, are impossible with God," or "Hardly anything, you see, is impossible with God."? No, he stated that "NOTHING".

Wow! What a powerful God you, I serve. What a powerful God that loves you, me. What a powerful God that wants to have a relationship with you, me. What a powerful God that receives you, me so unconditionally.

So please have hope. Know that no matter what the circumstances are that you are in, your God is greater. No matter what lie Satan is telling you, your God is greater. No matter how long you've been under attack, your God is greater.

All you have to do is remember to cling to Him. Cling to His word. If you can visualize this, His word is like a really thick velvet rope, kinda like they use to have in the castles, that when the king or queen needed a servant, they would tug on this huge rope and the bell would ring somewhere and all of a sudden, there was the servant.

Well, when you need to have the Lord come to you--for praises or groanings--all you have to do is tug on that rope that connects you to Him, and He will come. He will come in person, or in Spirit, or with His holy Word, in visions, in dreams--oh, He has many forms. Just know He will come. Nothing is impossible. He is the God of the POSSIBLE. And then, remember, to PRAISE Him.

What's keeping you from tugging on the rope?

"1 Don't think that the Lord is too weak to save you or too deaf to hear your call for help!" Isaiah 59:1 GN

Messages

2012-01-03T09:57:00.000-08:00

"I pray also for those who will believe in Me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me." John 17:20-21 NIV

This is an amazing prayer that Jesus is praying. What stuck out to me was the word "will". Jesus is praying for all believers and then says this:"I pray also for those that "will" believe in Me through their message..."

The "their" He is referring to at that moment was His apostles. Today it is us. He has commissioned us to be His apostles of today. So it is our message that will bring more believers to Him.

Our message isn't just our words, No, our message is a whole lot more. Our words are a very important part of that message, but if we just focus on the words, we only have an incomplete package. No, in order to have it complete, people would need to see His message act out in our life style, our actions and ourselves.

Jesus was very earnest in this prayer. If you read on, He prays, "May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." WOW! Did you pick up on a very important fact? Please, reread the verse. "...have loved them even as you have loved me." Jesus is telling us that His Father--our Father--has loved us--you, me--as much as He has loved Himself!

Isn't that mind boggling? With all my warts, short-comings, failures, my Heavenly Father loves me as much as He loves Jesus--my Brother that is beyond perfect? That is amazing! So humbling amazing!

How does that make you feel? What are your thoughts? Does that help you realize and receive the fact that your Father in Heaven loves you so unconditionally? That you can't earn His love? That He loves you ever so completely.

In case you need further proof, verse 24 states this:"Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world."

Jesus wants you! He wants you to be in Heaven with Him. And again,"because you loved me before the creation of the world." And what did we learn a couple of verses before? That our Heavenly Father loves us as much as He loves His Son. So now we learn that He has also loved us since the beginning of time.

Can it get any better? I think not.

"Praise be to the Lord,
For He showed His wonderful love to me." Psalm 31:20 NIV

Shhhhhhhh!

2011-12-27T15:46:00.000-08:00

13 But Moses said to the people, “Don’t be afraid. Stand firm and see the LORD’s salvation He will provide for you today; for the Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. 14 The LORD will fight for you; you must be quiet.” Exodus 14:13-14 HCSB

"You must be quiet." Other versions say, "You must be still."

I don't know about you, but those four words--at times--are the hardest words to heed.

What do You mean Lord, be quiet, be still? Lord, You may not be aware of this fact, but You do need my help--no disrespectfulness intended. No, My child, I don't. But you don't understand Lord--I have to be in control! No one else understands this situation better than me and besides I can do it better than anyone! No, My child, you aren't, but I am. All I need for you to do is sit still and be quiet. Trust Me. I know you better than anyone,including yourself. For better or for worse, I will take care of you. I will go to bat for you. Don't you remember? Can you forget the cross? The manger? I've been from the beginning to the end for you. You need to STOP. You need to LET GO. You need to RELEASE.

Your Heavenly Father is your biggest ally. Do you realize that? Do you truly & completely realize that? Do you realize that at times, when we think or feel that we are helping, we are actually hindering? That while we are trying to do it all on our own relying upon our own strength and wisdom, that all we are truly doing is blocking Him from being the protector, Father and Savior that He wants and was designed to be?

When you find yourself in one of those moments, please be humble & wise enough to stop, step back, and pray for God's infinite wisdom to come and cover the situation. To give you the grace to just sit and be still. To trust in His love for you and to be able to listen to Him. It will be the best quiet time you could possibly have!

2 The LORD is my strength and my song;
He has become my salvation.
This is my God, and I will praise Him,
my father’s God, and I will exalt Him. Exodus 15:2 HCSB

Busy, Busy, Busy

2011-12-19T12:22:00.000-08:00

"7 And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn." Luke 2:7 NKJV

Busy, busy, busy! We are always so busy! And then they add Christmas to the list! The nerve! Can you believe it? What do they expect from me? After all, I'm only one person! I can't wait for Christmas to be over!

Is that you? Do you hear yourself saying those things? Or think them? If so--how sad. How terribly sad.

This should be the one of the most awesomeness times of the year. You are experiencing the beginning of a miracle. Oh, there are so many miracles in the Christmas story--too many to name now.

Just the fact that Jesus came to Earth in the form of a little baby, for you. Just for you. Unlike many babies, He knew when He was going to die and how. He knew that it would not be a pleasant life's journey. Oh, there would be a moment here and there--friendships made along the way, beautiful sunrises and glorious sunsets, close spiritual moments with His Father and angels along the way. But mixed in--the knowledge of never being really accepted, being homesick for home, being misjudged. Yet knowing all of this, He came anyway. For you. For me.

Who has made Christmas the busy, tense time of year? Was it Jesus? Was it God? The Holy Spirit? No. It was us--mankind.

Let's not take away from Him what He's so richly entitled to--to be the first and foremost in our thoughts and lives. Let's not be like the inn--too full to let Him be there. Let's pray for all the clutter, all the busyness, to go to the back of your mind. This leaves room for your Lord to be in the front. For your first thoughts to be from Him and about Him. So that He has room to speak with you. To guide you.

During this last six days before Christmas Day, seek His face. Look for it everywhere and in every place. Let His presence bring order to your thoughts, feelings and life. In doing this, you are insured to having His infusing Peace enter your entire being.

And pray. Pray that if you have lost that joyful, expecting a wondrous moment feeling that only Christmas can bring, to have Him to please bring it back. And then receive it.

Have a CHRISTmas kind of day today!

"10 Then the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. 11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.'" Luke 2:10-11 NKJV

Who's in Charge?

2011-12-15T11:01:00.000-08:00

" 26 'Is it by your understanding that the hawk soars,
Stretching his wings toward the south?
27 Is it at your command that the eagle mounts up
And makes his nest on high?
28 On the cliff he dwells and lodges,
Upon the rocky crag, an inaccessible place.'" Job 39:26-29 NASB

God spoke these words to Job when he was in the midst of the storm. He, the Lord, was questioning Job. In essence, He was reminding Job who was God. Could Job speak to the hawk, telling him to spread his wings? Could Job control the eagle? No. Only Job's Lord could do that.

And then to me, it spoke of the power of my God. My God is the only God of all the Gods that has the power to rule the whole world. From the Heavens and above, to the depths of the land and the oceans below. My God is the only one that puts the hope of forever into my soul. My God is the only God that is strong enough and loves me enough to protect me--to put me upon that rocky crag, an inaccessible place, safe from my enemies.

As you go into this last week of this Christmas Season, let's focus of what should be the main gift we could give each other and that the Father yearns to give you--the gift of HOPE. I am not referring to the weak, wishing hope that the world wants to give us. No, we need to grasp the strong, mighty HOPE--the HOPE that means Faith. The HOPE that comes from the Father, Son & Holy Spirit. The HOPE--knowledge, faith, power--that gives your spirit light and strength in dark times.

On that night in Bethlehem--it was not just a baby that was born--it was HOPE.

"24 For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it." Romans 8:24-25 NASB

Eastmas

2011-12-13T10:09:00.000-08:00

"7 But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore He says:

“ When He ascended on high,
He led captivity captive,
And gave gifts to men.”

9 (Now this, “He ascended”—what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.)" Ephesians 4:7-10 NKJV

Let me throw a what could be a new thought at you to chew on. What if Easter actually started with Christmas?

What in the world is she talking about? To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure. I'm chewing on this new thought right along side of you. But this is something that my Lord has been putting into my spiritual thought life. What if? What if Christmas wasn't just about the birth. That without the birth, the cross wouldn't have been. That not only did Jesus die for me, but He was also born for me. Does this make a little sense?

As I said earlier, I don't have a clear picture of what this is all meaning. But I don't have to to be able to share this with you. Because, what my Lord shows me, may very well be different than what He wants to show you.

So, this Christmas season, I challenge you. I challenge you to take this thought and pray, mediate and ponder upon it. Ask your Lord to show you His special meaning that He has already designed for you to receive.

Shake up Christmas this year! Humbly and graciously ask for the gifts of new insight and understanding that will take you into a new and more intimate relationship with your Father this season.

Wow! What an AWESOME Christmas we will have! Can't you just sense it?!

"3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, 4 and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay." 1 Peter 1:3-4 NLT

Holy Blindness

2011-11-29T00:00:00.000-08:00

"...Jesus asked, 'What do you want me to do for you?'

'Lord, I want to see!' he answered.

Jesus replied, 'Look and you will see! Your eyes are healed because of your faith.' Right away the man could see, and he went with Jesus and started thanking God. When the crowds saw what happened, they praised God." Luke 18:38-43 CEV

You may recognize this as the parable of the blind man because it is. But instead of looking at it at it's face value, let's go a little deeper, shall we?!

What do you think that Jesus was trying to say to us through this parable? Could it be that we are all basically born blind. We are like a batch of little kittens or puppies. Little puppies and kittens are born with their eyes closed.

They are closed for the first few weeks of their lives. They can't see anything-- their environment, their surroundings, their own brothers and sisters. Their caregiver. Not even themselves. They can't see but they can feel. During those weeks, the caregiver is licking on their eyes, keeping them clean and free from debris and germs. As they mature, and their eyes are ready to take the brightness of their world, the eyes are suddenly opened. First little slits, and then each day, a little more until they are full blown, wide open.

Well, I think we are a lot like that. We are born into this world, and we are are blind. We are blind to the fact that we need our Lord. We are blind to the fact that we are not complete without Him. We are blind to the fact that we are born into the arms of a Father that has designs for us. Great designs. Designs to bless us, not to harm us. A Father that loves us wholly and completely, even in our blindness.

You see, your Father is and will always be there. He has been there from the very beginning. You don't have to ask Him to become a part of your life--He has always and will forever be there. It's you that needs to accept that knowledge and say "Yes!".

This blind man begged. He had begged for a long time. Begged for love, attention, security, acknowledgement, true relationships. But were did it get him?

Then what happened when he called out to Jesus? He only had to called twice. I'm sure that once would have been enough but the people around him starting shushing him. Did you notice that even though He couldn't see Jesus, he felt Jesus. He just knew. He had his faith. Great faith. And what is faith? Faith is believing in things that you cannot see.

What about you? Do you only believe in things that you can see? Do you find comfort in things that are tangible? That you can hold in your hand? You say, "I want to believe but I need something that I can feel. That I can hold. That is what I need to put my faith into."

Well, you know, you've had it all along. What is it? It's the Holy Bible. God in tangible, holdable form.

Are you ready? Are you ready to see--to REALLY see? See the life that your Heavenly Father has planned for you? All you have to do is say "Yes"!

The True Meaning of Hospitality

2011-11-28T00:00:00.000-08:00

"When Jesus got to the tree, he looked up and said, 'Zacchaeus, hurry down. Today is my day to be a guest in your home.' Zacchaeus scrambled out of the tree, hardly believing his good luck, delighted to take Jesus home with him." Luke 19:5-6 MSG

In case you don't know the story, Zacchaeus was a chief tax collector in Jericho. Tax collectors were not very well liked or respected. But Zacchaues, had heard of this man called Jesus and for whatever reason, wanted to see Him. He was so earnest in this need, that he ended climbing up a fig tree in order to be taller than the crowd.

And what did Jesus do? Did Jesus shun him? Did Jesus ignore him? That is what Zacchaeus was used to. No. Jesus stopped and looked up at Zacchaeus and said he had to come down out of the tree for He was going to be a guest at his home. In fact, the NIV version states, "I MUST stay at your house today." That implies a divine necessity. That it was part of the greater plan.

And what did Zacchaeus do? Did he say, "Sorry, but I don't want you to come to my home. I'm a busy man and just wanted a peek at you. I don't want and I can't take the time to have you go home with me, make you a meal and then entertain you. I'll get a raincheck." No. What does it say in the MSG version? It says that he scrambled out of the tree, hardly believing his great luck, delighting in bringing Jesus to his home. Wow!

Here is a man that his community looked upon as a sinner, a piece of dirt and treated him as such. But who had the heart that was open to have Jesus enter in? Zacchaues. Who scrambled, out of a 30-40 foot tree--which wouldn't have been easy for a short, stout man--to receive his guest? Zacchaues. Who looked upon this command as a moment of great luck--a wonderful gift--and not an inconvenience? Zacchaues. And who was delighted--full of joy, happy, tinkled pink--to take Jesus home? Yes, Zacchaues.

We have a lot to learn from Zacchaues, don't you think? How many times have you had the opportunity to look for Jesus, and because it was too hard, or because it would cause you an inconvenience, you put it off for another day? How many times when Jesus was asking you to come and be with Him, to invite you to open yourself, your heart, your spirit to receive Him, did you say, "Oh, not today. I need to clean things up and I don't have time right now." That you didn't look upon it as a great gift, but as a have to? As an irritation? And how many times have you been delighted when Jesus comes calling? Be honest--how many?

Maybe Zacchaues was a sinner--but on that day--the angels were cheering for him. On that day, he entered the courts with thanksgiving. On that day he became a new creation in Christ. The old was gone, and the new remained.

What about you?

תודה, תודה לך! (Hebrew for Thank You)--Day 5

2011-11-25T00:00:00.000-08:00

"For I received from the Lord the teaching that I passed on to you: that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took a piece of bread, gave thanks to God, broke it, and said,
This is my body, which is for you. Do this in memory of me. In the same way, after the supper he took the cup and said,
This cup is God's new covenant, sealed with my blood. Whenever you drink it, do so in memory of me.

This means that every time you eat this bread and drink from this cup you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes." 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 GNT

Dear Jesus,

I read this verse today and a realization came to me. You knew. You knew that when You were having the last supper with Your apostles, that you were going to die that very evening. Die for sin. Human sin. Die for me! Die for my sin. And You gave thanks anyway. Wow!

Where were Your emotions that night Jesus? Were you sad? Scared? Hesitant? All those emotions would be perfectly acceptable. Maybe You were even a little excited. After all, You were finishing what You came for. You would be able to be back in Your rightful place, at the right hand of Your Father. Back in Your own skin, so to speak. What were you feeling?

Dear Jesus, I am truly grateful for what You did. I can't even begin to wrap my mind, heart or spirit around it. I praise You and Your infinite love and grace that You have shown me from the moment I was knitted in my mother's womb. I thank you for never feeling that You were cheated. By that I mean that I don't think that You ever felt that You wished that You hadn't done what You did. That You got the short end of the stick. That if You could, You would take back Your sacrifice. That is what I'm afraid that I, in my humanity, would feel. But You don't.

I praise You for Your faith in me. It is totally amazing to me that You, in all Your infinite wisdom, can trust me to do some of the things that You have entrusted me to do. Thank you for using me in that way. For working through me.

In Your love, I am totally humbled yet totally empowered at the same time. That, in Your love for me, it doesn't matter how smart I am, what I look like, my accomplishments, my talents, my body shape--it doesn't matter. Your love for me and our relationship isn't hinged on that. You look in my heart and to You, I am the most perfect child anyone could ever have. And for that, I thank you.

Each and every day, I remember you. Each and every day, I am in communion with you.

"They will be My people, and I will be their God. I will give them one heart and one way so that for their good and for [the good of] their descendants after them, they will fear Me always.

I will make with them an everlasting covenant: I will never turn away from doing good to them, and I will put fear of Me in their hearts so they will never again turn away from Me. I will rejoice over them to do what is good to them, and I will plant them faithfully in this land with all My mind and heart." Jeremiah 32:38-41 HCSB

Grazie!--Day 4

2011-11-24T00:00:00.000-08:00

"Thank God for this gift, his gift. No language can praise it enough!" 2 Corinthians 9:15 MSG

Happy Thanksgiving Day my LORD!

Dear God, I thank You today for my ancestors who thought of this day so that we, as a nation, can stop and remember what You have done for us. I pray that there will come a day that we won't need a National holiday to help us remember to thank You. That everyday will be a day that we thank You, all day long. That it would be second nature. That it would seem weird not to thank You--whenever and where ever.

Today, especially I want to thank You. I want to be like the apostle Paul as he wrote the above passage and praise You for Your gift--Your precious Son, Jesus. And I too, feel like Paul--there are not enough words or the correct words, to thank and praise You. But thankfully, since You know my innermost being, You know.

I thank you for giving beyond to point of giving. For sacrificing Your one and only Son. For--even though You knew He would be coming back--You had to still go through some 30 years without Him on the throne next to You. That through that time, You had to watch Him be called names, hated, plotted against. That at the end, You had to watch Him receive the full weight of my sin and be totally detached from You and die. What a heart break that must of been! Yet because of Your immense love for me, You and He choose to do it anyway. I am SO humbled. I am SO thankful.

Dear Lord, please forgive me for those times when I forget. For when I go on thinking that I know better than You. When I think that my way is the only way. Dear Jesus, You didn't die in vain. Your life is what pumps the blood through my veins. Your love is the oxygen that fill my lungs. Your grace is the food that I need to feast on.

On this day of Thanks, I pray that others will realize that it is not just about turkey, cranberry sauce, black Friday. I pray that the true meaning becomes real. That the light comes into their dark places and they realize what has been true all along. That You gave us Your only and begotten Son to us. To cover us so that You could have a relationship with us. You yearned, desired and loved us that much. And then they receive that truth and impart that power into their lives and praise their Heavenly Father. What a gracious Father you are!

I simply and completely love You.

Danke schön!--Day 3

2011-11-23T09:38:00.000-08:00

"Every time you cross my mind, I break out in exclamations of thanks to God. Each exclamation is a trigger to prayer. I find myself praying for you with a glad heart." Philippians 1:3 MSG

Good morning Lord!

What a GLORIOUS morning You gave me! You continually bless me with surprises from morning to night.

I woke up this morning with a thankful heart for the people you have placed in my life. People that have helped guide me and mold me into the child that you want me to be. People who have stayed and people who have just dropped by. People who have spoken into my life and changed me forever. People that may have never spoken, but just by being there, their presence is what spoke. You planted them all and I thank You.

I thank you for the times that You have allowed me to speak into other's lives. Thank you for that tender moment when two souls can come together and just pray and You come. Thank you for breakthrough, for healing of emotional and spiritual scares, for Holy tears.

Dear Jesus, I thank you for my dearest, truest, closest friends of all--You. And with You, the Father and the Holy Spirit. Without the three of You, my life would be meaningless, I would be totally lost. You are the true meaning of agape. You are agape! You never reject me, even if I reject You. You never ignore me, even if I ignore You. You never stop loving me wholly and completely, even when I deserve it. You are the full essence of unconditional Grace.

