Seeing life from God’s perspective can change your whole view of life.
Author: Rebecca Darga
Prayer isn’t something to be scared of
Those moments when you’re lost, tired, confused and stressed. There is one thing you can always pray, Jesus.
In times of stress and worry we often neglect prayer because we think we need the right words or we don’ know what to say. But we don’t really have to say anything. We can simple call on Jesus and let him do the talking.
Prayer doesn’t have to be some eloquently written poem. Prayer is a conversion between you and God.
Don’t worry about what to say.
You can be open, honest, raw and say anything, he can handle it. The most important thing is that we are opening the line of communication to him and that we are giving him a chance to talk to us.
Help in trouble
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.
Psalm 46:1
No matter what I always know that I can count on God. I know I can always run to him when I feel weak and exhausted, stressed or worried or in over my head, and he will be there to help as long as I seek him.
How do I know this? Because he has been there for me time and time again. On the days that I stressed and overwhelmed he gives me peace, calm and perspective. When I feel weak he is my strength.
He is always there for me even when I think I don’t need him he’s there.
Jesus gave his life to have a deep intimate relationship with us, so that he could be our everything. So he could lift us up when we feel burdened and give us relief from our troubles.
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Eagles sore above the storm literally, they fly above the clouds, lifting up above the storms, to clear skies.
God does the same for us, he lifts us up above the storms of life when we depend on him.
More than Hello
Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me greet you. All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar’s household.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.
Have you ever thought about how we greet other believers.
We are really good at saying a quick ‘hi’ or ‘welcome’ on Sunday morning. But do we ever ask how people are? Or do we just plaster on the fake smile hiding what’s going on in our life or let others pass by with the same fake smile hiding there own struggles.
We are the body of Jesus. We are meant to help each other.
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Asking each other how we are doing and actually paying attention to the answer can help so many people and even ourselves.
We can encourage those you see are having a rough day or might even get some encouragement from others.
Jesus’s grace is in all of us lets share it with each other.
Love is a choice
God is endless in his pursuit of us, each and everyone of us has our own special place in his heart. We matter to him.
Even when we feel like no one sees us, hears, us or knows us. He does.
He loves us and will pursue us to our last breathe. He will always seek to show us how much he cares, how much he loves and how much he gave to be with us.
But he is never forceful.
The gift he gave us was choice.
What could be more loving then the right to choose?
God is Good
There are so many songs that talk about how good God is and each one resonates because he is good. King of my Heart by Bethel Music repeats how good he is to us in everything that we face. He is the anchor in the storm, his is fire in our souls and the mountain where we run.
We know that we can run to him no matter how we are feeling and he is there for us. There to comfort us when we are sad, or shield when we’re weak. He anchors us when we start to stray and he is who we run to and thank for his blessing beyond our expectations of belief.
He is good, because he has proven it to me more times then I can count. He blessed with amazing friends that never gave up on me when I ran from , God, he blessed me with an amazing husband who has strength and character that I didn’t know I wanted or needed. God is good.
He has been there for me in some the hardest moments of my life, and helped me find joy and peace when I saw none.
God is good.
When we feel broken
No matter how low or lost we feel God is always right there waiting for us to turn to him.
We can feel worthless and unworthy but that is not how God sees us. He sees who he made us to be. Who he paid the price for us to be.
He sees opportunity to reach people through our healed scars, not our old wounds. He sees us. Not our past, not our mistakes but our future.
“Behold, I am making all things new.” Rev 21:5b
Forever on Your side
I’m not going to even begin to think that I have all the answers. But the one thing that I know for sure is that God is forever on our side. I know that his love for us never ends and that he is always there for us no matter what.
He was there when I made less then wise decisions, he was there when I choose to ignore him and he is there for me now. He is always there for all of us all the time. We choose whether to let him in or not.
He’s been there for me in some of the hardest moments of my life and he’s been there for the good times too.
When I was young I was really shy and I had very low confidence in my self. But as I’ve grown to know God deeper and more intimately, I have grown in confidence and assurance of who I am. Because I know who he made me to be and that he gives me everything I need to achieve the goals he’s laid on my heart and he’s there for me when I fail too.