And lastly, I hesitate to say this, but I do believe it--Lord I do thank you for those in my life that have hurt me. And the reason I hesitate is because being hurt is not pleasant. And I truly want be honest when I pray this and not a hypocrite. But I know that You have used these hurts to grow me. To make me a better person. Even though Your heart may have been breaking because mine was--it wasn't in vain. You were there. You were there when those who vowed friendship but later, for whatever reason, changed. You were there when a parent who gave me mixed messages--loving one moment, hurtful, abusive the next. The sibling that just left without reason. Whomever. I give that hurt to you Lord. On this day, I truly release it into Your capable hands. And I leave it--not to take it up anymore. I want to break the chain that has wrapped itself around my heart and spirit. The chain that has kept me in bondage. That has kept me from truly experiencing the full glory of Your love and grace for me and the love of others that You have placed in my life for me.

I love you my Precious Lord.

Merci à vous!--Day 2

2011-11-22T09:27:00.000-08:00

"21 For though they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God or show gratitude. Instead, their thinking became nonsense, and their senseless minds were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man, birds, four-footed animals, and reptiles." Romans 1:21-23 HCSB

Dear Lord,

Please, help me not to become like the Gentiles in the above verses. Help me not to become so accustom to Your awesome love for me that I forget to thank you. That I start taking You and Your wonderful life miracles for granted. That they become every day for me. Not the wonderful miracles that they are.

Please help me to continually--each and every day--ponder upon those blessed acts, pleasant or unpleasant. This includes the ones that I was aware of and the ones that I'm not aware of. I pray, please help my spirit--when I have my quiet time with You--to become aware of the hidden miracles that took place. For I desire to give You thanks for ALL things.

I want NO other God than You in my life. Help me to please not make my work, my education, my plans for the future, material wealth, my hobby, my volunteer work, my family,--anything--more important than You.

Please, also give me opportunites to share Your awesomeness with others. Help me to glorify You with my life, my actions, my words with others that You bring into my life path. Help me to be Your eyes, Your ears, Your mouth, Your heart. And I thank you for trusting me.

For You are my God, and I am Your child. And I cherish us. Amen

¡gracias--Day 1

2011-11-21T00:00:00.000-08:00

"8 Give thanks to the LORD; call on His name;
proclaim His deeds among the peoples.

9 Sing to Him; sing praise to Him;
tell about all His wonderful works!

10 Honor His holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.

11 Search for the LORD and for His strength;
seek His face always.

12 Remember the wonderful works He has done,
His wonders, and the judgments He has pronounced," 1 Chronicles 16:34-36 HCSB

Dear God,

This Thanksgiving week, I want to make a conscious effort to try to thank You each and every day for being the God, the Father, that You are to me. Thank you for being a God that I can be proud of. That I can trust. That I can trust with ALL things. Not just some things.

Thank you so very much for all the things that I have seen and not seen that You have done for me. From the smallest to the greatest. For those times of helping me find my car keys, to the times that You are covering me with Your love when my heart is breaking or confused.

Thank you for Your strength. For sharing that strength with me when I am weak. When I am vulnerable.

I do seek your face always.

My heart does rejoice when I acknowledge how AWESOME You are! Sometimes, You just blow my mind! How I honor and adore You!

And as weird as it may seem, I am also truly grateful for those times that You do have to past judgement on me because it is during those times that I know that You love me enough, to want me to be the best I can be for Yourself, Your kingdom and myself.

You are my God, and I can't thank or express enough my feelings for You. Thank you for just knowing.

"34 Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good;
His faithful love endures forever." 1 Chronicles 16:7 HCSB

Response

2011-10-31T11:31:00.000-07:00

"17 There I will make a horn grow for David;
I have prepared a lamp for My anointed one.

18 I will clothe his enemies with shame,
but the crown he wears will be glorious." Psalm 132:17-18 HCSB

Have you ever been in this situation--someone that you were close to--suddenly ends the relationship and then you hear that this person or persons may be spreading rumors about you. How do you feel? Betrayed? Caught off-guard? You can't wrap yourself around the reason why. How could this person or persons do this to me? I am so hurt! What is your first response? Deny the rumors? Confront that person or persons? Respond back in like manner? Get even? Revenge.

All of these responses are normal--but we aren't normal are we? We, as Christians, need to rise above what our carnal nature wants us to do. The Bible is full of carnal responses by Godly men, but there is also Godly examples of how to respond.

The one that comes to me of course involves Jesus. Jesus picks His 12 disciples. His closest friends. He knew each and every one of their flaws and strengths. Maybe He even chose them on purpose because of those strengths and flaws. But the one that sticks out to me is Judas. Jesus knew that Judas was going to betray Him. It was part of God's plan. At one point, Jesus even tells Judas that he was going to betray Him. Then in Matthew 26:50 NIV, "as the soldiers come to the garden to arrest Jesus, Judas said, 'Greetings Rabbi!' and kissed Him. Jesus replied, 'Friend, do what you came for.'"

Brothers and sisters, what an example of how to respond! Of agape forgiveness. Coupled with the above verses, don't you see? When you feel unfairly treated, you don't need to worry. Your Father covers you. Your Father will make sure that your wrongs will be made right. That your enemies are the ones that will be covered in shame--not you. As long--you must remember this--as long as you stay above the norm, the carnal. He will make your crown shine bright.

So, what should you do? You need to prayerfully give your thoughts, initial reactions to your Heavenly Father. Pray for His gracious and agape spirit to cover and fill you.Spilling out into your world. Bringing honor to Him and His name as you are representing Him.

Places

2011-10-25T09:44:00.000-07:00

“'Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever;
wisdom and power are his.
21 He changes times and seasons;
he deposes kings and raises up others.
He gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to the discerning.
22 He reveals deep and hidden things;
he knows what lies in darkness,
and light dwells with him.
23 I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors:
You have given me wisdom and power,
you have made known to me what we asked of you,
you have made known to us the dream of the king.'” Daniel 2:20-23 NIV

When I was praying over the Bible, asking God what truth He wanted you to have today, He led me to this. And to be honest,I'm not sure why. But this is what He said to my spirit. He said that these verses will meet you, whomever you are, where you are.

If you are in the place that you just want and need to praise your God, as Daniel did, all four verses do that, but especially verses 20 & 23.

If you are in a place that is not good and you feel like you have been there for eternity, He gives you hope in verse 21.

If you are in need or desiring wisdom or words of knowledge, the last half of verse 21 meets you there.

If you are in a dark place where you don't want to be or should not be, verse 22 lets you know that He is even there, in those dark places, shining light, giving you a way out.

So please, I'm not going to tell you how to do it, but I would encourage you to just sit, pray and meditate over these verses--asking the Lord how He wants to use them to meet you today. To please have what He wants revealed to you, revealed to you.

'"Be still and know that I am God..."' Psalm 46:10 NIV

In God I Trust

2011-10-19T12:02:00.000-07:00

"14 Wait for the LORD;
be courageous and let your heart be strong.
Wait for the LORD." Psalm 27:14 HCSB

Well, I have to confess something. Yesterday I had to go on a 10 hour road trip and I usually bring our youngest with me. Not only for company, but it is also a our special one-on-one time. As you can imagine, a 10 year old can have a lot to say when he has his mother's undivided attention for 10 hours.

Anyway, Joey had gone to bed with the sniffles, so when I woke him up, I wasn't sure that he was up to going. And I was torn. I didn't want to go alone, but the mother in me said, Hello! You aren't going to be selfish and force him to go are you? Seriously!

Well, as God always does, He met me where I needed to be met. He had the above verse come before me--be courageous and let your heart be strong. Wait for (or in my heart, I thought upon) the Lord. Wow! What timing!

But in the moment of joyfulness, my spirit was checked. What was I putting my security in? The presence of my 10 year old son or the holy presence of my Heavenly Father? Once I got the verse, I was able to release the sadness and disappointment of this possible missed time with Joey.

I share this story in hopes that it helps you to grasp this verse. Our God, our Heavenly Father, is big. He is BIGGER than anything--no matter how large or small--that could ever discourage, frighten or dishearten you.

With Him and in Him, you can overcome anything. With Him and in Him, you can gather all the strength and courage you will ever need!

So, I challenge you--Who or what are you putting your strength and courage into? As you can see--like my situation yesterday--it doesn't have to be a great big major situation. It could just be something small and everydayish. But, we need to put ALL things and situations under the Lord's coverage.

Our God is SO MIGHTY!

"The Lord is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped.
My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song." Psalm 28:7 NIV

Unfailing Love

2011-10-18T15:00:00.000-07:00

"Come and listen, all you who fear God,
and I will tell you what he did for me.
For I cried out to him for help,
praising him as I spoke.
If I had not confessed the sin in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened.
But God did listen!
He paid attention to my prayer.
Praise God, who did not ignore my prayer
or withdraw his unfailing love from me." Psalm 66:16-20 NLT

What a great statement of encouragement and hope!

God listens to us and acts, when we pray to him. The fact that God heard and acted on the psalmist behalf resulted in praise and joy.

Notice the progression of the above scripture. The psalmist is speaking to those that fear or reverently respect the Lord. A relationship with God is possible through his son Jesus. Do you have a respect for God?

Next the writer called out to God for help. He recognized his need and was humble enough to cry out to God. While the psalmist was crying out for help, he was also praising God. What a combination. Realizing your tremendous need and his tremendous grace and love.

Confession played a key role in answered prayer. Notice the psalmist did not cover over the fact that there was sin in his life. He admitted his fault and trusted God to forgive him.

We can have a life giving relationship with the God who loves us, and blesses us. It is his character to care for his children. Acceptance of his grace and a healthy reverence of God are keys to obtaining and sustaining your relationship with Jesus.

I hope this psalm helps you to walk in the reality of that relationship.

Abide in His Word

2011-10-17T15:54:00.000-07:00

"Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:31,32 NKJV

Freedom. The heart cry of man. Wars are fought for freedom, money is paid for freedom, many wait for freedom.Jesus promises freedom from the power of sin and death. He offers deliverance from our hurts, habits, and hangups.

Notice the above progression of scripture. Jesus spoke to those who believed in him. It is impossible to receive a life in Christ without faith. We all put our faith in someone or something. Jesus said to those that believe in him, he will give everlasting life and favor with God.

Next is abiding in the word of God. Abide, is a word that we do not use very much. It means, to dwell, remain, and continue. The psalmist wrote;
" Your word is a lamp to guide my feet
and a light for my path." Psalms 119:105 NLT

A key to freedom is to not simply visit God's word, the Bible. But to abide in his word.

The Holy Spirit helps us understand and apply God's word to our life, giving us strength for today and hope for tomorrow. The Holy Spirit leads us into the truth of God's word. We are bombarded with lies. We need the word of God to set us free.

Believe in Jesus. Abide in his word. Receive freedom!

Battle Cry!

2011-10-12T00:00:00.000-07:00

Announce this to the godless nations:
Prepare for battle!
Soldiers at attention!
Present arms! Advance!
Turn your shovels into swords,
turn your hoes into spears.
Let the weak one throw out his chest
and say, "I'm tough, I'm a fighter."
Hurry up, pagans! Wherever you are, get a move on!
Get your act together.
Prepare to be
shattered by God! Joel 3:9-11 MSG

Do you ever feel like you are in a war? Whenever you are trying to do right, you are drown with wrongness. When you make strides into freedom from fears, habits, hang-ups and hurts, all of a sudden--BANG!--you get hammered with a fresh line of blows to your area of infant strength growth.

Seriously, be honest--do you ever just get tired fighting? I do. Do you ever just want to make a fist and shake at Satan, yelling, "Just leave me alone, you big bully!?" I have. I'm not proud of those feelings, but I need to be honest and if I am, maybe you can too. I get ever so weary of "fighting the good fight." Of trying to rise above. To, as in my case, conquer my self insecurities--have my moment of feeling such peace and oneness with my God and fellowman--only to have that moment taken away by Satan.

But thankfully our God is a god full of grace and He gives us little gifts along the way. For example, just like today, the Lord gave me this verse which encourages me with this thought. Life--true, everlasting life--is a battle. And while I may get tired of having to be on top of it all the time, it's the price I pay.

It may be wearying to have to just "know" the truth and cling to it--but at least we have the truth to cling to. We are blessed to have the trinity--Father, Son & Holy Spirit to share the battle scars with. At least we have the armor of the Bible to protect our hearts, minds and souls. And the gift of prayer, when it just gets too much and we need to cry out.

Brothers and sisters, we cannot give up the good fight. For if we did, where would we be? Where would our world be? We do NOT want the evil one to win. After all, Jesus fought the ultimate fight for us--and that should be encouragement enough for a lifetime, don't you think?

Purposeful Gleaning

2011-10-11T00:00:00.000-07:00

23 Be glad, people of Zion,
rejoice at what the Lord your God has done for you.
He has given you the right amount of autumn rain;
he has poured down the winter rain for you
and the spring rain as before.
24 The threshing places will be full of grain;
the pits beside the presses will overflow with wine and olive oil.
Joel 2:23-24 GNT

Sometimes we look at the glass as half empty--when we should look at it half full. Our God is such a gracious God that even when we deserve to be punished, He always brings us back with grace. He always blesses us more than we could ever bless Him.

When we are going through times of trial, it may seem like years have gone by with no break from the turmoil. But oh, to the contrary, my dear friend. Our God has used our turmoil for our own growth. He has used it to make something that wasn't what it could be, to make it what it should be.

When you read these above verses, I have a request--first, pray over them. Then secondly, please break them down, verse by verse, and glean from them what the Lord wants you to glean. You may be surprised what insight you'll receive when you are purposeful with your gleaning. And then share that insight with someone that you trust. What a difference it'll make!

Freedom

2011-10-10T14:57:00.000-07:00

"So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." John 8:36 NLT

I love the truth of this verse. In Christ Jesus we have complete freedom from sin, the power of death, the devil, and victory over our hurts, habits and hang ups. The key to this truth is that the freedom and victory come from Christ. It is His doing. He does in us and through us what we cannot do for ourselves. We submit our lives to Him. He releases grace into our lives.

When we come to Jesus for freedom, we must believe that He can and will set us free. I have overcome porn, alcohol and drug addiction, and various other bondages. Each time I was very aware of my inability to have victory on my own strength. I was convinced that Jesus could and would set me free. I needed to want to be free, and release myself into His care.

How about you? What bondage needs to be broken in your life? Give it completely to Jesus. It's great to be free!

The Lesson of Onesimus

2011-09-27T09:57:00.000-07:00

"4-7Every time your name comes up in my prayers, I say, "Oh, thank you, God!" I keep hearing of the love and faith you have for the Master Jesus, which brims over to other believers. And I keep praying that this faith we hold in common keeps showing up in the good things we do, and that people recognize Christ in all of it. Friend, you have no idea how good your love makes me feel, doubly so when I see your hospitality to fellow believers." Philemon 1:4-7 MSG

Have you ever read the book of Philemon? It's tucked between Titus and Hebrews. It only has one chapter and 25 verses--but what power those verses hold on the idea of Christian forgiveness, acceptance and acts of love!

Paul wrote this epistle to Philemon who was a believer and he also owned a slave, named Onesimus, that apparently had stolen from him and then ran away to Rome. In those days, when you stole something, you were put to death immediately.

But what is so cool is that God took Onesimus' bad choice and used it to have him meet Paul. Listen to Paul's teachings and then be transformed into a Christian. So, when Onesimus was transported back to his far away home, he was brought back as a "brother".

The lesson goes much deeper, but if I give it all away, you won't want to read it for yourself and you should.

But two thoughts just from the verses above. The first one--if there was ever a time that you felt that you had done something so bad, that you were so far gone, that you were so unacceptable to the Father of the Heavens, that there was no need for you to even hope that He would want you to turn to Him--this epistle should give you hope. It should show you that all you have to do is turn around. To asked for forgiveness from your gracious Heavenly Father and in a heart beat, you are there! He has desired you, prayed for you, wept over you and cheered for you since the moment you were created in the darkness of your mother's womb.

The second thought is this--that this epistle has spoken about our responsibly as Christians to received new Christians. To be loving. To be serving in Christ's name at all times. We need to not ever get so haughty that we forget our own path, our own history and look at others with judgmental eyes. With harden hearts. That we don't need to do good things to be forgiven, but we do good things because we are forgiven.

A gentle reminder--If you truly believe that God is the ruler of your life, then that means the ruler of ALL things. That means your life before, now and in the future. Rest in that. And pray to Him to help you know what that all means for you.

"15-16Maybe it's all for the best that you lost him for a while. You're getting him back now for good—and no mere slave this time, but a true Christian brother! That's what he was to me—he'll be even more than that to you." Philemon 1:15-16 MSG

Be Encouraged!

2011-09-26T11:55:00.000-07:00

"34 You shared the sufferings of prisoners, and when all your belongings were seized, you endured your loss gladly, because you knew that you still possessed something much better, which would last forever.35 Do not lose your courage, then, because it brings with it a great reward.36 You need to be patient, in order to do the will of God and receive what he promises. Hebrews 10:34-36 GNT

Are you in this place? The place that the author of Hebrews was when he wrote this passage? As a fun fact, to this day they do not know for sure who wrote the book of Hebrews--it is never really clearly identified.

But what is amazing is that this author, who was experiencing life way back in 40-60A.D.--needed to encourage the people of his day the same way the people of our day need to be encouraged.

You see, back then, you could lose everything--your freedom, your possessions, your livelihood, your family--just for being a Christ-follower. For being true to your faith, you could die, be rejected, or treated as a criminal.

But through it all, it seems as though our ancestors did not regret, but joyfully accepted those events. Why? Because they kept their vision, "hope"--on the prize before them--Jesus Christ. Because they knew that the gift of Jesus was so much more rewarding than anything that they could ever hope to have here on earth in material possessions.

These days in America are no different. Oh, you may not get stoned to death or put into jail for believing in our Heavenly Father. But there are other things that attack us, other ways that little stones are being thrown at us--the world's values, the idea that you can sin and be forgiven, just to turn around and do the same sin again and again. That we need to put up with things, just to make everyone feel good. That as long as what you are doing isn't hurting anyone, it's OK.

We are attacked by the media, the shows on TV, the articles in the papers and magazines, the Internet, the movies--everywhere we look, we find that our values of purity and right and wrong and what is acceptable in our Father's eyes are being challenge. Slowly, bit-by-bit.

Then when you stand up for God's ways and values, you get stones thrown at you by those who call you judgmental. They challenge you, "Where is the love of Jesus in you?; and the list goes on.

What I see in this passage is this:

1. Don't get weary doing good in your faith walk with the Lord.
2. Stand up for God and His principles, no matter what the cost.
3. Be encouraged that even though it may be hard and at times you become tired of the attacks, keep your eyes on the greater vision, the greater hope--Heaven and your life there.

Our God is there to help you all along the way. How? By imparting His third person of the trinity, our helper the Holy Spirit, to come and reinforce us when we feel weak. To guide us when we feel lost. To encourage us when others want to discourage us. And to love you when you feel as though no one else does.

Our God IS an AWESOME God!

Cruisin'

2011-09-08T10:34:00.000-07:00

"43 After the celebration was over, they started home to Nazareth, but Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents didn’t miss him at first, 44 because they assumed he was among the other travelers. But when he didn’t show up that evening, they started looking for him among their relatives and friends." Luke 2:43-44 NLT

I was driving to church the other day and K-Love radio had a two minute commentator speak about this verse and it got me thinking.

What he said was this--how often is it that we are cruisin' along, thinking that we are all in tune with Jesus when something happens and we realize that we are all alone? Somewhere we have gone on ahead forgetting to bring Him along?