God’s love is not dependent on our behavior its always there, but we have to allow him in. We have to allow him to show us who he made us to be. When you find your identity in Jesus it opens new doors and opportunities that you never knew existed and give you the confidence to succeed.
Give him the chance to show you that he’s forever on your side.
Believe in him and find rest
Even on our worst days. When we feel like nothing, doing nothing, being nothing, talking to no one. We can depend on one thing.
Jesus loves us anyway.
He is always there for us. Always loves us. Always loves for us to spend the day curled up with Him, letting His love give us rest.
So no matter how bad your day is or how much it hurts. We can always find comfort in Jesus.
God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Amazing Grace
Amazing Grace, the classic song that most people know, is one of my favorites because of what it means.
God’s amazing grace that saved, a wretch like me. Every time I hear this song, I want to sing it.
Everyone who has ever lived, except Jesus has done something wrong at some point in their life and needs forgiveness for something.
God’s grace does just that. He forgives us for everything we have ever done wrong. He wipes our slate clean and makes us white as snow before God.
I know I’ve done plenty of things wrong in my life, but He forgave me and made me new in Him. Because of His forgiveness I get a do over, a fresh start, I get to be new in Him.
Often I find memories of my past that try to come back to haunt me. But I know that, that person died on the cross with Jesus. I am no longer that person, because Jesus makes me new and clean with His grace and forgiveness.
Next time you find yourself caught up in your past mistakes, surrender them over to Jesus and let Him remind you that, that person died on the cross with Him and that He lives through you.
Love to get you through
The love of God gets me through more then I thought I could ever handle.
I’ve always tried to be the person that says they can do anything, I don’t back away from challenges and I always try to find the solution to any problem.
But when I’m faced with things that I can’t fix or make work, it opens the door to be discouraged or even depressed.
A few years ago I struggled with depression over not being pregnant after several years of trying. I was discouraged and I knew that God loved me but I didn’t want to spend time with Him. Honestly I was mad at God. But in time I came to realize that just because I wanted a baby doesn’t mean I’m ready. Having a baby isn’t about me, it’s about the baby. About wanting to raise them in a safe and loving environment where they can grow, learn and be provided for.
God was teaching me that having a baby wasn’t about fulfilling my desire to be a mother but it should be about wanting to do and be whats best for the child.
I needed to learn that.
Even though we are not expecting yet. I am trusting that God will bring a child into our lives when it is best for the baby.
I trust God because I know He loves me and I’m reminded of that each day as I write. Writing helps me keep focused on Him, it helps me to evaluate my life and see Him working in it.
His love sustains me, it feeds me, but I have to let Him love me.
What area of your life are holding back God’s love from?
Find Freedom
2Steer clear of the barking dogs, those religious busybodies, all bark and no bite. All they’re interested in is appearances—knife-happy circumcisers, I call them. The real believers are the ones the Spirit of God leads to work away at this ministry, filling the air with Christ’s praise as we do it. We couldn’t carry this off by our own efforts, and we know it—even though we can list what many might think are impressive credentials. You know my pedigree: a legitimate birth, circumcised on the eighth day; an Israelite from the elite tribe of Benjamin; a strict and devout adherent to God’s law; a fiery defender of the purity of my religion, even to the point of persecuting the church; a meticulous observer of everything set down in God’s law Book.
The very credentials these people are waving around as something special, I’m tearing up and throwing out with the trash—along with everything else I used to take credit for. And why? Because of Christ. Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I’ve dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him. I didn’t want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ—God’s righteousness.
Yesterday I talked about not earning God’s love. All he asks is our faith, our believe in the sacrifice he made for us.
The apostle Paul before he met Jesus followed all the rules and regulation to try to earn his salvation. But once he me Jesus he realized it was all in vain.
God gives salvaion freely, it can’t be eaned by good deeds and following the rules, because we have all done something wrong in our life and we can’t make up for that to a holy and perfect God, but he can. Jesus being both God and man lived a sinless life and paid the price for us so that we could find righteousness through him. He did what we can’t, because he loves us.
Stop striving to earn salvation and accept what he freely gives.
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Praise HIM
The first exegetical (which simple means using the whole text and in context) sermon I ever preached was on Psalm 150, the last of the psalms. It cries out the heart of the book of psalms Praise HIM, no matter what, no matter how you feel, Praise HIM.
Praise HIM everywhere in every way, all the time. With singing, with instruments, with dancing, with focus and undivided attention.
Praising God isn’t about the perfect song or if the band is on key, or if you sit, stand, kneel, dance or jump about. It’s about your heart.
Worship is about God, not us.
Are your words and your actions reflecting God? Are you shining glory on him? Are you taking time to solely focus on God, thanking him, praising him and giving him the glory? That’s what he deserves.
How are you praising HIM?
Psalm 150
Praise the Lord.
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty heavens.
Praise him for his acts of power;
praise him for his surpassing greatness.
Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
praise him with the harp and lyre,
praise him with timbrel and dancing,
praise him with the strings and pipe,
praise him with the clash of cymbals,
praise him with resounding cymbals.
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord.
Choose JOY
It’s easy to get bogged down by the responsibilities of life and to feel sad, anxious, worried overwhelmed by the pressures of the holidays or just by the state of the wold.
You can look at the media and think what is there to be thankful for or to rejoice over.
But our joy doesn’t come from the world it comes from Jesus.
Joy by For King and Country reminds us that we can CHOOSE JOY!
Joy because Jesus came to give us a better life that doesn’t always mean our circumstances change, sometime it just means he can be or joy in the storm.
So CHOOSE JOY!
Hope in darkness
We can find hope in some of the worst circumstances, if we look for it.
Jesus is that hope. He can do anything, no matter how impossible we think a situation is.
Bart Millard of Mercy Me shares his story in the the movie I Can Only Imagine. His inspiration for the song that inspired the movie was his dad. Bart never believed his dad could change. But to his surprise, when he was at a low point, when his band looked like they had lost their chance at success, Bart went home to repair his relationship with his dad and found a changed man when he arrived. The one person he thought could never changed and had come to believe in Jesus and become the father he had always hoped for.
God is always full of surprises and when we place our hope in him he does more then we can ever hope or imagine, even in the bleakest circumstances.
ABBA Father
The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Romans 8:15-16
The intimacy of calling God “Father” is the privilege we get when we come into the family of God.
Unfortunately sometimes people see God as this big dictator in the sky ready to strike us down when we do something wrong.
But nothing could be further from the truth.
We are invited in and adopted into God’s family. He is seeks a deep intimate relationship with each of us to the point of calling him Daddy!
The God I know is loving and kind, sweet and generous.
He doesn’t look down at us like slaves to be bossed around, living in fear of our master. But as his beautiful children.
He is our Abba, Daddy and he wants to nurture and help us grow in a safe loving environment, just as any father does.
We get to call him Daddy, so seek him out as a child and look for that loving embrace of our heavenly Father.
Baptism and Circumcision
In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead.
Circumcision and baptism sound like religious terms that many of us don’t understand the reasoning behind.
Circumcision and baptism symbolize our choice to die to our selfish ways, cutting ourselves off from our old life and being reborn into a new life in Jesus.
That new life in Jesus frees us from the guilt and shame of our past mistakes.
Jesus dying and being raised back to life gave us the gift of doing the same spiritually. We can die to our old selfish ways and be reborn into the new life that he gives us.
It is a spiritual circumcision, its cutting ourselves off from who we use to be and finding new life in Jesus.
Baptism is a public declaration, a symbolization of that new life, of being made new, being reborn into the life Jesus paid for and originally interned for us to have. A right relationship with him.
One where we can laugh and talk with God, where we can feel free from our past and share that same freedom with others.
Don’t shy away from what you don’t understand or think is just tradition or old ways. Talk with God, ask him what it means and let him show you his true intent.
Spiritual thirst
Feeling like you are dry spiritually or not hearing God, is often because we are not making time for Him or listening for the answer. We may be too busy or overwhelmed with all our obligations and responsibilities.
Photo by Vlad Tchompalov on Unsplash
But if we take the time to give God time he makes those obligations and responsibilities easier and even joyful.
Spending time with Him and letting Him fill us up with His presence gives us joy, peace, love and perspective. When we look to Him moment by moment He changes things.
The change He brings may not be a change of location, job or responsibilities, but a change of perspective, of how we view, and react to those same situations.