Has that ever happened to you? Have you ever thought that you are on board, that Jesus and you were walking, hand-in-hand, down the same path--and then--BANG, you hit a wall and find yourself thinking, "Hey! Where are You?"

It has to me and while I feel so foolish, I am actually grateful. Like Jesus' family, we can get so comfortable with the presence of Jesus, that we lose track where we are and where He is. Until we get that wake-up call, we may not even realize how off the path we are. Is that where you there today?

Praise our God that gives us warning signs when we are off on our own, basically doing our own thing. That He loves us so much and wants us to succeed so badly that--like a Loving Father should--He makes us stop, take inventory, and helps lead us back to the original path He started us on.

As a closing thought--this may be a great time to stop and take a honest inventory of where you are. Pray for discernment, insight and courage to truly see what He wants you to see. And then PRAISE Him! Our God is AWESOME!

"'The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth. And all mankind will see God's salvation.'" Luke 3:5-6 NIV

Heart Bursting

2011-09-07T14:22:00.000-07:00

"1 My heart bursts its banks, spilling beauty and goodness.
I pour it out in a poem to the king,
shaping the river into words." Psalm 45:1 MSG

Do you remember the last time that your heart was so excited that it felt like it would burst it's banks? Was it when you meet your spouse? When you had your first child? That promotion? That dream car?

How does it compare to the moment when you received the truth that the King of Kings wanted to have you in His Family forever and ever? That moment when you truly and completely gave your heart, mind and spirit over to Him? Was there so much love that you just couldn't contain it inside of you? Maybe you wanted to shout, sing, dance or write about the excitement that your soul was experiencing.

Sometimes that moment--that wonderful, life-changing moment--gets dim as time goes by. Realities of life can come and snare some of the bursting, excitement away. Does it have to? No! Please fight for those moments. Your God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. Who and what changes is us, you. It's us that allows life to draw us away from that first love excitement and fills it with the distractions of the world.

Here is a great question to ponder on for a moment--Can you say that your heart and tongue are in unison, as you meditate upon your King, the God whose throne is forever and ever?

"The heart of the wise teaches his mouth, and adds learning to his lips." Proverbs 16:23 NKJV

Back-to-Back

2011-08-25T09:51:00.000-07:00

"A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken." Ecclesiastes 4:12 NLT

Are you there today? Are you trying to do it alone and just aren't making it? Why? Don't you know that we weren't made to handle life alone? God knew that. That is why He gave us the third person of the trinity--the Holy Spirit.
"And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. 17 He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you." John 14:16-17 NLT

But again, at times, He knew that we would need more. We would need the companionship of others. That is why it is so important to cover yourself--surround yourself with a few solid, Christian friends that can support you when you can't. To strengthen you when you are weak. To pray for you when the words won't come. To love you when you are unlovable. To encourage you when you need encouragement. To reprimand you when you need reprimanding.

Our God is an all encompassing, MIGHTY God. He can and is capable of being all that we need. He wants that. But like a caring and compassionate Father, He knows His children and He knows that there will be times that we will need the feel His touch, His presence, His love--through the designated people that He has purposely placed into our lives. Please be mindful of this--these people are not to take the place of Him, but they are an extension of Him. Do you understand that?

So, back to the original question--Are you there today? If you are, please be praying that the person or persons that God wants to help you through, comes. That you see and recognize. That you don't let pride or self-sufficiency get the best of you--that you don't let those emotions keep the grace and blessing that God has in stored for you and for the others involved in His greater plan--from coming to you.

This is a new day! Be Glad and Rejoice in It! And Praise your Father through it all!

Ask!

2011-08-18T09:49:00.000-07:00

"Your people did not conquer the land with their swords;
they did not win it by their own power;
it was by your power and your strength,
by the assurance of your presence,
which showed that you loved them." Psalm 44:3 GNT

What lands are you trying to conquer today? Is it in your own power or the power of your holy Father?

We can try to win our battles in our own terms. In our own power. In our own wisdom. We seem to be wired that way. We make statements to God such as: "Seriously, I can do it." or, "Truly, my way is better." and, "For goodness sake, I know what I am doing!"But don't you understand--we can not do anything without the blessing and power of our Heavenly Father. He is our general. He is our shield. He is our sword. Whatever it is that we are trying to conquer--we need to send Him out before us. And whatever is trying to conquer us--He will slay. Whatever hurt, habit or hang-up that plagues us--no matter how strong we think we are, we aren't. Not on our own power, wisdom or terms. But call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ--now we have power!

Please, if you have been struggling with something in your life--your land--and you've been trying to slay it all on your own--STOP! Call upon Jesus. He is only a heartbeat away. For when you call out His precious name, not only do you get Him, but you get God the Father and the Holy Spirit. And believe me, when you have the three of them all wrapped up in one, you have a almighty fortress that nothing can breakthrough.

Blessed assurance! How sweet it is! And it is yours just for the asking--ASK! Then remember to PRAISE! Praise before you even see, feel or know the outcome.

"For when we brought you the Good News, it was not only with words but also with power, for the Holy Spirit gave you full assurance that what we said was true." 1 Thessalonians 1:5 NLT

Living

2011-08-15T07:57:00.000-07:00

"Suddenly a windstorm struck the lake. Waves started splashing into the boat, and it was about to sink.

Jesus was in the back of the boat with his head on a pillow, and he was asleep. His disciples woke him and said, 'Teacher, don't you care that we're about to drown?'

Jesus got up and ordered the wind and the waves to be quiet. The wind stopped, and everything was calm.

Jesus asked his disciples, 'Why were you afraid? Don't you have any faith?'

Now they were more afraid than ever and said to each other, 'Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!'" Mark 4:37-45 CEV

Imagine yourself in the boat with Jesus. You've been working with Him all day and then He says to get in the boat because you need to go to the other side of the lake. So you do. While you are floating to the other side, this huge storm comes out of nowhere and you are tossed around like a rag doll. Your companions are fearful and nervous and whispering among themselves. And what is the main whisper? The main shake of the head in disbelief? Jesus. He's there, asleep at the back of the boat. What to do? Noone wanted to be the one to wake Him up. But finally the fear was too great and you bite the bullet and do it. You tap Him on the shoulder, Jesus opens His eyes, calmly stands up, speaks to the wind and the sea as though they are old friends, and everything gets calm and peaceful again. And you think, "Wow!"

Now, bring that feeling to the present. To your life right now. Here you are--a faithful follower of Jesus. Living hard for Jesus. When all of a sudden, a storm, a trial, a rough patch in the road--comes crashing in. You know that Jesus is there, He has to be right? He said that He would never leave you or forsake you. But you can't feel Him. You are a bundle of nervous. You feel like life or the situation is out of control. Where is Jesus? He has to be here! But if He was, why is everything still so tipsy-turvy? What is He doing? Sleeping? Ignoring me? How could He?!

Finally, as you cry out for the last time--all of a sudden--everything is starting to calm down. Peace is slowly coming back into focus. Your world is starting to level out. You say, "Praise be to you Jesus!"

And Jesus says to you, "Why did you fuss so? Don't you know that I am with you always and forever? During good times and bad. Thick and thin. But there are a couple of life hints that I need to inform you of: Life hint #1--Though I am always with you, times will not always be pleasant. In order for you to learn strength, patience, graciousness, forbearance, wisdom, discernment--I will need to let you go through storms. In order for you to learn true faith and to lean not on your own understanding, I will need to let you go through trials. Life hint #2--It is essential for you to remember this--I am the STRONGEST when you are the weakest. I can REIGN when you are on your knees. I can COMFORT when you are the most vulnerable. I am your God, and you are my child."

Today simply PRAISE Him!

"Our LORD and our God,
you are like the sun
and also like a shield.
You treat us with kindness
and with honor,
never denying any good thing
to those who live right.

LORD God All-Powerful,
you bless everyone
who trusts you." Psalm 84:11-12 CEV

Faithful Confidence

2011-08-10T08:11:00.000-07:00

"God is our shelter and strength,
always ready to help in times of trouble.
So we will not be afraid, even if the earth is shaken
and mountains fall into the ocean depths;
even if the seas roar and rage,
and the hills are shaken by the violence." Psalm 46:1-3 GNT

This is one of the more famous psalms that David wrote. People have grasped onto it many a time as they are going through trying times. Martin Luther used to love to sing this psalm in song, and it gave birth to that stirring battle hymn: "A Mighty Fortress is Our God."

But how is it relevant in our world today? Is the calm confidence and triumphant trust that seems to have been breathe into every line relevant in the type of world that we experience everyday? Think about it.

Our world, your life and mine, is just as chaotic as was David's. Oh, there are differences of course, but the feeling is the same. And through all of David's crisis, through all of his trials, he clung to one thing--the power of his Holy Father to be there for him.

Now does that mean that his God would keep him from making mistakes--some of which was the main cause of his crisis or trials--no. But through it all, David remand faithful. David knew that even in his fumblings and shortcomings and just the plain fact that since he was a "God-lover", it made him a target--he was faithfully confident.

We need to have the same faithful confidence. How is it in your world? Your life? You know that you have the faithful commitment from your Heavenly Father to be there for you. Will He keep you from doing the wrong thing and causing your earth to shake or your mountains to crumble? Not always. But he will always be there to help you through it.

Sometimes we have to go through the earth shaking, mountain crumbling times in order to become the children God created us to be. Since He knew you from the moment that you were knitted in your mother's womb--He knew. Do you understand this?

These three verses of Psalm 46 reminds us of the power of our God. Reminds us of His promise to never leave us or forsake us. That itself is a comfort--at least to me.

Do we know what it is to make this psalm that is so perfectly simple in its meaning, and joyous in expression--our very own? Do we have the right conception of a God that is so strong that He can banish all our fears?

As thrones, governments and systems change with startling rapidity, you can stand solidally on this--that no matter what is happening in your outer world or the personal world within you--you can--and need to--be still and know that your God reigns--FOREVER. Amen.

10 “Be still, and know that I am God!
I will be honored by every nation.
I will be honored throughout the world.” Psalm 46:10 NLT

Consumed

2011-08-01T18:59:00.000-07:00

"And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, 10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, 11 being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God." Philippians 1:9-11(NKJV)

Have you ever experienced something and then you come to find out that you enjoy it so much that you want to know more about it? And then the more that you know, the more that you seem to want to find out more. And it starts to consume you.

Well, this is what Paul is praying for his friends in Philippi. He knows the human nature. He knows that we can't get enough of a good thing. If we love something enough, we will do whatever it takes to learn more about it or to protect it, or to immerse ourselves in it.

That is how it should be in our relationship with Jesus. We should never get enough of Him. We should always be yearning for more and more and more. We should want to be so immersed in the journey of getting to know Him, to bond with Him, that it seems wrong when we are not.

My prayer for you is simple--I pray that you are blessed with this great yearning and thirst for what only your Heavenly Father can give you--eternal life. And I pray that you go and consume yourself, in His word and with a deep prayer life, until you cannot be filled anymore. That the power of the Holy Spirit fills you with the discernment and a deep, genuine love that you need in order to be pure in His image. And I pray these requests in His Holy, blessed name. Amen.

A New Friend

2011-07-25T14:54:00.000-07:00

"I pray that God, who gives hope, will bless you with complete happiness and peace because of your faith. And may the power of the Holy Spirit fill you with hope." Romans 15:13 CEV

Do you understand where hope comes from? Do you think its something that you can just make up on your own? Hope, true hope, cannot be conjured up by man's effort. No. It is God's gift to us by His Spirit.

And while we need hope, we are not saved by hope. We are saved by faith. But with salvation comes hope.

The cool thing about the trinity is this--that even though there are three distinct individuals, each with their own strengths and roles--they can also be squished into one--one AWESOME, complete God.

As hope sustains us in trials and tribulations, the Holy Spirit helps us when we pray. Have you ever have a relationship with someone that was so close that there was times that you didn't even need to actually speak words, yet you knew what the other was thinking? Well, that's how the relationship between the Holy Spirit and God our Father and Jesus the Son is. Their relationship is so close that their prayers to each other need not even to be spoken out loud. They just know.

Does the thought of the Holy Spirit scare you? It used to me. But now, I am slowly developing a whole new sense and appreciation of it. You see, The Holy Spirit is a part of God. It is one of the bridges between Him and us. Jesus was the other. And Jesus isn't scary so why should the Holy Spirit be?

A Thorny Situation

2011-07-19T20:18:00.000-07:00

"Because of the extravagance of those revelations, and so I wouldn't get a big head, I was given the gift of a handicap to keep me in constant touch with my limitations. Satan's angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn't think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me,

My grace is enough; it's all you need.
My strength comes into its own in your weakness.

Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ's strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become." 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 MSG

How many times have you've been there? Begging God to take away your "thorn?" When I as young, I read about Paul's thorn. Immediately an image of a sticker--like a foxtail getting stuck in your sock--sticking in his side would come to mind and I found myself cringing.

But lately, I'm getting to the realization that it's the little things that can become a thorn, not just the big things. It's not the big "sin", it's those little, every day irritates that can be just as much as a deterrent to your walk as anything. And it saddens me about me.

How many times do I let the little stuff steal my joy? How many times to I let Satan get my self-esteem by allowing little comments from others to make me insecure? How many times to I let my judgements of people keep the ones that need to feel God's love the most, at arms length? Too many.

If I believe, truly believe that Jesus died for ALL of us, then I need to accept ALL. If I believe, truly believe that my God has my best interests at heart--then I need to release the thorns. For you see, a thorn released is a situation to rejoice in. For each time I release a thorn, I grow a little more into what I desire with my whole being to be--made in the image of Him who formed me.

What about you? Have you come face to face with your thorns? And when you have, what will you do with them? It's the attitude that makes it a thorn or a blessing. Bring your thorns to your Father. As it states above;

"My grace is enough, it's all you need.
My strength comes into its own with your weakness."

He will be more than glad to help you make them vanish forever. You will not be judged. You will not be belittled. You will not be turned away. You just need to trust Him. Do you? Paul did.

The Power of a Wing

2011-07-13T15:41:00.000-07:00

"Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful,
because I come to you for safety.
In the shadow of your wings I find protection
until the raging storms are over." Psalm 57:1 GN

This morning I was out early watering my vegetable garden. I heard this piercing cry in the sky. I looked up and tried to find the source of the sound. All of a sudden there it was--this beautiful Red-tailed Hawk.

I just stood there, enjoying the sense of freedom and beauty that this hawk was experiencing. You could just tell by the way it was gliding with the breeze that it was at peace and experiencing pure joy. It would tilt it's wings a little to the left, its body would glide left. Tilt it to the right, it would glide right. It's shadow was dancing across the ground. It was a total God moment for me. From deep in my soul, I heard, "What an AWESOME God I have!"

This verse reminds me of that experience. He's like that Red-tailed Hawk--soaring over us, keeping His eye sharp, looking for anything that may come and harm us. When He sees something--swoosh!!! Down He goes and gathers us into His strong wings with the soft under feathers. We are so blessed!

Take today and thank Him for all He is, and for all He does. Can you imagine life without Him?

Do I Need a Bath!

2011-07-11T21:23:00.000-07:00

"'I'll pour pure water over you and scrub you clean. I'll give you a new heart, put a new spirit in you. I'll remove the stone heart from your body and replace it with a heart that's God-willed, not self-willed. I'll put my Spirit in you and make it possible for you to do what I tell you and live by my commands. You'll once again live in the land I gave your ancestors. You'll be my people! I'll be your God!'" Ezekiel 36:25-28(MSG)

Here's a question--when you sin, do you feel dirty? Do you wish you could just wash the bad away? That if you wash hard enough, if you use enough soap, that you will be finally clean?

I remember when I was young and I would lie. When my mother would catch me in it, (which was every time because I was not a smart liar), I would have to have my mouth washed out with soap. It was horrible! To this day, I can't really stand to use a bar of Ivory soap without thinking of my past sin.

You see, my mother was trying to keep me from enjoying my sin. She was trying to keep me clean, so she made the aftermath of it distasteful--and boy it did! And so that is what the Lord was saying to the Israelites--to us. That He is there to wash us clean. He wants to bring us home to Him, wash off all the sin and dirt that we have committed and gathered along life's path and wash it completely away.

Why? Because if He kept it there, if He ignored it, He couldn't stand being next to us. Our sin would start stinking so much that no amount of Fabreeze would be able to make Him bear to be close to us.

Sometimes He may be able to do it gently, caressing the past away with soft, little strokes, warm soapy water and a scrunchy. Other times He may have to use a firmer technique--like a Brillo pad--to make sure that the sin doesn't ever come back.

For you see, God is free to judge and He is equally free to be gracious. His stern judgements on us ultimately reflects His grace. Sometimes He allows us to get really dirty, so dirty that we are just overwhelmed by it--so that He can give us a renewed life, a changed heart and spirit. Then His presence in us will be seen clearly as a blessed gift.

God is the ultimate Father. And He loves us enough not to let us stay in our own filth. It may hurt us when He has to help us deal with it--but you know what? I feel blessed to know that He does love me that much. How about you?

Do you need a bath? Go to your Heavenly Father. He has the water running.

One Nation, Under God

2011-07-04T08:25:00.000-07:00

"9 But you are (A)A CHOSEN RACE, A royal (B)PRIESTHOOD, A (C)HOLY NATION, (D)A PEOPLE FOR God’s OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you (E)out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 (F)for you once were NOT A PEOPLE, but now you are THE PEOPLE OF GOD; you had NOT RECEIVED MERCY, but now you have RECEIVED MERCY." 1 Peter 2:9-10 NASV

Last night I was watching the fireworks at the fairgrounds. Our oldest son was in the color guard with his boyscout troop. We said "The Pledge of Allegiance" and a young gal sang, God Bless America, and then with all the brilliance of fireworks and the patriotic songs playing in the background, I was struck with the thought that we are so blessed and felt lead to praise my God for the gift of our country. Then, when I got home, I was feeding our dogs and looked up at the night sky, and boy, the stars were out! My spirit spoke to me. The man made fireworks were beautiful, but even in all it's brilliance, it could not even begin to compare to the infinite beauty that the Lord's night sky held every night. And I felt Him wash over me. I praise Him!

Today is our nation's birthday and I think we should celebrate. Celebrate that God created this great land for all of us. Rich, poor, middle class; man, woman, child; white, black, yellow, brown, olive, red; old, young, middle aged or newborns--it truly doesn't matter--at least to God. He created this land for All of us. For us to live in a free world that we can serve Him and worship Him anyway we choose. Think of all the beauty and opportunities we have over other nations! The grand parks, the beauty of the seasons, the animal life; the grand bodies of water; the sunrises and the sunsets--the blessings are too numerous to list--but do you get the picture?

Sometimes if all you remember is what you hear on the television or on the radio, or read in the papers or magazines--you could be very depressed. And yes, there are many things that are not right with the world--but is that God's fault? No. Don't we have the gift of freewill? Yup, we do. Have we used it wisely? No, not always.

We can't fix the world all at once. But you know what? If each of us took a part and opened our Bibles, read and prayed for ourselves, our families, our neighbors, our town, our county, our state, our nation and then our world--we could. It starts with us. We need to take back our role as Christians.

Our founding fathers fought for this land so that they could worship their God, not the King of England. They created the laws of the land on the Holy Bible. So, as they use to say, "we do have good bones" or in other words, our foundation was built on solid ground. We, as a nation, have gotten lazy and surly.

So, what do you say? Let's say the Pledge of Allegiance today, but let's say it as a prayer, and not a song. And let's pray as we say the verses so that they become real to to us.