The thing I love about worshipping God is that it’s an exchange. As you surrender yourself to Jesus and let the Holy Spirit envelope you; as you pour your life out as an offering He fills you up to overflowing more than you gave.
You can’t out give God; so stop worrying about what your giving up and starting focusing on what He’s doing in and through you.
Seek God and let Him transform your life.
I don’t have all the answers
It’s easy to say depend on God, when everything is going good. But to know that’s He’s there even in the hard times too. That’s when our faith in Him shines through.
Because our faith in God should not change because our circumstances do. He is the same in the worst of moments of our lives and in the best. He always loves us and always wants us.
But the question we have to ask is not why? But what now?
God, what do you want to be for me in this moment? Trust me He’s got you covered if you just trust Him.
Where’s your focus?
Seeing God in the happy times is easy, but when we feel like we’re in the midst of a storm it’s hard to focus on what’s really important.
JESUS!
When we fix our eyes on Jesus he lifts us up.
Like Peter walking on water in Matthew 14:22-33. Peter walked on water but as soon as he took his focus off of Jesus and onto the storm around him he began to sink. It wasn’t until he cried out to Jesus, that he was lifted back up.
God gives us choices and He’s always there to help us, but we have to ask. We have to let Him in and trust His solution.
Sometimes it’s a simple answer and sometimes it’s going to take some faith. Trust that Jesus will provide even when we don’t see the immediate result.
IF you look for Him in everything in your life He will shine thru.
Alone
How do you act, speak, think when your alone? Is it the same way you are in public, at work, at church?
Would you be ashamed to share who you are at home or what you do?
Does who you are change depending on where you are? Or who your around.
If we have Jesus living in us and we are living by the guidance of the Holy Spirit we should be the same person whether we are alone or surround by thousands.
Speaking in Tongues?
This is the simplest and best break down I’ve heard about Speaking in Tongues. Enjoy!
What if I’m wrong?
What if you’re wrong? What if I’m wrong? The question that plagues most of us when it comes to eternity.
If I’m wrong, then I will have lived a life that is amazing, that has caught me by surprise, a life that I would not trade for anything.
Because life with Jesus has been a grand adventure more then I ever could of dreamed or imaged for myself. Even during the toughest times in my life I find joy and peace in Him; and my happiest moments are beyond my wildest dreams, because of Jesus.
Are you so afraid of Jesus that you aren’t willing to give Him a chance? What do you have to lose?
He is the most loving, kind, gentle, beautiful and gentle being I have ever know. Why not give him a chance, right now.
Take a moment and talk to Him, about anything you want, scream, yell, whisper or just talk to Him in your head.
He’s listening, He wants to talk to you, but you have to listen too.
He speaks in so many different ways, though our thoughts, through others, through dreams and through images.
Be open and willing to let Him in. I bet he’ll surprise you.
Seek to know God
All I want is that you seek the lord and that you trust him. (Courageous 2011)
That’s all I ever want for anyone. Because in seeking God you will come to know His character, how much He loves you and that He can be trusted.
How many of us get our perception of God from others. We all have had our perception of God influenced by someone either in a good or bad way. But how many of us really seek to know Him intimately, to learn His character for ourselves and make up our own minds instead of what others tell us.
That’s my hope with this blog that we would see God for who He is and seek to know Him more intimately and deeper then you even have before.
The legacy we leave behind
When my grandma went to heaven to be with Jesus. I shed tears for how much I miss her. But I found comfort in knowing that she is at peace and pain free in heaven. She’s having the best time of her life spending every moment with Jesus.
But I would be remiss if I didn’t do what she taught me to do.
Love people and show them Jesus.
She always had a smile on her face and she always knew how to make the mundane joyful. She taught me how to welcome everyone into my home as if they were family, how to be creative and how to put windshield wipers on, amongst other things.
There was always enough space for everyone in her home and at her table no matter who or how many showed up.
She taught me generosity and kindness in her heart and her actions. She always shined Jesus and I always want to do the same
She did what we are supposed to do. She welcomed everyone and shined Jesus to all. She had six daughters, three step children, nine grandchildren, six great grandchildren and three great-great grandchildren and she always had room for more. She always treated everyone like family and had so many more adopted in Christ-children.
Just as she did we should too, teach our children, our grandchildren and all around us about who Jesus is and what He has done for us and how that makes us all family.
It’s so much more then words, it’s our actions, our demeaner, our attitude. Jesus should be reflected in every aspect of our lives. So even if we don’t say a word He still shines through.
What’s your legacy?
I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one else like him, who will show genuine concern for your welfare. For everyone looks out for their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. I hope, therefore, to send him as soon as I see how things go with me. And I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon.
When we are in leadership we should be the example of how to serve others and how to put others before ourselves. We should be cheering on those that we are leading. Guiding them to achieve more then we have. How else can we grow if we don’t encourage others to go further then we have.
Paul saw the potential in Timothy and Timothy was sent to help the Philippians. The Philippians in turn were to lead others to learn about the gospel.
If you are a leader in anyway, as a boss, parent, mentor or coach. Your legacy should be that you taught others how to do what you do better then you do it.
Paul was a leader in the early church and he never lorded it over anyone, he lead by example and humbled himself over and over again.
What legacy will you leave behind? What will people say they learned from you?
Where I find my confidence
When I was young, I was shy and insecure, lacking confidence, always looking for approval and to feel wanted.
But when I found my identity in Jesus and I got to know Him, to know His love and His unconditional love. Knowing God loved me no matter what, that He would always protect me, keep me safe and never leave. That’s when I found my confidence. My confidence grew because it was in Him and who He is, not me.
When we know God’s love for us, it bolsters us, gives us strength and confidence to be who He made us to be. That’s why spending time with Him and learning who He is, is so important. It gives us the confidence to do and be who He made us to be. His children.
We are each so important to God. He wants to spend every moment of everyday with us and He will defend us even to death, because He already did.
That’s love and that’s where my confidence and joy and peace come from. They come from the one who gave up everything to be with me, to be with you. To have a deep, intimate, personal relationship with every single member of humanity. He is our creator and He loves each and every one of us, that is who we find our confidence in, the one who loves us, all of us.
Never underestimate an Open Door
Run the Race is a great movie about the power of forgiveness and the bridges that forgiveness can build. It’ a great story of how no one is beyond saving and we should never give up on people.
My childhood friends from church never gave up on me. They were always there for me and never stopped praying. They never compromise themselves or approved of my choices during my time of ignoring God. But there were always there.
When I finally made the decision to change my life. They immediately jumped in to help and encourage me to stick with my decision.
My friends and my mom never gave up on me and so when I made that choice I knew that I could go to them without any fear or condemnation.
Extending forgiveness and keeping the door open, creates a safe place for people to come when they have questions or choose to make a change.
Never under estimate the power of prayer and an open door.
Like leaving the door open when you baking cookies, eventually someone is going to smell the warm comforting sweetness and come in.
Photo by Jan Tinneberg on Unsplash
Trust in all things
Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.
As we continues to face new challenges and new opportunities arise. Whatever comes your way good or bad. We can trust God. We can look for Him in every situation and He will bring us joy and peace.
We may not understand why or how, but putting our faith in God is not about understanding, it’s about trust.
When we are children our parents give us instruction to protect us and take care of us. We may not understand why but we trust our parents to take care of us.
It’s the same with God. He may ask us to do something or not to do something for our benefit whether we understand and it or not, we can trust Him. We can trust that He knows the outcome even if we can’t see it at the time.
How many times in your life have looked back and realized your parents, mentor, leader or boss were right about something you didn’t understand at the time.
It’s the same with God. He can see the bigger picture, the effect of the cause and the cause of the effect.
He knows what it takes to get us where we need to go and what may harm us in the long end. Trust God to lead you and know that His heart is for you.
Photo by Derek Thomson on Unsplash
Humility over honor
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Jesus never demanded respect or to be worshiped or honored. He came to serve. Not to be served.
Have you ever demanded to be honored or respected? Did the actions of the person you demanded respect from fulfill that need or desire. Or did it leave you still wanting more?
When we force appreciation from people it teaches them that honor and respect are demanded, instead of earned.
So in turn they will go and do the same to others.
But when we get our value from God, as Jesus did, we don’t need the approval or appreciation of others to feel honored or respected.
Getting our value from God turns the moments when we are honored or respected by others into ‘life bonuses’ that mean so much more when they aren’t demanded.