I pledge allegiance
To the flag
Of the United States of America,
And to the republic,
For which it stands,
One nation,
Under God,
Indivisible,
With liberty
And justice for all.

Thank you Jesus for the gift of my country. Amen

A New Name

2011-07-02T16:48:00.000-07:00

"He set off. When he got to the outskirts of Damascus, he was suddenly dazed by a blinding flash of light. As he fell to the ground, he heard a voice: 'Saul, Saul, why are you out to get me?'

He said, 'Who are you, Master?'

'I am Jesus, the One you're hunting down. I want you to get up and enter the city. In the city you'll be told what to do next.'"Acts 9:3-6 (The Message)

Saul, who we now know as Paul, was as bad as they get. For some reason, he just hated the Christians and in that hate, did many horrible things.

I don't know about you, but if I was God, I wouldn't have wasted the time of day on Saul. I would be so angry, so hurt--that I would have turned my back on him. Thankfully, God isn't like me.

There are two things caught my attention in this passage. Did you catch them? Look closely. The first thing is this, where Saul asks, "Who are you, Master?" In other translations, it says, "Lord". Whether "Master" or "Lord", it doesn't change the fact that Saul knew that he was with God. He knew the signs--a voice from heaven, bright shining lights--he knew. He knew he was in the presence of the very God of the Christians he was making a career out of prosecuting.

Does that tell you something? Does it show you that even when we are at our worst, we know Him. Our spirits just know. It's liken to how flowers know how to bloom, birds know how to nest--it's just an instinct that is planted deep within all of us.

It also tells us another thing--God will come to us. Good or bad--if we are meant to be His--and we all have the chance and choice--He will call to us.

The second attention getter was the last line--where Jesus tells Saul who He was, acknowledging to Saul that He knew what Saul was doing, and even with that knowledge, He, Jesus, had a mission for him once he got to the city.

Wow! Did you catch the main 'wow' behind the act of Jesus? Here was the man that was prosecuting His church, going to Damascus to get papers to be able to persecute more of His church, and Jesus, stops him in the middle of the road, comes to him personally, speaks and tells him that he, Saul, is to go to the town and not do what he was intending to do, but to wait for more of Jesus' instructions. Jesus was going to talk to him again! And what did Saul do? Go the other way? Say No? No. Saul went!

Granted, in the process of all of this, Jesus does blind Saul and in three days, sends a disciple named Ananias to Saul to fulfill a vision that Jesus had given Saul, when Saul was praying--praying! And so it was done, Ananias went and did as Jesus asked and the scales fell from Saul's eyes.

We could go so much deeper, but what I feel that I am supppose to share with those of you who feel that you are so bad, that you feel there's no hope for you. There's hope. That if you feel that whatever you have done in your past or maybe are even still doing now, God can't and wouldn't want to have you in His family. There's room. That there is no use for you--ahh, but there is.

If Jesus can use Saul, with all of his bad behavior and past, to further His kingdom--what more can He use you? You were born to be His. Just like Saul. But what you do with it is your choice. If you can just turn and come to your Father, asking for forgiveness, asking to be brought back into His heavenly Family--He would have you there so fast your head would spin. It is US that keeps us away from Him--don't you see?

So come. Come and let Jesus give you a new name--if Saul can become Paul--won't it be exciting what name Jesus will give you?

The Essence of God

2011-06-29T16:39:00.000-07:00

"The singers were accompanied in perfect harmony by trumpets, cymbals, and other instruments, as they praised the Lord singing:

Praise the Lord, because he is good,
And his love is eternal.

As the priests were leaving the Temple, it was suddenly filled with a cloud shining with the dazzling light of the Lord's presence, and they could not continue the service of worship." 2 Chronicles 5:13-14 GNT

It must have been an awesome sight when the glory of the Lord so filled His house that the priests could not even finish ministering.

How would it feel to experience such an overwhelming sense of God's presence and glory in our lives? That His presence would just fill us to overflowing? I yearn for that--don't you? If there was some way that I could make sure that that could happen, I would so love it to be. But I know me--I know that it's not that God can't or won't be that presence in me. It's my sin that keeps Him from doing it. Do you know what I mean?

Toby Mac sings a song that says that we need to fill our homes with so much love that the back door has to crack to let some of the love ooze out. I think of that with this idea. That if we could let God enter our lives and fill it up so much that we have to open up and give some of it away in order to not explode--what a witness that would be!

My prayer for us today is this: Please, allow your Heavenly Father to come in like a cloud and fill us--each and every little teeny, tiny corner with ALL of Him. That we reek with the essence of Him. That people from a mile away, will be able to see that He is in us and we are in Him.

If this was to happen, what a spiritual life it would be. I so desire to be glory-filled. How about you?

Driver's Training

2011-06-27T15:27:00.000-07:00

"Then Jesus went to work on his disciples. 'Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You're not in the driver's seat; I am. Don't run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I'll show you how. Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self. What kind of deal is it to get everything you want but lose yourself? What could you ever trade your soul for?'"Matthew 16:24-26(MSG)

How many times have we invited Christ into our lives and then we tell Him what we want Him to do? Does it sometimes seem as if we think that we are the ruler, the holy one and God was just created to help us to have an easier life?

We may have good intentions, but sometimes our intentions block what God had intented to be used for our growth. For example, the verses right before these were the exchange between Jesus and His disciple, Peter. You see, Jesus had just told the disciples that He was going to Jerusalem and while there, He was going to have to suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law. He also told them that He would be killed (His words were 'must be') and on the third day be raised to life.

Well, Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Jesus saying, "Never Lord! This shall never happen to you!" Was Peter trying to be hurtful? No. Was he trying to be controlling? What do you think? I think, that in his love for Jesus, he wanted to protect Him and just the thought of someone being mean, hurtful and killing his friend--he got protectively controlling. As a mom, wife, daughter, sister and friend, I can understand that. There are times that in my love, I have probably cause a life lesson learned to be unlearned. I've stood in the way of God's plan because I didn't want to see the ones I love hurt or hurting.

But then, my spirit gets a check. I need to trust that even if the situation is not the most desirable one that I would want to have myself or a loved one to experience or be in--if I truly trust my God 100%--then I need to trust that He has the better interest in mind and heart. Do you understand that?

Can you imagine if Peter had been successful and talked Jesus out of going or was able to prevent Him from getting to Jerusalem and being crucified? What would have happened to God's perfect plan then? We would be so sadly lost. Do you realize that? Do you realize that if Jerusalem and that whole situation--sad and horrible as it was--hadn't happened, that we would not even be able to know our God or have a relationship with Him? How awful!

So the lesson learned is that even if we cannot understand what the bigger picture is--God does. Even if it causes us pain or is uncomfortable--it is still God's plan. And as God's plan, He's in the driver's seat. If we truly want God to be the head of our lives, if we are truly handing Him the steering wheel--we have to let Him have both hands on it and not just one. Get it?

Just Turn Around

2011-06-24T17:30:00.000-07:00

"O God, you are my God,
and I long for you.
My whole being desires you;
like a dry, worn-out, and waterless land,
my soul is thirsty for you.
2 Let me see you in the sanctuary;
let me see how mighty and glorious you are.
3 Your constant love is better than life itself,
and so I will praise you.
4 I will give you thanks as long as I live;
I will raise my hands to you in prayer.
5 My soul will feast and be satisfied,
and I will sing glad songs of praise to you."Psalm 63:1 GNT

David was such a complex man. On one hand, he was very human and made human mistakes--sin. On the other, he loved God with all his heart. You can see and feel that when you read through the Psalms.

When he was in the Desert of Judah, David wrote this Psalm as a confession of longing for God and for the security His presence offers when deadly enemies were threatening him. He remembered the peace and freedom that his close relationship with God felt like. And he yearned for that feeling of warmth and security--back again.

Have you been there? Have you been in a situation that you wished that you weren't in? You wished you could go back in time and just be like a child who could crawl up into your Father's lap and feel loved, safe, forgiven and secure? You can.

Your heavenly Father is just waiting for you to ask Him. All you have to do is turn around and come running. There is nothing so bad or so awful that your heavenly Father would turn His back on you. You see, we will always be like a David. We will also desire to be good and perfect for our Heavenly Father, but fall short. Why? Because we're also descendants of Adam and Eve. We will always have that tug-a-war inside of us. Free-will verses God-will. Some days we will overcome it, and then there will be those hard days when it will overcome us.

Your Father knows that. That is why He sent Jesus. He sent Jesus down to be our bridge. Because on our own, we would never be able to have a true relationship with Him. So, Jesus had to come. And freely Jesus came--He loved us that much.

Along with Jesus, He also sent down the Holy Spirit. You see, again, the trinity--the Father, Son and Holy Spirit--three persons so entwined that they are one. It takes the presence of the trinity in our lives for us to be the faithful children we need to be.

So, please, just turn around. Turn around and come running to your Father. Pour out, as David has, all your sorrow, your shame for acts done, all your love to Him--asking for forgiveness. If you do that, then you will also see and experience the strength, gloriousness, forgiveness and constant love of His being.

It will only take a second--but what a mighty second!

The Power of Three

2011-06-22T19:32:00.000-07:00

"16 I ask God from the wealth of his glory to give you power through his Spirit to be strong in your inner selves,17 and I pray that Christ will make his home in your hearts through faith. I pray that you may have your roots and foundation in love,18 so that you, together with all God's people, may have the power to understand how broad and long, how high and deep, is Christ's love.19 Yes, may you come to know his love although it can never be fully known and so be completely filled with the very nature of God." Ephesians 3:16-19 (GNT)

What touched my spirit about when I was lead to these verses was that I felt the love. I found myself thinking, "Wouldn't that be the beautiful prayer to pray over someone?" And then I thought, "I would love to have someone pray that prayer over me."

In those verses, if you look at them closely, you will discover the trinity. How? Well, first of all, verse 16, Paul is asking that God's Spirit would make you strong. Secondly, verse 17, that by Christ's indwelling-making His home--in your hearts through faith and thirdly, verse 19, and that they would be filled to the measure of all the fullness by the very nature of God. This threefold fullness of God is the believers state in God.

You see, in order to be a full, well-rounded Christian, you need to have all three persons in the trinity--The Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They are all interlaced and entwined with each other to help make you strong. If you have any less than three, you are vulnerable. You are exposed. It's like being outside in the snow--you have your boots, your gloves but no jacket. Are you going to be protected by the elements? Well, your feet and hands will but the rest of you are subjected to freeze--so in the end, so will your hands and feet.

Let's cover each other with that prayer, shall we? Your God is SO awesome. He truly is.

Perspective

2011-06-20T18:59:00.000-07:00

"36 Do you gain anything if you win the whole world but lose your life? Of course not!37 There is nothing you can give to regain your life." Mark 8:36-37(GNT)

Sometimes is seems that some people would give up everything to get ahead. To win that promotion. To purchase that house in the ritzy neighborhood. To get that 'to-die-for' body. The mate of a lifetime.

But in the end, what would you have to show for it? Promotions go away. Homes are just houses without a soul. Bodies get old. Not all mates are meant for a lifetime--only the one God made for you.

So--at times, you may have to make a choice--do I sacrifice it all for what I think is important or do I sacrifice everything for what the Lord is telling me is important? Because in the end, everything else may go by the wayside, but what God had begun as a good work in you, that will stay, if you don't neglect it.

What do you need to do? Keep your eyes focus on the goal--Jesus. If you do that, then you should find the rest of you following close behind. Will it be easy? No. Not always. But you know, some treasures are more valuable the harder they are to find. The same goes with your walk. It's worth the fight.

"2 Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end. He did not give up because of the cross! On the contrary, because of the joy that was waiting for him, he thought nothing of the disgrace of dying on the cross, and he is now seated at the right side of God's throne." Hebrews 12:2(GNT)

O Lord, Which One?

2011-06-14T10:56:00.000-07:00

"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms." 1 Peter 4:10 NIV

This verse seems to go hand-in-hand with Luke 4:42b-44. This is where Jesus had just returned from being in a solitary place with His Father. The people didn't want Him to leave. He had healed many of their own, driven out demons and they wanted to keep Him all for themselves.

But what did Jesus do? Jesus said, "I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent." Luke 4:43. He couldn't stay. His purpose was to be a traveling preacher.

Jesus had many gifts--in fact--He had all the Spiritual gifts. But He knew what purpose and gift He was to do and use. What about you? Do you know your purpose and gift(s)? If you have more than one gift, do you know which one the Lord wants you to use for His glory and purpose? Or are you running around, at one point you think it's this one and then at another point you think it's that one? You feel a little crazy. A little frazzled.

Do you know how Jesus knew which of His many gifts He was to focus on? What His purpose was? He took time to get away and be alone with His Heavenly Father. A place of solitude. People are crazily looking for Him everywhere. Where was He? Alone with His Father, communing with Him.

If you don't have a clear purpose, a clear vision on what gift that your Heavenly Father wants you to use, then why not do what Jesus did? Go to a solitary place and commune with Him. Prayerfully consult with Him about your desire to have a clear purpose and vision. You may not get it that very second, but please, be faithful in the asking. He will give it to you.

Don't wear yourself out like a butterfly--fluttering here and there, looking for the next best flower that will have the sweetest nectar. God wants you close to Him. He is your source. Tap into it. And once it is revealed to you, apply it as the verse above says, use it to serve others in your Father's gracious name and do it faithfully.

Mine

2011-06-07T21:49:00.000-07:00

"But the crowd laughed at him because they all knew she had died. Then Jesus took her by the hand and said in a loud voice, 'My child, get up!' Her spirit returned, and at once she stood up.” Luke 8:53-55 NLT

What do we know about this child? We know that the child was a girl, and if you read a couple of verses earlier, you find out that she is about 12 years old and her father, Jairus, was a ruler of the synagogue. We also discover that she was dying and because of that, her father came and fell at Jesus' feet, pleading with Him to come to his house.

Jesus does come, but not after healing a woman of internal bleeding just because her faith was so great that all she had to do was touch the edge of His cloak.

Do we know if the girl was a believer? Do we know if she was baptized? If she had given her life to Jesus? No. But do you notice how Jesus addresses her when he finds her dead in her home? Look closely. He says to her, "My child, get up!" He doesn't say, "Little girl, get up." or "Hey you, get up." He doesn't even say simply, "Child, get up."

Instead, He calls her "My" child. What could we take away from this? We can take the fact that we are born God's children. That we are His from day one of conception. That He has loved us from the beginning of time and died for that love. He has claimed us from the alpha-the very first--and continues to love us until the omega--the end.

Then what is this business about asking Jesus into our lives in order to be saved? Very good question. That is when we accept His presence. His unending love. His arms full of graciousness. His faith in us. Does this make sense to you? You see, He has always and forever loved and had faith in you. Asking Him into your life and to be your Lord and Savior is your way of showing Him your love and faith for Him.

So, now that you know that you have been His child from the very beginning, how about asking Him to be your Heavenly Father from this moment on? He will come running, with joy everlasting.

The Twist

2011-05-30T16:34:00.000-07:00

"Suddenly, a man with leprosy approached him and knelt before him. 'Lord,' the man said, 'if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean.'

Jesus reached out and touched him. 'I am willing,' he said. 'Be healed!' And instantly the leprosy disappeared." Matthew 8:2-3 NLT

Like many of you, I have heard this verse explained a number of times. But today, when I was led here, the Lord showed me a different twist. Follow me and see if this hits a cord with you.

The twist isn't just that Jesus can heal of us our physical diseases. If you took the word 'leprosy' and replaced it with the word 'sin', how would it speak to you? "Suddenly a man with sin approached him and knelt before him. 'Lord, if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean' ...Jesus reached out and touched him. 'I am willing,'...'Be healed!' And instantly the sin disappeared." Would it tell you that you can believe that Jesus will heal you from your sin? That He doesn't hold it over you? That you can believe Him when He says that He came to free you from your bondage. That He died for your sins. To be your covering from them. That He is enough?

You don't have to win the approval of people. You don't have to earn your place with Him. His grace is sufficient. He willed it. All you have to do is believe, ask and receive. Nothing more, nothing less. When you try to please others, or to even please your Heavenly Father, it takes away what He already did for you. Don't take that away from Him. What He did, He did freely without any regrets. Without any second thoughts.

Just give Him what He wants--your heart--totally and complete. With no hidden places. If you do that, He will know it was worth it.

"And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him...When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God." Romans 6:8. 10 NLT

A Lesson Learned

2011-05-25T16:06:00.000-07:00

"I'll never forget the trouble, the utter lostness,
the taste of ashes, the poison I've swallowed.
I remember it all—oh, how well I remember—
the feeling of hitting the bottom.
But there's one other thing I remember,
and remembering, I keep a grip on hope:
God's loyal love couldn't have run out,
his merciful love couldn't have dried up.
They're created new every morning.
How great your faithfulness!
I'm sticking with God (I say it over and over).
He's all I've got left."Lamentations 3:19-23 (The Message)

The prophet Jeremiah wrote the book of Lamentations. He wrote it after the third siege and fall of Jerusalem. He was overcomed by personal grief. Not only for himself, but for God's nation.

It seemed senseless. It didn't have to come to this. But Jerusalem had become haughty and hard-hearted. They had turned their backs against their God. They had to become totally devastated in order to be able to truly come back to their one true God.

Is that you? Have you had to get to the very bottom of bottom in order to get your life back? To come to your Heavenly Father, truly saved and repented? Ready to do whatever it takes to be one with Him again?

Jeremiah had been thrown into the dungeon by malicious foes, yet he proved the goodness and nearness of God as ever faithful. His cry was heard and deliverance came. Can it be that you are in the dark dungeon of your own making? Despair not--God is near, and He can make your dungeon luminous with the radiance of the His love and the Holy Spirit. Listen for the whisper of His voice. Fear not! Humbly come to Him--He is waiting for you.

Teach Me O Lord!

2011-05-23T16:26:00.000-07:00

"Teach me Your way, O LORD;
I will walk in Your truth;
Unite my heart to fear Your name." Psalm 86:11 NASB

David was a man after God's own heart. Even so, even with the heritage that David had, he still sinned. He was still a rebelious son. He loved God, He was proud of his heritage, but that didn't keep him on the straight and narrow. He still had his struggles.

Does that give us privilege to sin? No. But each time we fall short, it gives us another chance to grow closer to our Heavenly Father. To experience first hand, His graciousness and merciful spirit. Hopefully, we are learning what is expected of us. We are learning what it is that we should be doing. This is what saved David. Even though he fell time after time, after each occurance, he cried out to his Heavenly Father. He sang His praises and pleaded for forgiveness.

God will honor us if we pray this prayer. Teach me Your way, O Lord. What a prayer! Six words. Six sweet yet powerful words to our Father's ear. A refreshing breathe for His heart.

Praying that the Lord will teach you His ways will allow to you to become a soft plyable heart that the Lord can use to shape and form into the son/daughter that He created you to be. To be what He wants you to be--not what you think you should be.

"and I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me always, for their own good and for the good of their children after them." Jeremiah 32:39 NASB

No Questions Asked

2011-05-18T11:17:00.000-07:00

"Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you, the mystery made known to me by revelation..." Ephesians 3:2-3 NIV

Paul is writing this to the Ephesian church. He was under house arrest for obeying Christ in spite of opposition.

As I was pondering this verse, my spirit started speaking to me. This is the reason that I, we, need to have grace for others. God, in His grace, gave us Jesus as our sacrifice of grace, so we should also be able to show grace to those that God brings into our lives.

Do you know what grace means? Simply put, its allowing someone that has hurt you, annoyed you or even attacked you--to be totally forgiven. To have space in your heart & spirit for total forgiveness. Not forgiveness only if you are asked for forgiveness--but grace to the person even if you never ever hear a word of a repented heart or spirit. Do you understand?

It's not easy for us I think. Sometimes it seems that we need to make people squirm a little. That we enjoy that power we have over them for awhile. But is that what Jesus did? Did He sacrifice His very life for us only after we asked for forgiveness? No, He did His complete act of grace for us, for you--before we were even born. Shouldn't we humbly do likewise?

Sometimes, we are like Paul. Except we put ourselves under "house arrest". Not for doing what our Father wants us to--but for NOT doing what He has requested for us to. It may also be a mystery to us when God tells us what He tells us. But we need to do what our spirit tells us anyway. No questions asked.

"However, he has given each one of us a special gift, or grace, through the generosity of Christ." Ephesians 4:7 NLT

Stormy Weather

2011-05-10T13:37:00.001-07:00

"When the storms of life come, the wicked are whirled away,
but the godly have a lasting foundation." Provb 10:25 NLT

Life brings storms. Storms of challenging times. We all face difficulties that at times seem unbearable and overwhelming. But there is hope. Hope is found in Jesus Christ and his word the Bible.

What are you building your life on that is fail proof? Jesus Christ offers us strength for today and hope for tomorrow. Nothing will ever separate us from his love, not even death.

What storms are blasting at you now. Take courage and hope. Receive the living hope of Christ!

“Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock." Matt 7:24-25 NLT

True Faithfulness

2011-05-09T12:45:00.000-07:00

"...Lord God of Israel, there is no god like you in heaven above or on earth below! You keep your covenant with your people and show them your love when they live in wholehearted obedience to you." 1 Kings 8:23 GNT

This scripture verse comes from a blessing King Solomon spoke over God's people on the day the nation dedicated the temple. By that point in history, Moses had been dead for well over 400 years. God had give His people ample time to observe His trustworthiness.

What makes Solomon's testimony especially stunning is the fact that during those many years, God's people had chalked up a pretty spotty record in the faith department.

Included in those years were decades spent under the leadership of Joshua and David--on the whole, godly leaders of a godly (yet not sinless) people. In fact, you could use two words to sum up those centuries--idolatrous and brutal.

Yet the golden cord of your Heavenly Father's faithfulness winds its way through every day of all those decades and centuries. Not one word of our Lord's good promises had ever failed. He had proven Himself fully trustworthy time and time again. And of course, He will continue to do that in your life today.

Are you counting on specific promises today? Or are you worried that your faithlessness or disobedience might have voided God's promises to you? Then turn with repentant faith to the cross of your Savior. Confess your sins and cling to His promise to forgive and cleanse you from all unrighteousness. Then claim all the other promises you need as well. They are yours in Christ Jesus.

"But if we confess our sins to God, he will keep his promise and do what is right: he will forgive us our sins and purify us from all our wrongdoing." 1 John 1:9 GNT

Unchanging

2011-05-06T10:54:00.000-07:00

"Yes, grass withers and flowers fade,
but the word of our God endures forever." Isaiah 40:8 GNT

In a world that is ever changing, isn't it comforting to have a verse such as this! I don't know about you, but whenever changes are happening in my life or the world around me--even a good change--I fight it. Change makes me feel insecure. It makes me nervous. At times it can cause me experience doubt. I want to avoid it. What about you?

But you see, in this verse, it is telling us that all things eventually will go away. Life circumstances will change. Maybe the people in your life. Maybe your heart. But we can ALWAYS count on the word of our God, to be forever standing, forever true.

So, when you have situations in your life that cause you to question--turn to your Father in prayer and His Holy Book, the Bible, in reading--both things will forever be the same, trustworthy sources of wisdom and comfort you can always count on.

The Promise

2011-05-04T07:51:00.000-07:00

"The LORD said, ' I will go with you and give you peace.'" Exodus 33:14 CEV

As the Lord was making this promise to Moses, the people were about to break camp and set off into the wilderness toward the land God had sworn to give to them--their promise land

You see, God had made that promise to them after the Israelites had been living at the foot of Mount Sinai for about a year. It was a year that had some good parts, such as when Moses was given The Ten Commandments. It was there that He provided them with food and water. It was there that He began to heal the scars of being in slavery for over 400 years. It was also a hard year. A year of living in a new land, with unknown circumstances. But now, it was time to move on into the next phase of their journey that God had planned for them. And they were apprehensive. They were nervous. And some were down-right scared.

What about you? How would you feel? Is God telling you pack up all your earthly belongings and follow Him? Is He moving you into a new stage of your journey with Him--your promise land? Are you nervous? A little apprehensive? Down-right scared?

As your Israelite ancestors before you--you are not alone. Sure, you don't have the visual aid of the cloud of God pulling you along. But because of the cross and empty tomb, you have the presence of Jesus living inside of you--leading the way and never leaving you. In Jesus, God is truly present, living among us. In Jesus, we receive rest--rest from the guilt of our sin, free from the need to worry about our future, rest from the fact, that in spite of our imperfections, we are loved more than words can be expressed.

This verse should give you courage to do whatever the Lord is prompting your spirit. And it should also give you peace. His peace.

"I pray that the Lord, who gives peace, will always bless you with peace. May the Lord be with all of you." 2 Thessalonians 3:16 CEV

Speechless

2011-05-02T19:48:00.000-07:00

"In certain ways we are weak, but the Spirit is here to help us. For example, when we don't know what to pray for, the Spirit prays for us in ways that cannot be put into words." Romans 8:26 CEV

Our God is AWESOME! Just look at what He has done for us! The same God that knows every hair on our head, knew that at times, we would be lost for words when we try to talk to Him. So what did He do? He gave us the third person in the trinity--the holy spirit--to help us during those gaps in our spiritual walk.

Have you been in that place? The place that you have such a deep need for prayer, to talk to your Heavenly Father, but just can't seem to get the words together? I have. I have sat there and become so frustrated with myself because I know that I will feel better when I talk it out with Him, but the words just won't come.

But then the thought comes to me that you don't always have to be talking. I have been learning that. Sometimes, just sitting and opening your spirit up to just listen--once in a while--is a good thing. Just let whatever the Lord wants to say or to have you experience, just happen to you. Just sit in His spirit. It can be very comforting when you allow yourself the freedom to do that without the guilt that's saying, oh, because I can't seem to pray, that there is something wrong with me or my walk. Not necessarily so.

Sometimes, He wants us to be like that little child that crawls up into their Father's lap, allowing the Father to wrap His big, warm arms around them, whispering comforting words in their ear and then just sitting together in a harmonizing spiritual quiet time. How blessful!

"'Then I will ask the Father to send you the Holy Spirit who will help you and always be with you. The Spirit will show you what is true. The people of this world cannot accept the Spirit, because they don't see or know him. But you know the Spirit, who is with you and will keep on living in you. I won't leave you like orphans. I will come back to you.'" John 14:16-18 CEV

Seeking

2011-04-28T15:56:00.000-07:00

"Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." Matthew 6:25-33 ESV

In today's world there is a lot to be anxious about. Natural disasters, the failing economy, crumbling political, and social structures, just to name a few, can turn the flame up on our stress levels.

Often when we are faced with the challenges that impact us, we look to our own skill set, the advice of others, experts, and so on. Jesus offers us the best way. The surest way. He offers us the Father's Kingdom. Through a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, we become children of God. Not only are our sins forgiven and we receive eternal life--but there is more! We inherit the Kingdom of God. We become recipients of God's power, protection, and provision.

Today when you are faced with a challenge--stop, think, and pray. Seek God's Kingdom. Nothing can overcome His power, provision, and protection in your life.

Perfect Planning

2011-04-26T17:25:00.000-07:00

"'9 This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.'” Joshua 1:9 NLT

Joshua had a great challenge--he was to replace Moses when Moses died and finish leading the Israelites into the promise land. What a ominous role that was! He had to accomplish something that a great leader, such as Moses couldn't even do.

It wasn't Moses' fault. It was the fault of the people. The people were ungrateful. They were wishy-washy. They loved God one moment, and then were seen worshiping golden idols the next. And Joshua was there and experienced all of that, first hand.

Now God is telling him not to be worried! Not to be afraid? Not to be discouraged? Truth be known, in the preceding two verses, God tells and encourages him in each verse not to be be those things.

Reflecting on your life, how would you feel? When you feel that the Lord is prompting you into a situation that you feel totally unqualified for, or not ready to face or something totally new, how do you feel? A little nervous. A little on-the-edge. Like wishing you could put your head in the sand like an ostrich and then it would all go away?

What you are feeling is totally normal. But don't give in! As with Joshua, God too is with you. Look at the last sentence. What does it say? "For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." He is with you--you are not doing this alone.

You see, each and every one of you have been created for a special purpose--the Lord's purpose--His perfect plan. And think about if you were too afraid to go through with what His perfect plan for you--how much worse you would feel in your spirit?

What if Joshua said to God, "Sorry, my God of Abraham, but I've seen what these people are made of. I've seen how they treat their leader. If Moses couldn't accomplish Your perfect plan--surely I can't. Thanks, but no thanks." Where would we be now? Probably still wandering.

So please, have an open spirit to your Heavenly Father. When He calls you into His perfect plan, He knows what He is doing. And the wonder of it is that He's not asking you to do it alone--No. He has promised you that He will be with you wherever you are.

"41 He walked away, about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, 42 'Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.' 43 Then an angel from heaven appeared and strengthened him." Luke 22:41-43 NLT

A Walk on the Beach

2011-04-19T14:21:00.000-07:00

I enjoy walks along the beach. It doesn't matter if the beach is on the ocean or a lake I enjoy walks along the shore. Peggy and I have had lots of great walks together on the shore.

Today I'm thinking about a walk that Peter and Jesus had together along the Sea of Galilee. It was after the Resurrection. On the night that Jesus was arrested and lead away, he told his disciples that they would all deny him. They all told him he was wrong, they would never leave him. Peter said that he above all the others would never deny Jesus. But he did.

"While Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came by. When she saw Peter warming himself, she looked closely at him.
“You also were with that Nazarene, Jesus,” she said.

But he denied it. “I don’t know or understand what you’re talking about,” he said, and went out into the entryway.

When the servant girl saw him there, she said again to those standing around, “This fellow is one of them.” Again he denied it.

After a little while, those standing near said to Peter, “Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.”

He began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don’t know this man you’re talking about.”

Immediately the rooster crowed the second time. Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows twice you will disown me three times.” And he broke down and wept." Mark 14:66-72 NIV

You might say, "Wow did he blow it." But the fact is we all have. None of us has never denied Jesus. Our thoughts deny him. Our actions. Our lack of love. We have all at one time or another been in Peter's sandals. We have felt the remorse of denying the Lord.

Let's look at Jesus response to Peter. It is after his resurrection. Jesus and the disciples have just shared a meal together. Picture Jesus walking along the shore with Peter. This is how it went.

" When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”

The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my sheep." John 21:15-17 NIV

Peter had denied the Lord three times. The Lord knew Peter's sorrow. He gave Peter an opportunity to repent. Three denials, and three affirmations. Jesus not only forgave Peter, he gave his life a sacred purpose.

Don't let your failures keep you from Jesus. He offers forgiveness and gives a sacred purpose to your life.

Do you need a walk on the beach?

The Gift of Brokeness

2011-04-15T15:01:00.000-07:00

"If God hadn't been there for me,
I never would have made it.
The minute I said, 'I'm slipping, I'm falling,'
your love, God, took hold and held me fast.
When I was upset and beside myself,
you calmed me down and cheered me up." Psalm 94:18-19 The Message

How many times have you been in that spot? The spot that David was in. Claiming and acknowledging that he would never would have made it without his Heavenly Father. That he couldn't do it on his own.

That is where He wants us. As we go into this Holy Week, it is a sobering, humbling yet exhilarating feeling that our Jesus did this for us. Because of what He did that week, ending up on Easter Sunday, we can forever say "If God hadn't been there for me, I never would have made it..."

This may sound like a strange thing to say, but I do pray that you get to that place--that place that you need to call out to Him, as a child to a Father--I need you. I can't do it on my own. I am lost without you.

Please, don't misunderstand me, I'm not wishing you evil--I'm praying you to new life. A life that once you can truly realize that you cannot do it on your own, that you need His strength. That in order to be your best, you need to be broken so that you truly do experience His saving grace, His awesome power, His everlasting love--for you, yes, you. Once that happens, you will be able to truly appreciate what He did for you and me on Calvary's Hill. Do you understand?

"1 Sing a new song to the Lord!
Let the whole earth sing to the Lord!
2 Sing to the Lord; praise his name.
Each day proclaim the good news that he saves." Psalm 96:1-2 NLT

The Humble King

2011-04-13T01:52:00.000-07:00

"Tell the people of Israel,
‘Look, your King is coming to you.
He is humble, riding on a donkey—
riding on a donkey’s colt.’” Matt 21:5 NLT

Jesus humbly rides into our lives. He is unpretentious, not proud or haughty. He even came into the world in a humble way. Born in a manger. A humble carpenter. Jesus knocks at the door of our heart waiting to be invited in. Waiting for us to receive the gift of everlasting life.

In Jesus' day, kings would either ride into battle on a war horse or, in times of peace, on a donkey or mule. I think that we can forget that while Jesus comes as the humble servant, he will return on a war horse. He will reward those that accept him as Lord and Savior, and judge those that reject him. We have brought Jesus down to our level. We have reduced him to the Jesus of our imagination. Yet, he cannot be brought down or reduced. He is the captain of the army of heaven. He is the one that makes demons tremble. When his friend John, saw Jesus in heaven, John fainted with fear. Jesus is not safe, but he is good. Just because he rides a donkey doesn't change his identity as King of all creation.

Jesus is not some toothless old grandpa that sits in a corner of the house at the family reunion, only to be tolerated. He is not our genie in the lamp. He is God Almighty.

Jesus rides into our lives humbly offering salvation, forgiveness, strength, and hope to those that receive him. He will return on a war horse to bring wrath and judgment to the wicked.

Have you received the humble King? How do you feel about his return?

The 2 Corinthians 5:17 Child

2011-04-12T10:13:00.000-07:00

"17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." 2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV

As I was driving to the coast yesterday, the Lord brought this verse to mind and so I pondered it between Joey chattering away in the backseat and Peter in the front blasting Toby Mac.

Just as you may have, I have heard this verse many times. In fact, it happens to be our church's life verse. But I feel that I have become blase about what the words really are saying.

When you first look at these words, you can say, yes, of course, I know when you give your life to God, you are a new person in Him--that He forgives your sins. That you are white as snow. That is what is promised by Him. But when I was driving yesterday, the thought was brought to mind, is that it? Is that verse a one shot deal? Is that the only time that you are new in Him? The only time that your old sins are gone, and that you are a new person?

I have a thought. No. At least for me. My God is constantly changing, growing and challenging me. And I would hope that each time that I have to rededicate myself and my life to Him, crying for forgiveness, I am a 2 Corinthians 5:17 child.

How about you? Do you need to know that whenever you are shown by the Holy Spirit that you need to be pruned for the next level in your walk with your Heavenly Father, that any of the sins that you need to confess, will be forgiven and you are a new creation? That you haven't played your one ace card--get out of jail free card? That as long as your are truly striving to be in the Holy Spirit, that your Heavenly Father will continue to bring that true feeling of total forgiveness and oneness with Him, back.

So, please, take this verse and really ponder on it. During this time of Passion Week and Easter, this is a great verse to bring into your daily life. What Jesus did on Calvary that Good Friday, is what this verse is all about.

Something Great to Know

2011-04-11T12:22:00.000-07:00

"As Jesus and the disciples approached Jerusalem, they came to the town of Bethphage on the Mount of Olives. Jesus sent two of them on ahead. 2 'Go into the village over there,' he said. 'As soon as you enter it, you will see a donkey tied there, with its colt beside it. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone asks what you are doing, just say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will immediately let you take them.'” Matthew 21:1-3 NLT

I'm preparing for the upcoming Passion Week before Easter. Matthew 21 gives us the account of Jesus riding into Jerusalem and entering what has become known as Passion Week. What struck me right off the bat when I look at this passage, is the sovereignty of God. Jesus knew right where to tell the disciples to go to find the donkey and her colt. He gave them His authority to use the donkey.

I think that it is great to know that Jesus is in control and all knowing. The Bible says that there is no place we can go from His knowing. He sets the dates and places of our lives. He knows the story of our lives. He is all powerful and in control. Even this seemingly out of control world we live in is subject to Him.

I find in encouraging to know that Jesus never shows up late. He's not surprised. He's not caught off guard. The One who knows and loves you and I more than we know is in control. He is sovereign. I don't have to control or know everything, He does and that is more than good enough. I guess I just need to submit to His control, His will, and His sovereignty.

Our church in Mariposa is growing. Somebody asked me, "What are we going to do?" "I don't know," I replied. I like to be in control. I like to have all of the answers. But there is something really great in knowing that I don't have it all together. But Jesus does. He knows. He'll reveal the what and the how, when He's ready. He even gives the strength to do His will.

I think that's something great to know. What about you?

Strength in Weakness

2011-04-07T12:09:00.001-07:00

"Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Cor 12:8-10 NIV

It's wonderful when God answers prayer the way we want Him to. We rejoice, share the praise, and feel close to Him. But what about when God doesn't do things the way we want? What about when we go through times of trial and suffering?

In tough times we can feel rejected, punished, lonely, and hopeless. Satan comes along and takes advantage of our situation and spews lies to us that God isn't there, or He isn't real, or He has abandoned us. Jesus said knowing the truth has set us free. The truth is that this life is tough. This side of heaven we live in a broken world. But God does love us. He is for us, even when it doesn't seem so.

Paul faced more challenges than most of us ever will. He was rejected, stoned and left for dead, shipwrecked, beaten, and whipped, abandoned, and left to die alone. Yet, he knew God loved him and would be strong on his behalf. Some of the most mature people I know in the faith are those that are in, or have gone through, hardship. The person fighting cancer, the person with depression, the person that has suffered much loss. In their greatest weakness, God's power comes through. His grace is more than sufficient.

Jesus told us that we would face troubles in this fallen world. He also said to take heart because He has overcome this world. We are overcomers in Him.

When we come to the end of our strength, we are at the beginning of Christ's power!

True Freedom

2011-04-06T10:07:00.000-07:00

"Jesus said, 'I tell you most solemnly that anyone who chooses a life of sin is trapped in a dead-end life and is, in fact, a slave. A slave is a transient, who can't come and go at will. The Son, though, has an established position, the run of the house. So if the Son sets you free, you are free through and through.'"John 8:34-36 The Message

Pastor Eric did this as his main verses for last Sunday and it was so awesome! He had used the NIV version which is a lot shorter and simpler, "So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." and that is the main part of the verse that I've been mediating on--if you have been set free, you are free indeed. WOW!

Free from what? Free from addictions? Yes! Free from feelings of hatred and judgement? Yes! Free from thinking that you are not worthy, not acceptable to your Heavenly Father? Yes!

Now, does this mean that you will be free from trials? No. Free from backsliding? No. Free from having any struggles? No. But the difference is that you will NOT be alone. If you truly give yourself and your life to our Heavenly father, He will be there to guide, comfort and sustain. You are NOT a slave to the past or to the future. You are free, free indeed!

The Message version of these verses seem, at least to me, to expound a little more so that I can apply it better to my life. It is wonderful to be "free, through and through." What does that tell you? That you are only 25% free? 50%? 99%? No! You are 100%! Completely!

So, if you have not given yourself 100% to the Lord, why not today? What do you have to lose? Imagine losing the feeling of being chained to a life of slavery and experiencing the cool refreshing wind of freedom blowing through your life. Your Father is waiting--run to Him!

"11 This is a trustworthy saying:

If we die with him,
we will also live with him.
12 If we endure hardship,
we will reign with him.
If we deny him,
he will deny us.
13 If we are unfaithful,
he remains faithful,
for he cannot deny who he is." 2 Timothy 2:11-13 NLT

Life Lesson

2011-03-24T08:12:00.000-07:00

"'You shall be My people,
And I will be your God.'" Jeremiah 30:22 NASV

Do you, in your walk, ever go through an 'identity crisis'? Knowing what you should know but all of a sudden, you are realizing that you're acting like you haven't even accepted Christ's unconditional love for you? Honestly, that is where I was yesterday and I truly don't know how or why I got there. But with help of a wise friend, I am at least at peace with myself--for the moment.

You see, I was embarrassed that I was where I was yesterday. Even though my friend was kind, I was embarrassed that they saw that part of me. I was embarrassed because I was afraid that I would be judged, not only by them, but by my Heavenly Father-- that I wasn't truly a child of God. That, even though I know in my heart that I am not perfect, that I was exposing to them to that very fact. That there was more rain going on inside me than outside.

Then my Heavenly Father gave me this verse this morning. Knowing that I needed reassurance of our relationship. What a awesome Father we have! He cares enough for me, a simple daughter with a big desire to become the 'perfect' daughter He deserves. And the realization came that, to my Father, I am already 'perfect' enough for Him. Because, as you already know, none of us in ourselves is perfect. We will never be perfect. But our God knows that and loves us anyway. To Him, in order to have a relationship with Him, He doesn't require perfection. He only requires an opening, willing heart to serve Him to the best of our ability.

So, why am I sharing all of this with you? So that to encourage you when you are in this similar situation, I hope that you remember. I hope that you remember that you are covered with your Father's grace, so perfection is not required. I hope that you remember that it is so very important to be honest with your feeling and share them with Him. And last, but not least, please remember that it is so very important to surround yourself with wise Godly friends that are grounded in the Lord--and listen to them when they speak.

Our life walk is full of rocks and rainbows, thorns and wildflowers, crocodile tears and beaming smiles of joy. And through it all, your Heavenly Father is walking beside you holding your hand. This moment is beautiful isn't?

Faithfulness in Good Times & Bad

2011-03-16T00:00:00.000-07:00

"His wife said, 'Still holding on to your precious integrity, are you? Curse God and be done with it!'

He told her, 'You're talking like an empty-headed fool. We take the good days from God—why not also the bad days?'

Not once through all this did Job sin. He said nothing against God." Job 2:9-10 (The Message)

With all this sadness that is happening in the world lately, do you wonder, like some, how can a God that is so loving, allow this to happen? The answer is simple—nobody knows yet. Anybody who claims to know is only offering a best guess. When I get to Heaven that is one of the first questions I will ask God.

I wonder all the time about this because I see so many victims of suffering, grief and abuse. Just watch the news, read your local newspaper, listen to the radio. Some even say that it is because these people have "sinned". That they are getting their just rewards. But who are we to make that judgment? Only our Heavenly Father can make such a judgment.

Why did God let His own Son, Jesus, to suffer enormous physical, emotional and spiritual pain, even including death on the cross? It wasn't because of any sin Jesus committed, but was to pay for the sins of the world. God also allowed the Apostle Paul to be shipwrecked a couple times, stoned almost to death a few times, to go hungry sometimes, and to die in prison. God allowed an innocent Job to suffer horrible skin diseases, almost to his death, and suffer the death of his children, livestock and the loss of all his barns, which represented all his wealth.

We see every day how sin in people's lives brings all sorts of suffering, not only to them, but also to the innocent people around them. Just because sin often brings suffering, it would be foolish for us to assume that all suffering is the result of sin because of the examples of Jesus, Paul, Job and others in the Bible who suffered horribly in spite of being innocent.

I can only encourage you to accept not knowing why; trust that there must be some reason why God allows it and even predicts that it will get worse and worse until He comes back to earth Himself to bring everlasting peace.

What is the best thing you can do? Pray. Pray for the Lord's love, peace and wisdom to fill these people of Japan and anywhere else that there is turmoil. This may sound harsh, but you know that old saying, "it was the best of times, it was the worst of times...." Well, sometimes, it takes the worst of times to bring people that would otherwise be too busy or too proud or too self sufficient, to their knees, crying out to a Heavenly Father that has been longing to have them come running into His loving arms, calling "Abba, Abba."

The Honesty Circle

2011-03-14T20:31:00.000-07:00

“O God my rock,” I cry,
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I wander around in grief,
oppressed by my enemies?” Psalm 42:9 NLT

Can you relate to David's cry to His God? A cry that came from the depths of his soul. A cry that could very well be yours. Or do you feel--like so many of us--that it is wrong to be so brutefully honest with your Father? That we are not to tell Him when we feel that He has forgotten us. That we are scared or confused or feel abandoned.

David, a man after God's own heart, felt these feeling. And he loved and trusted his Heavenly Father enough to be truthful with Him. God knows we have these feelings. He understands. He wants to hear them. It's through experiencing those feeling, telling Him about them and seeing His response--this is what builds trust in your relationship.

God never said that your walk with Him would always be full of roses and butterflies. What He did promise is that He would always be with you--that you would never be alone. All He wants is honesty. Honesty with the good feelings and the bad. As long as you are respectful with the bad, you are OK.

As you may have experienced, it is through these testing times that your relationship with your Heavenly Father grows the strongest. Just don't try to fake Him out by saying everything is OK when it isn't and don't guilt yourself into telling yourself that you can't be honest with your feelings to Him because He will punish you more. Your Heavenly Father is NOT that kind of father.

So, please, be honest. Tell your Heavenly Father everything that you are feeling--don't you realize He knows it anyway? If He knows every hair on your head and was there when you were knitted in your mother's womb--believe me--He knows.

Go ahead, trust Him. Tell Him. And then, also very important--stop and listen. Truly listen for the comfort, wisdom and answers that He will share with your spirit to share with you. They will come. And praise Him for them. Now the circle is complete.

Are You Limiting God?

2011-03-08T13:59:00.000-08:00

"When Elisha was in his last illness, King Jehoash of Israel visited him and wept over him. “My father! My father! I see the chariots and charioteers of Israel!” he cried.
Elisha told him, “Get a bow and some arrows.” And the king did as he was told. Elisha told him, “Put your hand on the bow,” and Elisha laid his own hands on the king’s hands.

Then he commanded, “Open that eastern window,” and he opened it. Then he said, “Shoot!” So he shot an arrow. Elisha proclaimed, “This is the Lord’s arrow, an arrow of victory over Aram, for you will completely conquer the Arameans at Aphek.”

Then he said, “Now pick up the other arrows and strike them against the ground.” So the king picked them up and struck the ground three times. But the man of God was angry with him. “You should have struck the ground five or six times!” he exclaimed. “Then you would have beaten Aram until it was entirely destroyed. Now you will be victorious only three times.” 2 Kings 13:14-19 NLT

Elisha the prophet was about to die. The king of Israel came to him in need. The Arameans had taken cities from Israel. Elisha tells the king that the Lord would give him victory and restore the cities to Israel. Then he told the king as an act of faith, to strike the ground, symbolic of the victory the Lord would give him. The king strikes the ground three times. Pretty good right? Wrong. The prophet is angry with the king's lack of trust in God.

I wonder how many times we act like the the king. We say we believe in Jesus, but we set limits on His power. Jesus was amazed at the people's lack of faith in one of the cities He was in. Scripture says He could only heal a few people. We put limits on God. We doubt, fear, pursue common sense, and other things. We limit our receiving and experiencing all that God wants to bless us with.

What limits are you putting on Christ? Let me give you some pastoral advice; "Knock it off!" He is the one that can do immeasurably more than we can ever hope or imagine.

Dear Christian Worker

2011-03-03T13:24:00.001-08:00

"There he came to a cave, where he spent the night.

But the Lord said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

Elijah replied, “I have zealously served the Lord God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.”

“Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.

And a voice said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

He replied again, “I have zealously served the Lord God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.”

Then the Lord told him, “Go back the same way you came, and travel to the wilderness of Damascus...Yet I will preserve 7,000 others in Israel who have never bowed down to Baal or kissed him!” 1 Kings 19:9-15, 18 NLT

Dear Christian, Have you ever felt like Elijah? You have faithfully served the Lord. You have spent your life for His kingdom. Yet at the end of the day you ask yourself; "Has it been worth it?" "What have I accomplished?" You are ready to hang it up, throw in the towel.

You are hiding in a cave waiting to die. Then the voice of God speaks to you. Not in the business of your life but in the still desperation. You hear Him ask you twice; "What are you doing here?" You are honest and respond; "Lord I don't know. What am I doing here? I have faced challenges and opposition for you. I am faithfully serving you. And for what? It just doesn't seem to matter." Then the Spirit of God whispers to you; "Go back the way you came. Just like the 7,000 that didn't worship the false God Baal, I have preserved a remnant. Go back."

Dear ones, don't let the discouragements of life and the opposition of Satan cause you to throw in the towel. The end is coming. There will be a final judgment. Souls will be ushered into the presence of God or banished into eternal hell. But until that time, God is reaching out to them. His will is that none perish. He uses you and I to share the Good News.

Don't give up. Stand firm. Go back.

Love,

Eric

Over Trained?

2011-03-02T07:40:00.000-08:00

“Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.” 1 Tim 4:8

In the above passage Paul exhorts Timothy to train to be godly. In others words, imitate Christ, be devoted to Christ, follow Christ. In Timothy's ancient culture, just like today, staying physically fit was popular for some. Even the ancients had gyms.

Training to be godly is good. But I think that in our culture it presents a problem. We live in a very self focused culture. We have so many Christian resources. Books, study guides, radio, television, Internet, seminars, conferences, retreats, and other programs abound. We train to kick addictions, be better stewards, better parents, better spouses, and on and on. Even our worship can be very self centered. training in godliness becomes about "me."

The problem is, that much of our training in godliness is very self centered and self focused. That's really not godliness. Jesus was self sacrificing, not self centred. Many of us are like the boxer that is always in training, but never steps into the ring. We are over trained and over fed. We roll out of the worship service, give a spiritual burp, and go our own ways.

Training in godliness must not stop short by being so self focused. Jesus said to "GO" into all the world and make Christ followers. There are billions of people in the world that do not know Jesus as Lord and Savior. If we really believe in heaven and hell, we must do something!

Jesus gave us the Great Commission to Go, and the Great Commandment to LOVE. They go hand in hand.

What are you training for?

The Power of a Whisper

2011-02-28T07:39:00.000-08:00

“'Go out and stand before me on the mountain,' the Lord told him.

And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. was not in the earthquake." 1 Kings 19:11-13 NLT

We serve such a powerful God don't we? With that in mind, we tend to think that that is all He is about, power, strength, "a bull in a china shop" concept. Oh, at times He can be, but He is also so much more. He has such power that at times--He needs to only whisper-- to be His most powerful.

He only has to whisper life into something, and it is alive. We yearn for love, He whispers into our hearts and we feel it. We cry for strength, He whispers it to us. We beg for wisdom and help, He whispers it to our minds. We humbly whisper our sins to Him and ask Him to come into our lives and He whispers into our spirit that He's already there and we're forgiven.

So, when there are times that you feel that you have to be this big "bully", that you have to go around and make a lot of noise so that people think that you are this big, strong whatever you want people to think that you are big and strong about--just remember--it's the still, quiet voice that has more strength than you can measure. That gentleness has a strength all of it's own.

So while there is a place for boldness and bravado, there is also a time for gentleness and whispering. Pray to God today for the wisdom to have both and to know when and how to best use it to further His Kingdom and to be a faithful servant to Him--to represent Him, your Father--in the best light possible.

"'What I tell you now in the darkness, shout abroad when daybreak comes. What I whisper in your ear, shout from the housetops for all to hear!'" Matthew 10:27 NLT

"'Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.'" Matthew 11:29

Living in Exile

2011-02-23T08:29:00.000-08:00

¹⁰ “‘So do not be afraid, Jacob my servant;
do not be dismayed, Israel,’
declares the LORD.
‘I will surely save you out of a distant place,
your descendants from the land of their exile.
Jacob will again have peace and security,
and no one will make him afraid.
¹¹ I am with you and will save you,’
declares the LORD." Jeremiah 30:10-11 NIV

Do you ever feel afraid? Isolated? It's easy to get to that place. God understands that.

God gave me these verses today to give to a friend that feels that she is living in exile. No, she's not in a foreign land, in fact, she and her family are living in one of the most beautiful places God has blessed the world with. But you see, to her, it is exile.

We all have our own experiences of exile. That is one of the amazing things that I get so blessed by whenever I read the Bible. That God, even in the Old Testament, can have a prophet, write down His words that meant something to the people of that time, and it can still mean something to you, to me--all these years and worlds away. Isn't that just mind-boggling awesome?!

God wanted my friend to have these verses, I think, for the purpose of giving her hope by letting her know that He has her where He needs her now, and--since she is being a faithful servant--He will bring her back to where she truly feels more involved. And the same hope goes for you during your exile--does this make sense?

Our God is an awesome God. He may take us out of our comfort zone, but He never leaves us alone. If we listen, truly listen, He will always leave us with words of comfort and wisdom. He will always protect us and keep us safe.

Are you experiencing your own exile? Your own feeling of isolation? Understand, it doesn't have to be a physical place, it could be emotional or spiritual. Your God wants to have you share those feelings with Him. He is there beside you, always.

“‘So you will be my people,
and I will be your God.’” Jeremiah 30:22 NIV

The Ultimate Love Story

2011-02-14T10:16:00.000-08:00

"Watch what God does, and then you do it, like children who learn proper behavior from their parents. Mostly what God does is love you. Keep company with Him and learn a life of love. Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn't love in order to get something from us, but to give everything of Himself to us. Love like that." Ephesian 5:1-2 The Message

Did you know that every day with the Lord is Valentine's Day?! Yes, where we as humans may or may not show our love to the ones in our lives that we have been blessed with, God--every single day--shows His unconditional love to us, to you.

How? Just the fact that you woke up is a form of love from Him. The rainbows, the flowers, the sunrises, the sunsets--our list could go on. If you ever doubt His love, the best place to be reaffirmed is by these two places--1.) on your knees praying to Him--talking to Him, and 2.) by reading His Holy Bible. Did you ever look upon the Bible as an on going love story between you and your heavenly Father? Well it is. It is the greatest love story ever written. And it was written just for you.

We were up at Old Sacramento last Saturday and there was a t-shirt vendor on one of the streets. Of course there were a lot of secular t-shirts, funny t-shirts and then there was this one. I know that I have seen this saying before--not on a t-shirt--but it always gets a lump in my throat when I read it. This is what it said; One day I asked Jesus, "How much do you love me?" He opened His arms and said, "This much." and died on the cross.

What you and your Heavenly Father have is a true everlasting love. You don't have to earn it. You won't lose it if you make a mistake. Please remember that when you feel that no one loves you or if you are sad that you don't have a significant other on this day of "Love". Whether you have a earthly love or not, you will ALWAYS have a love that is greater than anything--your Heavenly Father's. It's the same yesterday, today and all the tomorrows.

"By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us..." 1 John 3:16 NKJV

"And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow--not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below--indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:38-39 NLT

Measuring Up

2011-02-10T11:23:00.001-08:00

"As the Scriptures say,

“No one is righteous—
not even one...

But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.

For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood.

He declares sinners to be right in his sight when they believe in Jesus."
Romans 3:10,21-25,26 NLT

I can't tell you how often I hear people say that they wonder if they deserve God's love, acceptance, and forgiveness. "Do I measure up?" I have asked this before. The answer is a simple; "yes" and "no."

On our own merits we never will measure up to the standard of righteousness that God requires. We spend a lot of time and energy doing all sorts of things to make us acceptable to God, and forget grace. This either leads to self-righteousness and false security, or a sense of failure and hopelessness. On our own we are without hope.

The good news is that Christ Jesus met God's standard for righteousness and paid the penalty for our sins. He made us right with God. When we believe the good news, repent of our sins, and confess Christ as our Lord and Savior, we receive the grace of God. This grace brings us forgiveness and salvation. Strength for today and hope for tomorrow.

The challenge for many of us is that we trust in God's saving grace, but forget about His sustaining grace. We must constantly walk in the grace of God, avoiding self dependence and self condemnation.

"Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Philippians 1:6 NIV

A Shoe Obession?

2011-02-09T07:49:00.000-08:00

"Don't be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God." 1 Peter 3:3-4 NLT

I was getting breakfast ready yesterday and I overheard one of the "Today" show hosts announce that after the commercial, they were going to be talking to an expert that would explain why women have such an obsession with shoes. With shoes! That was the next hot topic.

I caught myself thinking, how sad. Have we, as a society come to this? Maybe I'm just different. Oh, I like a good pair of shoes, but ask anyone that knows me, I spend half my time barefooted. Shoes are not my thing.

But what has been my thing the past year or so, is this burning desire to be a woman that isn't so concern with her outward appearance, but with her inward appearance. I am being genuine here. I know what I look like on the outside. To be honest, I truly don't like to look at myself in the mirror. I have an imagine in my head of what I look like and then I catch myself in the mirror and I cringe.

But the Lord is showing me, slowly, that it's the inside that matters most to Him. (And I say slowly not because my God is slow in showing me, but I am slow in able to accept this idea.) To Him, it's your spirit that He looks at. It's the condition of your spirit that He wants you to work on.

Please don't get me wrong--we need to honor God with taking care of our full bodies--inside and out. But we are not all going to be a size 6, with no fat cells and a perfect face. We are what we are. We are God's child and even if--to the world--we are not what is considered "beautiful"--to Him, we are the most beautiful creature in the world.

Wouldn't it be lovely to have had them say that we come back from the commercial they would have an expert talk about why we as a society are obessed with the book of Proverbs, or with tithing or with serving in our spiritual gifts?

To me, the beauty of this verse is that it put into words what the Lord has been revealing in my spirit and even though it may seem that I am talking a lot about me this morning, I got a sense that I needed to share this verse with you. Because man or woman, we all have the same challenge to become the best that we should be, to our Father. We all need to be reminded of the true beauty and of what really matters in the long run. When we die, our spirit is the beautiful thing that is going to go up to our Father's home, not whatever our body happens to look like.

You are the top jewel in your Father's crown--shine with that fact and humbly accept His unconditional love and acceptance of you. All you need to do is be in constant prayer for His guidance, continually be in His word and surround yourself with other beautifully grounded Christians.

Has anyone told you lately that you are beautiful? Well, you are!

What a Deal!

2011-02-07T11:17:00.000-08:00

"Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him." Philippians 2:12,13 NLT

The Good News is Great News. The fact that even though we were born into sin, God would lay down His life for us. He not only pronounced the sentence, He paid the penalty. When we receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, God wipes the slate clean and gives us eternal life. But, we still have to work out our salvation, not for it, but because of it.

Working out our salvation can be very difficult. Our sinful nature, our culture, life's hardships, and our enemy Satan, all fight against us. Sometimes it can seen overwhelming. But there is more good news. No, it's great news! God is working in you. He gives you the desire and the power to please Him and do His will.

Self dependence leaves us short. Dependence on God gives us success. I exchange my self reliance for God reliance, and get the victory. What a deal!

To Be or Not to Be?

2011-02-02T00:00:00.000-08:00

"But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit." Titus 3:4-5 NIV

Despite what the world says, we cannot ever earn God's love or forgiveness. You may have been told that in order to get that promotion, or to get a better spot on the baseball team, to make friends, to become popular in school--you need to "do" things. If you "do" enough, you can earn favor.

But you see, with your Heavenly Father, you don't need to do or earn. You just have to be. You need to be open to see that you even need to have a relationship with your Heavenly Father. You need to be open to admitting that you aren't perfect. You need to be OK with the fact, that even though you aren't perfect, God loves and yearns to have a relationship with you. You need to be able to ask for forgiveness and to truly accept His mercy, love & forgiveness.

His grace is enough. His mercy, forgiveness & love is what makes you perfect--don't you see that? Please don't let your pride, self-esteem, your preconceived notions--keep you from the love of a lifetime. He wants to bring you close and hug you with a love that is pure and perfect--it's there for the asking--will you ask?

"O Lord, I give my life to you. I trust in you, my God!" Psalm 25 1-2 NLT

Imitating Life

2011-01-31T19:44:00.000-08:00

"We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised." Hebrews 6:32 NIV

When you were a child, did you ever want to imitate someone? Someone you truly admired? Maybe it was a movie star. Or maybe a family member. Maybe someone in the history books.

We have a young son who wants to do everything that his older brother does. They are two and a half years a part. Just enough time to know that the older brother gets to do some cooler things than he does. It really bothers Peter that Joey always wants to do or be what he wants to be. Being the mom, I try to smooth it over by making the statement that it should be a honor that someone loves you enough to want to be like you. Doesn't help Peter's feelings of frustration about being an individual. And then of course I have to add the fact that since his little brother looks up to him, it is his responsibility to be a good example.

But it is true. If you want to imitate someone, make sure that it is someone worthy to be imitated. That is why it is important who you hang out with. That is why it is important that you have very strong and grounded Christians as accountability partners. Especially for new Christians just beginning on their journey.

Did Jesus just hang out with anyone? No, He picked His close friends/followers, very carefully. He--of course--was imitating His Heavenly Father. We--in turn--should be striving to imitate our brother--Jesus Christ. How? By getting into the Word. By hanging out with people that are grounded into the Word. And by praying. Praying for insight to becoming friends with people that your Heavenly Father wants you to.

You see, there can be a tendency to hang out with people that are easier to imitate--people that don't have such a strong definition of what is Biblically wrong or right. You may have found out by now that it tends to be easier that way--it's the lazy way.

Imitating those who have great faith and patience--now there is your prize! That is where the major inheritance is. Jesus never said that going the right way, would be the easy way. What He did promise is that the inheritance received through faith and patience, far out weighs it's value than all the gold of Easy Street.

Imitating the shallow living of Easy Street or the life changing living of the Road of Hard Knocks? What would you chose?

"Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God." 3 John 1:11 NIV

Pure and Simple

2011-01-24T19:59:00.000-08:00

"Now this is what the LORD says to the house of Israel;
Seek Me and live!'" Amos 5:4 NIV

Four words. Four simple, POWERFUL words--'Seek Me and live!' We make it so complicated. We take a simple situation and mess it all up with unnecessary acts of works, preconceived notions of what God does and doesn't want, making up and living phony lives.

What does God tells us through His word? Does any of the above things matter? Does any of the above things add one day to your life? Does any of the above things draw you closer to Him and His plan for your life? No!

What God tells us through His word is that all you have to do is seek Him and live. So you think that you need to search for Him like a needle in a haystack? That He enjoys a good game of Hide'n Seek? That He tries whatever He can to make Himself and His way of life hard for you to find? Of course not! He has made it as simple as He can--you just have to read. You need to be active daily in His Holy Word--the Bible--to find out what He has desired for you. Imprint the messages onto and into your heart.

In case you haven't notice, our God is a pretty straight forward kind of God. He doesn't make up things, He doesn't play games. He doesn't require anything from us that He doesn't require from Himself. "Seek Me and live!" It's that pure and simple.

"And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." Joel 2:32 NIV

Abandonment

2011-01-21T20:51:00.000-08:00

"At three o'clock, Jesus groaned out of the depths, crying loudly, 'Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthan?' which means, 'My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?'" Mark 15:34 The Message

Have you ever experienced that? The feeling that your God has abandoned you? That you and He are millions of miles apart? That for some reason, He has turned His back and deserted you?

I think we have all experienced those times. While they are valid personally to us, in reality to God, they are not. The reason that they are not, is because your Heavenly Father would not ever abandon you. He may have you go through some trials to help you grow in your walk--to teach you whatever the life lesson is that you need to learn--but He would NOT ever leave you.

Sometimes too, we can cause our own separation, our own sense of abandonment. How? By having unconfessed sin in our lives. Or by living a life that you spiritually know is wrong, but you somehow justify it. While on the surface, your life seems OK with it, deep under the surface, your spirit is dying. It's suffocating. The life is slowly being drained from it. A spiritual relationship with your Heavenly Father cannot survive when you on purpose, live a lie.

When did Jesus cry out the above passage? He did it as He hung on the cross and all of a sudden, the weight of all our sins settled on Him. Not so much physically, but spiritually. At that moment, a Son who was and always had been--at one with His Father, suddenly was torn apart. It wasn't His sin. No it was ours--yours.

Knowing that, how can anyone say that as long as this sin isn't hurting someone, it's not a sin? Your sin killed someone--not only your Lord and Savior--but it is killing you spiritually.

Please know sometimes that separation, abandoned, ignored feeling comes upon you for all sorts of different reasons. But never blame your Father. You need to pray about what He wants you to do. Pray that He shows you what is the matter and how to resolve it. And then do it!

You are so valuable to your Heavenly Father--His family would not be complete without you.

"As you come to Him, the living Stone--rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to Him--you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house..." 1 Peter 2:4-5 NIV

Mountains and Muscles

2011-01-17T21:20:00.000-08:00

"I will lift up my eyes to the mountains;
from where shall my help come?
My help comes from the LORD,
Who made heaven and earth." Psalm 121:1-2 NASB

When you think of mountains, what do you think of? Do you think of tiny little lumps of dirt? Do you think of a pile of rocks, dirt and sticks that you can just step on? No! Of course not. Mountains are huge! They are undisturbable. It takes the mighty hand of God--through nature-- to shake, flatten or move a mountain.

When David wrote this Psalm, he was able to look out his window and see Mount Zion. It was the strongest, biggest mountain around his world--and he was comparing the power of his LORD to those of these mountains. In this comparison, his LORD was the winner.

Were do you look for help? Do you turn to the strongest thing in your life only to find it not strong enough to help you in your time of trouble? Things of this world will NEVER be strong enough to comfort and help you. But the LORD your God isn't of this world. Oh, He is in it. He has to be. But He is not of it. So He can rise above the things that would drain you of your strength. Bad behavior, doubt, habits, hurts and hangups. None of those affect Him. The only way that they affect Him is when they affect you, His beloved child.

During times of trouble, if you can remember this little verse, it will give you such great peace. It may be only a couple of lines, but the strength in it's words can overcome many a mountain.

Your God is ALWAYS there for you. All you have to do is respectfully ask Him. He will be there. You can either lift your eyes up to the sky or lower them to the ground--it doesn't matter to Him. All that matters to Him is that you ask. That you turn your eyes, heart and spirit to Him, daily. During good times and bad. Because you know, you don't just need strength during troubling times, but also good times. Understand that? We need God in all things, during all things.

Stop and honestly ask yourself where you seek your strength. If the answer isn't the Lord, fix it! How? By prayer. Prayer is the fix-it all band aid. And being in His word--the Bible. You pull those two things into your life, and you will see mountains of despair disappear and mountains of Spiritual growth grow from seeds to the tallest mountain in the world!

Peace Exchange

2011-01-12T21:38:00.000-08:00

"You will keep in perfect peace
him whose mind is steadfast,
because he trusts in you." Isaiah 26:3 NIV

Steadfast. I looked up the word 'steadfast' in the Noah Webster's Dictionary and this is what it says; (a). Not fickle or wavering; constant; firm; resolute; unswerving; steady. Wow! That is a pretty tall order. Do you find it hard to be steadfast? What is in your life that you can claim that you are steadfast about?

What would you do to have perfect peace in your life? Isn't that what we all yearn for? Perfect peace? I know I do. Peace that isn't based on what we do or what others do to us or how they treat us. Peace not based on what we have or don't have. Peace not based on who we are or aren't. Peace not based on where we are or our surroundings.

How do we obtain this perfect peace? By keeping your mind steadfast--not fickle or wavering; constant; firm; resolute; unswerving; steady--on Jesus' words and purpose. We make it too hard. We get caught up in the world's definition of how to obtain peace and we miss the boat entirely. The world's way keeps us from peace. It steals it away--like a thief in the night--with no apology.

Jesus' way is straight and true. You keep your focus, spirit and heart pointed in the right direction and just open yourself up to what the Lord wants to give you. It's that simple. The only hard thing that you have to overcome by doing it Jesus' way, is the habit of feeling that you have to 'do' more. Stop it! Break the cycle!

All Jesus wants is to give you this gift that He has paid a mighty price for--His very life. What is the exchange rate? Pretty cheap. You give Him your trust and He gives you His peace. Simple. Sweet. Complete.

Can you do it? Will you do it? The choice is up to you. What do you have to lose?

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives." John 14:27 NIV

Eye Opener

2011-01-10T18:36:00.000-08:00

"Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes wide in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light. If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar. If you pull the blinds on your windows, what a dark life you will have!" Matthew 6:22-23 The Message

This old line for your body, "You are what you eat"--can be the same for your soul--"You are what your eyes see." Isn't that true? If you watch smutty movies or read smutty magazines or books or visit smutty websites, where does your thoughts go? To smut. If you watch movies or read books that are full of laughter and has a good underlying moral message how do you feel inside? Uplifted and encouraged.

God gave us the gift of sight for one purpose and one purpose only--to worship and honor Him with. That is why we should stop and think before we look at somethings. Before we look, we should be thinking, "Now, how is this building my relationship with my Lord? Is it affirming it? Helping it to strengthen?" If the answer is no, then you should put it away. Far away and never to be visited again.

Because you see, what goes in through your eyes, goes straight into your mind and soul--and stays there. Forever. You can't erase it. You can't make it go away. It's just there. And the devil can--and usually will--use it to start building a wall between your Father and yourself. He will use it to create a brick of shame, a brick of guilt, of failure, of embarrassment--these bricks could go on. Don't let him!

Your eyes are such an asset to your wholeness of spirit. They are a treasure to cherish. Do so. Keep your eyes clean and wide open and hungry, gleaning all the wonder your Heavenly Father has created for you and words of wisdom that His Book has for you.

As you pray for protection, add your eyes. Your body isn't whole without them.

"In this way we are like the various parts of a human body. Each part gets its meaning from the body as a whole, not the other way around." Romans 12:4 The Message

Freedom Reigns

2011-01-07T00:00:00.000-08:00

"Yes, even today when they read Moses' writings, their hearts are covered with that veil, and they do not understand.

But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord--who is the Spirit--makes us more and more like Him as we're changed into His glorious image." 2 Corinthians 15-18 NLT

"Wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." Wow! Isn't that a thought!? Freedom. People search forever for freedom and never seem to find it. Freedom from fear, from worry, from habits, hurts or hangups, you name it. What is the freedom that you are yearning for?

Personally, I have been working on finding freedom from worry. There are times that I worry. I worry about little things. I worry about change. I worry about how people perceive me. I worry if I am doing enough for my God.

During the time that I am worrying, I hear my Spirit say to me, "Why are you worrying? Don't you know that worrying will not change anything? Where is your trust in Me? With Me, you have freedom from not worrying. I will take care of everything. You have nothing to worry about. Come on, just rest in Me." When I stop to hear--to truly listen--I am so blessed. My God gives me freedom.

Your God can give you that same sense of freedom. You just need to stop and consciously give to Him what you need freedom from. His Spirit is big enough to take it on. Trust. You can trust Him to take it and use it for your good and the growth of your walk.

You may be saying that you have tried that and it hasn't worked for you. Don't give up. It may take you some time to see the signs and to catch them right away. But the more you do it, the quicker it will be. And the sense of blessing will be so wonderful.

Your God is one mighty God!

A Time to Laugh?

2011-01-05T07:17:00.000-08:00

"And Sarah declared, 'God has brought me laughter. All who hear this will laugh with me." Genesis 21:6 NLT

Sarah made this statement eight days after her and Abraham's son, Isaac, was born. If you remember the story, Abraham was 100 years old at this time. Sarah wanted a child for many years and it just didn't happen. So, she in her sadness and frustration, she tried to 'help' God by having her maid servant bear Abraham a child. But that isn't what God wanted. God wanted to be the answer to her prayer. And even though Sarah gave up on Him, He still honored His promise and she conceived and they had Isaac.

As a side note--I don't know about you, but when you name your child, there is a lot that goes into it. A lot of prayer and thought. So does it surprise you that the meaning for the name 'Isaac' means, he laughs? How appropriate!

During times of your life, it may be hard to laugh. It may seem like the most unappropriate thing to do. And it could be. For you. But God did create the gift of laughter for us to help us and our spirits. In our own timing.

Have you experience moments, when something seems so bad, that the situation that you are in, or the emotion that you are experiencing, is so sad that you are just stuck there. And all of a sudden, for some reason, you start to giggle or laugh just a short laugh. It's like a little pressure spout on a pressure cooker--it lets out a little of the feelings that are going on inside. And whala--you start to feel better.

Jesus laughed, cried, got angry and loved. God laughed, got angry, jealous and loved. We were created in Their image. It's alright for us to experience all those emotions. It's what we do with them that makes them appropriate or unappropriate.

Our God is a gift giver. His generosity is obvious in how lavishly He bestows on us rainbows, waterfalls, sunrises and sunsets. Smiles and giggles helps us to express not only our gratitude and happiness, but also our sorrow and frustrations. Thank Him for that gift.

"Jesus said, 'Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.'" Luke 6:21 NLT

Rewind Please

2011-01-03T19:38:00.000-08:00

"Trust God from the bottom of your heart;
don't try to figure out everything on your own.
Listen for God's voice in everything you do, everywhere you go;
He's the one that will keep you on the right the track."
Proverbs 3:5-6 The Message

Ever wish that you could have a redo? That you could say to God, "Oops! My mistake. Could you kindly hit the rewind button? Let's do a take two."

In the movies, that is what they do. If you were the main charactor, you would have the chance to take as many retakes as it took to make the scene perfect. But in real life, that's not possible. We have one chance and one chance only. Whatever we make of the scene is what is recorded. There's really no do overs.

At the same time, we can't live in the world of regret. Oh, we can be sorry for what we did. We can learn from our mistake, but we shouldn't keep kicking ourselves forever. We can't let the joy of the Lord be stolen by the feelings of regret.

How do we keep the joy through the regret? We turn to the part of our verse that states, "trust God from the bottom of your heart; don't try to figure out everything on your own." You see, sometimes we think that we know a lot more than we really do. We think that we are in control of our own destiny--but we're not. There's no guarentee that if we did things differently, that our lives would have a different outcome.

What's guarenteed is that if we trust in our God, if we give Him our paths, if we don't try to micro-manage everything, if we, "Listen for God's voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; He's the one that will keep you on the right track.", the outcome will ultimately be what He had designed the scene to be in the very beginning.

A New Beginning

2010-12-31T08:01:00.000-08:00

"Forget the former things;
do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not
perceive it?
I am making a way in the desert
and streams in the wasteland." Isaiah 43:18-19 NIV

Here we are, at the door of the ending of 2010. How do you feel about that? Are you glad to see the ending come? Are you a little sad? A little disappointed? Indifferent? A tad-bit excited?

The ending of a year can be all of those things to some people. We start out the year with resolutions. With ideas of all the things we were going to change--about ourselves personally, our lives, the world. Then the end of the year comes, and maybe we didn't get those things done--we didn't follow through with our resolutions. We may have even got into worse habits, even done something or things that we aren't proud of. We feel like a failure.

This verse says the opposite. It says that we are to forget the past. We are to lay them aside. We are to ask forgiveness of them--give them to our Heavenly Father and He will make something new out of them--you--a new person in Him. Isn't that awesome! Isn't that a great way to start a new year? Not focusing on the regrets of the year past, but feeling the freedom of living in the knowledge that God has created a new person in you. That you don't have to regret the closing of the door of the year past--but look forward to the opening of the door of the New Year beginning! How exciting!

If you had a GREAT year--kuddos to you! Keep it going. This verse still has meaning to you because it is a great one to carry in your heart. Each and every day that we wake up, we have the opportunity to become a new creation in the Lord. Our Father will take each and every day of our lives and use the day in the past to make us better people in the future--if we let Him. If we keep our prayer life flowing, our quiet, devotional time with Him top priority and keep our soul open to Him to mold and preen us at all times.

As that glittery ball is falling and they are counting down, remember to say a prayer for the Lord's will on your life this New Year.

Our God is such an AWESOME God! Praise Him for this opportunity of life!

Got Room?

2010-12-22T17:30:00.001-08:00

"And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2 This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. 3 So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city.
4 Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, 5 to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. 6 So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. 7 And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn." Luke 2:1-20 NKJV

Every time I read this passage, verse 7 sticks out to me. The words, "there was no room for them" challenge me. Bethlehem was very busy. The hotels were full and so we find the Savior being born in a manger. I'm able to understand and accept this. But what gets me is the deeper meaning; they had no room for Jesus.

I have to ask myself, "Do I have room for Jesus in my life?" Do you? Do I have room but, it's in the barn of my life? What things keep Jesus from being front and center in my life? I am challenged to look at my life and see if I need to let God clean some things out of my life to make room for Jesus.

What about you? Have you received the gift of Christmas, salvation? Have you opened the door of your heart to receive Jesus? What about today?

"But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God." John 1:12 NLT

The Gift of Courage

2010-12-20T07:47:00.000-08:00

"Joseph was a good man and did not want to embarrass Mary in front of everyone. So he decided to quietly call off the wedding." Matthew 1:19 CEV

This is one of the famous verses that is part of the Christmas story that we hear probably at least once a year. But do we really read it? Do we see the life example that Joseph exhibits?

In order to understand the full lesson, we need to also look at Matthew 1:20-24 CEV
"While Joseph was thinking about this, an angel from the Lord came to him in a dream. The angel said, 'Joseph, the baby that Mary will have is from the Holy Spirit. Go ahead and marry her. Then after her baby is born name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.' So the Lord's promise came true, just as the prophet had said, 'A virgin will have a baby boy, and he will be call Immanuel,' which means 'God is with us.'

After Joseph woke up, he and Mary were soon married, just as the Lord's angel had told him to do."

You see, Joseph was a good man. A man that was known to to the right thing. In his day, breaking up with Mary after finding out that she was pregnant, was the right thing to do. His culture would have totally understood that act. That is what was done.

But God had another plan for Joseph. It was so important to Him that He had one of His angels come to Joseph in a dream to explain it to him. It was to do the opposite of what his culture practiced. To stand against what Joseph's world was telling him to do and to unquestioningly do what God was telling him to do. As we all know, Joseph was true to his nature, and did the right thing--obeyed his Heavenly Father.

But let's stop and think about this for a quick moment. Do you think that Joseph just rolled over in his sleep and said without a qualm, "OK Lord, this is a little crazy, but I'll do it." I don't know, but if I was him, I think I would be fighting what my culture had been telling me all my life. I would be wondering what would my family, friends, neighbors, customers, would be saying or thinking. You know that he was a successful carpenter--would this decision effect his business, his livelihood?

Even with all of this, even if it was the hardest thing that he had done up to this point of his life, Joseph did it anyway. Doing the act didn't mean that he wasn't fearful and doubting on the inside--no, but he was courageous enough to overcome those feelings and do the right thing.

What about you? Have you been in a similar situation? Have you had to choose between doing what your culture is telling you is right and what the Lord is telling you what is right?

Your God will never have you make a decision without being there to support you. Even if it is the hardest thing you have ever had to do. He IS there. Every step of the way.

Having courage is not always easy, but the gift you get in return is so worth it. Do you realize that each and every time that you use your gift of courage, your gift gets bigger? You get more confident in the Lord and yourself and it just keeps building upon itself.

Please don't misunderstand--it doesn't necessarily get easier--it just gets better.

During this Christmas week, think upon these verses. Pray that you can have the courage of Joseph. And please, don't forget to thank your Heavenly Father for ALL of His gifts.

The Gift of Surprise

2010-12-17T14:06:00.000-08:00

"We don't yet see things clearly. We're squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won't be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We'll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!" 1 Corinthians 13:12 The Message

"Knowing him directly just as he knows us!"--isn't that an awesome thought? When we finally get to Heaven, we will know Jesus as intimately as He knows us. WOW! What a scary but wonderful feeling!

Right now there is a veil between us and our Heavenly Father. It's a natural veil because if we could see what we would only be able to look forward to seeing and experiencing after we get to heaven, why would we want to get there? We would already have seen the prize. It would be like sneaking into the presents before Christmas morning, unwrapping the box peeking inside and rewrapping it. Sure, at that moment, you feel this wonderful sense of knowledge. Now you don't have to wait anymore. There's no more eliminate of surprise. But what happens later? You start feeling a little depressed--you have nothing to look forward to because you already experience it when you peeked.

The same would be here on earth if we had already experienced the extreme awesomeness of a clear, intimate relationship with our Lord and Savior. We would have experience everything there was. Because no matter how wonderful and fulfilling of a relationship you now have with God--it's nothing compared to what is waiting for us. Do you understand this?

Our God is worth the wait. But in the meantime, keep searching, keep striving to build that intimate relationship, keep pursuing your Heavenly Father. He loves surprising you!

Let It Go

2010-12-15T11:47:00.000-08:00

"But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:13,14 NIV

Sometimes when my kids were acting up I would tell them to "let it go." In other words stop, knock it off, forget it. The other day I felt the Holy Spirit tell me to let it go. I was thinking about some past sin issues. I sensed that it was time to move on. Accept the forgiveness and restoration that Christ gives us and move on.

I also felt the Spirit tell me to let go of some current challenges that I am facing, and move on, trusting the outcome to a loving and benevolent God.

Some of the challenges of letting things go are that we stuff them deep inside of us. We think that we are dealing with them by not dealing with them. But the stuff we stuff will manifest somehow. Another challenge to letting go is that we use things as excuses and "wet blankets" to serve as a means to an end. Sometimes we just keep rehearing things over and over. The greatest challenge are the things that keep us from accepting the love and forgiveness that Jesus Christ give to us.

What about you? Is God calling you to give up an old hurt, habit, or hang up? Is there an issue in your life that keeps haunting you? Will you let Jesus have it today?

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!" 2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV

The Gift that Keeps on Giving

2010-12-12T17:38:00.000-08:00

"Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord." Luke 1:45 NKJV

The Christmas story has a a life lesson that is much more than what it appears on the surface. The above verse is when Mary is visiting her cousin Elizabeth and this is what Elizabeth says after her unborn baby, later known as John the Baptist, leaped in her womb.

Mary is the picture of obedience and faithfulness. And not reluctantly. When the Angel of the Lord first came to her and told her of God's request, did she say, "O.K., well thank you Mr. Angel. Let me think about it and I will let you know in a few of days." or "Well, Mr. Angel, this is all very nice, but I'm pretty busy right now. Can you come back in a couple of months? Maybe by then my calendar will open up."

No, she was a faithful servant, and humbly said, "I am the Lord's servant. May it be done to me as you have said." (Luke 1:38 NKJV) And as I was reading the full passage, I am struck with the thought that God didn't tell Mary through His Angel, that this is how it was going to be and just do it. The way that Mary responded is that she knew it was a request. That she had the right to say 'yes' or 'no'. And she chose to say, 'yes'.

Isn't that the heart of God? He doesn't ever force Himself or His will into our lives. He always gives us the choice--the free will--to decide for ourselves. He doesn't want His precious child, you, to serve Him in fear or grudgingly. No. He desires to have a relationship with you that is open and candid.

As I ponder more on Mary's story, I pray that I have a Mary's spirit to be able to say 'yes' without question--without hesitation--when the Lord speaks into my life. How about you? Do you realize that the more you say 'yes', the more opportunities are opened up? The more times you are faithful, the rippling effect is contagious. It goes way beyond just you and your life. It may go farther and touch more people and lives than you ever dream of.

This Christmas season, pray for the gift of "free will" obedience. Can you imagine the spiritual opportunities that you may be opening yourself up to? It's a gift that will keep on giving.

Right is Right

2010-11-29T20:55:00.000-08:00

"It is better to be poor and direct,
than rich and crooked." Proverbs 28:6 (The Message)

This verse came to be a life lesson verse today for Peter, my 12 year old son.

You see, we had a 2nd cousin-in-law pass away a week ago. Today, his wife wanted all his clothes and such out. So my husband and son went to pick them up. When they did, she told them that she had looked pretty thoroughly through the pockets of his suits to make sure that there was no money left in them because Pat had a habit of putting money in his pockets. So, if they found anything later, they could go ahead and keep it.

Well, when my family got to the thrift store and starting to unload the bags, Peter grabbed the bag with Pat's shoes in it. He started pulling the shoes out and what do you think he found? Yup, he found a crumpled up bill. When he got it totally unfolded, Peter could hardly believe his eyes, but there looking at him, was a $100 bill!

Boy! Was Peter happy. You see, to us and probably to you, a $100 is a very large sum of money and especially for him, because he had never had one of his own. Now, to my cousin, it wasn't so much because Pat had been a lawyer his whole life, so she had seen a lot of $100 bills.

Peter comes by my office and shares the wonderful news with me--he had found $100 and he could keep it because after all, Cousin JoAnn had said that whatever money they found, they could keep. So, there it is. It's his, fair and square and he already had it spent.

It was true, she did say that they could keep whatever they found but my spirit told me what I had to do. I had to have Peter call Cousin JoAnn and share with her that fact that, yes, they did find money, but it wasn't a dollar or two or even ten--it was $100.

Peter was not happy with his mother. But right is right and I had to explain that we needed to at least give her a chance to either give it to him fair and square or take it back. Heaven wasn't worth a $100.

Well, she did take it back and though Peter was very disappointed, he agreed with this verse. At least tonight, he can look into his Heavenly Father's face, knowing he did the right thing and sleep that peaceful sleep that only a clear conscience can give you.

Has this story ever played out in your life? Have you every been in the position that, boy, nobody would be the wiser if you kept something that you got, but wasn't really suppose to be yours? It's easy these days to be tempted to take from those who have much--but don't give in.

Your God is such a gracious God--don't take His grace from Him by stealing from others something you need. In reality, He really is ALL you truly need, isn't He?

Trials or Opportunites?

2010-11-26T00:00:00.000-08:00

"We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His love." Romans 5:3-5 NLT

Have you ever experience someone--that is trying to be kind and supportive--come up and say to you as you are going through a trial, "Now remember, God doesn't give you more than you can handle."?

Is that true? Of course, at the time, you don't feel like it's true. You feel like what you are experiencing is waaaaay over your head. That you are totally not prepared to handle this trial. That somehow, God has you mixed up with your neighbor who could probably handle this.

Sometimes, God does give us more than we can handle. And He does it on purpose. Not to punish us. Not because He is mad at us. Not because you are a bad person. Not because He is trying to pick on you.

No. Sometimes God, in His love for us, gives us more that we can handle. What!? Whatever for? Why would a loving and gracious Father do that to His child?

He does it to help us to grow in character. To drive us to our knees and seek His face and heart with our heart and spirit. To us, what we are going through may be a very big thing in our world, but in the scheme of things, it is not so.

For as we see that the Lord will help us through all our trials and tribulations, what naturally happens? For one, we become stronger. Not only in character, but in spirit and faith. Secondly, our trust in our Heavenly Father just leaped to the next level. And thirdly, what an example to the people in our path. Isn't that what happened with Job? How about the martyrs? The apostles? Jesus. When others see your faith deepen and strengthen during trials instead of cursing or turning away from your faith--what a witness!

When you are there, in the midst of your trial, are you alone? No. Of course not. Your heavenly Father loves and values you too much for that. You can be sure, He will equip you with the third person of the Trinity--the Holy Spirit.

Doesn't it seem like tradition for us humans to bond with others as we go through an life experience together. Cancer survivors. Losing a loved one. Financial despair. If we have shared the process at the same time with someone--they become our forever friend. We feel like we have a special bond with that person. Well, the same goes with our Heavenly Father. As we go through an event with Him, and He is there for us to cling to. To share the tears with. To give us the warm, encouraging, safe-harbour hugs to--we are bonded forever.

Our God is an awesome God! Be encouraged!

To Seek or Not to Seek

2010-11-24T00:00:00.000-08:00

"You have said, 'Seek my face.'

My heart says to you, 'Your face, LORD, do I seek.'" Psalm 27:8 ESV

Sometimes two lines can hit a heart string so deep. And this is one of those for me.

See if this makes sense to you. When I read these verses, it brings a thought--can it be that even when we are not, in our humanness, purposely setting out to seeking God's face--that our spirit inside of us is yearning for it anyway? That when we get caught up in the everyday "have to's" and don't take the time to purposely invite the Lord to join us and to control our day, our journey, our spirit/heart tries to make it happen on their own?

I know that may sound a little crazy and maybe I'm not explaining it very well, but what a thought? It's like a little seed that is under a pile of dirt and even if someone forgets to water it, it will continue to try to grow. It may make it, it may not--it depends on how long the person that in responsible for the seed, neglects it. But even if the person neglects the seed, does the seed give up and dies right away?

No, I don't think so. I think that for a while anyway, the seed has a natural desire--instinct--to survive. And it will do whatever it takes, for as long as it has the strength, to keep trying to get water. But, alas, if the source of water is empty too long, it will stop trying and just die.

Do you understand the correlation? That is how our spirit is. God gives each and every one of us one. It is a gift. We can choose to water it daily with His word and His presence--and it will continue to grow from the tiny little weak mustard seed into a huge, strong Oak, that can stand the test of time--or we can choose to starve it and it will sadly die.

I don't know about you, but shouldn't this be our prayer--or one like it--every day we wake up?

Please Lord, help me to see Your face today in all that I do. Guide me and protect me. Help me to stay on Your path for my life and not stray to the path that it not from You that I may find myself on. Thank you for loving me so much that You stay with me through good times and bad. Please forgive me when I take You and our relationship for granted. You ARE an awesome God. Amen.

The Gift of a Temple

2010-11-22T00:00:00.000-08:00

"You surely know that your body is a temple where the Holy Spirit lives. The Spirit is in you and is a gift from God. You are no longer your own. God paid a great price for you. So use your body to honor God." 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 CEV

If you are like me, you've heard this message before. You can agree--OK, my body is a temple--that means that I am to respect it. In my personal case, I have always envisioned this flame, deep inside my rib cage, maybe behind the lungs--and that is where the Holy Spirit lives inside me.

Well, today reading this verse, a new thought came to me. What about our minds--our thoughts? If I was to rewrite this verse with that thought in mind, it would say this, "So use your mind/ thoughts to honor God." Wow! That puts a new twist on things don't it?

It seems that at times, we can put our body under the control of Christ and the Holy Spirit, but our minds are something else. It seems that we can come to the worldly thinking that what goes on in our minds is our own secret thing and it doesn't affect anything. But is that true?

If we say that we are God's chosen, that we treat our body like the temple that we need to do, in order to honor what He has done for us, yet keep our minds out of the picture, are we being complete? If we think thoughts of jealousy, of hatred, of gossip, is that honoring God? If we take drugs that impair our thought process, or get drunk, or fall into pornography and fill our minds with images that are truly not from God, are we honoring God with all of us?

I think you know the answer. If God wants us to honor Him with making our body a temple to the wonderful gift that He left for us to help us on our earthly walk, we need to incorporate ALL of our being--body, heart, soul & mind.

Jesus came and gave all of Himself to you--He didn't hold back anything--not even His very life. What about you? Can you reciprocate the same back to Him? Believe me, He wants you--all of you. Please give it to Him.

Worry-Free

2010-11-10T15:31:00.000-08:00

"Do not worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks. And God's peace, which is so great we cannot understand it, will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7 NCV

Are you a worrier? Do you wake up some days and just feel grumpy and irritated and wonder what is wrong--then all of a sudden it is brought to your attention that what is wrong is that you're worrying about whatever it is that you are worrying about? Wow! Didn't see that coming.

Guess what? You're normal. I think we as a species were built to worry. That is one thing that is so awesome about being born again--we can be worry-free! We have a God that understands that about us and is constantly prodding us into remembering that He is there. That as a child of His, we don't have to give in to that instinct.

Do you remember when you were a baby how you use to worry? No, of course not! When we were infants, we didn't worry because our parents took care of that for us. Well, that is where we need to be right now. While, in most areas, I agree that we need to be continually maturing in our walk. But--though this may sound crazy--in this one area, I think we need to strive to be more infantile. Does this make sense to you? When you are more infantile, you don't know to worry. You just live. You just trust that things are going to workout.

Once you realize that you need not to worry, you're spiritual walk will reach a whole new level. What an amazing feeling! How do I know? I've been there. The moments that I have totally given my worries to my Heavenly Father, I have experienced such a sense of release and freedom--words cannot express.

Worry-free? You bet! Just pray and watch what the Lord will do!

Endurance

2010-11-09T19:34:00.000-08:00

"But me, I'm not giving up.
I'm sticking around to see what God will do.
I'm waiting for God to make things right.
I'm counting on God to listen to me."
Micah 7:7 The Message

Have you ever been in a situation where you feel that you are just going around in circles, trying to make a difference, trying to wrong a right, trying to change an outcome--only to seemingly come out to the same place?

Well, that is where Micah was. Micah was trying to save Israel from itself. But it wouldn't listen. So what did he ended up doing? He ended up just stepping back, enjoying the show--watching to see what his God would do.

In the NIV version, the first line said it this way, "But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord." I watch in hope. I'm not giving up. What a wonderful way to show the world what the faith walk is all about!

We can depend on our Heavenly Father. He will make things right. He will honor our attempts at following His commands. He will protect us. He will listen to us.

Please remember that as long as you have hope, you can NOT lose. As long as you don't give up on what He has promised you, you will endure.

Life Verse

2010-11-04T00:00:00.000-07:00

"Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong. Let all that you do, be done in love." 1 Corinthians 16:13-14 NKJV

When ask, a young couple gave this verse as a life verse for their baby boy. What a wonderful life verse for all of us don't you think?

We all need to be on guard, to be able to not "fall asleep" at the wheel of our life trip. When things are good and calm and trouble-free, we tend to get complacent. We tend to think that we have this living the good life, the Christian way, down pack. That we are in total control, but are we?

We need to always remember that without our faith, we would be nothing. Without having our watch guard up all the time so that the world and Satan cannot get in and mess things up.

We need to be brave in and for the Lord. No, we are not like the martyrs of the early days that were burned at the stake or eaten by lions in the coliseums. The joy of being a Christian these days and living a Christian life is being challenged daily. Our rights are being taken away faster than we really want to admit. We can't pray in our schools anymore or at our graduations or in some cases, at our work places if you work in a government place. We need to be BRAVE.

But as with all things, our BRAVERY needs to be entwined with LOVE.

Whenever Jesus was angry or frustrated with His followers, He held them accountable, but it was always done with LOVE. He didn't go off and have a mental breakdown with a bombardment of angry, hurtful words. He would choose His words carefully--making sure that they were right-on, from His Heavenly Father, spoken in LOVE--but always to the point.

What a lovely, life living verse for all of us to memorize to heart and live in action.

Heaven's Soldier

2010-11-02T21:25:00.000-07:00

"Timothy, my dear son, be strong through the grace that God gives you in Christ Jesus. You have heard me teach things that have been confirmed through reliable witnesses. Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others.

Endure suffering along with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. Soldiers don't get tied up in the affairs of civilian life, for then they cannot please the officer who enlisted them. And athletes cannot win the prize unless they follow the rules. and hardworking farmers should be the first to enjoy the fruit of their labor. Think about what I am saying. The Lord will help you understand all these things." 2 Timothy 2:1-7 NLT

Our son Peter is the one that has brought these passages to my attention. He's 12 years old and comes from a long line of servicemen. Mostly Marines, but my dad, his grandpa, was in the Navy and his nephew, our grandson, is in the Army.

So, it goes without saying that Peter loves war games and war documentaries. What touched him was the verse, "Endure suffering along with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus." What touched me--to be honest--was the gratitude of a mother that just had her almost teenage son come to her with a Bible verse that he had found on his own and he actually read it out loud to me and gave me his opinion on it. I praise God that He created verses that touches teenage boys' hearts.

What I also see here, is that God has commissioned us to not only to listen, hear and learn of His word--but also to share it with others. We are not to keep it to ourselves as if it was a treasure to hide in our deepest closets. We are to share it with the people He brings into our world.

Have you ever thought about the fact that if Jesus hoarded His Father's words where would we be now? If the apostles did not record in painstakingly detail, what Jesus shared with them and their life experiences with Him, how would we have known about everlasting life?

If you have been born again and experience the wonderful saving grace of your everlasting Heavenly Father and don't share it with the people that God has blessed your life with, how will you be judged? You would be like the parable of the person that was given one talent and what did he do with that talent? Did he invest it? Did he share it? No. He buried it and there it laid in the dark cold earth, doing nothing for the kingdom of God.

God has entrusted us to run the good race, to plant and to harvest, to share and not to be embarrassed or hesitate in imparting the wonderful saving grace of His everlasting love with everyone we meet.

Are you ready to be a soldier? Are you ready to win the world with Jesus? Grab your mess kit and let's go!

Nobility

2010-10-19T19:27:00.000-07:00

"But the noble man makes noble plans,
and by noble deeds he stands." Isaiah 32:8 NIV

For some reason, this verse just stuck out to me. It also made me curious--what actually does 'noble" mean? Isaiah uses it three times in this passage so it must be an important word.

I looked it up and Noah Webster's New International Dictionary of the English Language says this: 1. (superl.) Possessing eminence, elevation, dignity, etc.; above whatever is low, mean, degrading, or dishonorable; magnanimous; as, a noble nature or action; a noble heart.

So, now that we know what "noble" means, it makes the passage a lot more personal. Obtainable. We can now see that what the verse is saying is this--that when you are a noble person, you are above doing anything that is mean or degrading or dishonorable. That when you make plans, your plans are not for evil or to undermine anyone, but to elevate. And your deeds will NOT dishonor anyone else, yourself and most importantly, your God.

How can you become a noble person? By the glory and graciousness of your heavenly Father. Oh, you can think you are noble on your own right, but it's not a true nobility. Only through your Father in heaven can you be true nobility. It's only through the graciousness of your heavenly Father that you can be of noble birth--with a mind that can make noble plans and spirit that can do noble deeds.

In a world that settles for the easy way out--let's go for excellent--for nobility. It's not just for 12th century romance novels. It's a true way of life.