The unknown doesn’t have to be scary
God fights for us even when we don’t see it. He works things out before we even know them and builds a path for us to walk that we cannot see. It can be scary to go where you haven’t been.
My husband and I have lived in seven states in the eight years we’ve been married, and each time we knew God was moving us. Each place, He placed people in our lives for us to reach, love and encourage in their faith in God, and in each place people have influenced us. Because no matter how long or short we we were somewhere God had gone before us and set a place for us, He built connections for us and prepared our way, we were simply willing to go.
God may not be calling you to move across the country or to move around the world but whatever He has called you to, He has prepared the path ahead for you. Are you willing to follow where He leads you?
How do you see yourself?
It’s easy to struggle with how God sees you when you get wrapped up in how others see you or how you see yourself. But how God sees us is what matters!
He is our creator and a creator always knows how something was meant to be used. It’s us or others that misuse ourselves and see ourselves not as we were intended to be.
God sees us all as His beautiful kids that He loves. We need to ask Him to show us how He sees us each day. Then we can fulfill the purpose He intended for us when He made us.
For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. Psalm 139:13
Nerves are good for leaders
“I don’t think I’m ready” ~Prince Caspian
“It for that very reason you are” ~Aslan
Often when we don’t feel ready to do what God calls us to, it’s then that we are ready. Because it’s that insecurity in ourselves that makes us depend on Him. So we cannot boast in ourselves but in Him alone.
One of my teachers when I first started preaching, reminded me that nerves are good when preaching, because it keeps us conscious of God, His will, His words and His direction. If we were completely confident in ourselves, we would have no need for Him. But it’s because we know our own imperfection and instead find our confidence in Him, that we can shine Him best.
Don’t let nerves hold you back from what you know God has called you to instead, use those nerves to depend on Him and shine God to others not ourselves.
Expressing Jesus (part 2)
When you look at people, look at them through the eyes of the Holy Spirit. Ask Him to show you how He sees them.
Each one of us is a part of the body of Jesus, so we all matter. Every person on the planet is given the opportunity to be a part of the body of Jesus.
Therefore we all are important!
There is not a person on this planet that isn’t important to God.
So why do we treat each other with so much callus and disregard?
Everyone matter to Him, so they should matter to us.
That may sound overwhelming. But if you have the Holy spirit guiding you its not as daunting as it seems.
Kindness can go a long way. Like the small things, opening a door for someone, even something as simple as a smile (even when you think you’re having a bad day) can go a long way for the person you are kind to, you never know it could be the worse day of their life and you made it better just by being kind.
Trust the Hoy Spirit and let Him lead you to be a light to someone, you never know the difference you could make till you try.
Jesus Humbled Himself
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Even Jesus didn’t consider himself equal with Father God when he came to earth as a human. He could of been born to the highest king in all the world, He could of come as an adult.
But instead He choose to come as a baby, to a young girl and her fiance with no notary or status.
He choose to start with humble beginnings.
He never demanded to be worshipped, glorified, honored or respected.
He simple came to serve us in love, to do what we couldn’t, to live a sinless life and then die falsely accused the death of a murder.
All to give us the opportunity to have right relationship with Father God. To not have to earn anything, simple to let Him live through us and He gave us the Holy Spirit to guide us. Jesus did the hard part.
We need to stop striving and start surrendering, to let Him work through us, not us work for Him.
God KNOWS You
God’s presence is the place where we find ourselves. He sees the mess and gives us the grace to overcome it and get out of it. He doesn’t want us to shove it aside or stuff it deep inside or try to fix it on our own. He wants it to be resolved and no longer affect us. So we don’t have to be ruled by our past mistakes or even the mistakes of others.
We get to choose.
Choose to let God’s grace be enough for us and for others. When we forgive, we free ourselves from being slaves to bitterness, anger, resentment and rage. It can no longer have power over us; because we won’t let it.
Finding our identity in Jesus makes us more us than we were before. He uniquely designed each of us and He know exactly what gifts and talents He gave us; to be and do what He designed us for.
When we choose to let God’s grace to be enough we are free to be who He intended us to be. To be loved, strong and confident and not held down; but to soar above the storms.
Who will you choose to be?
When finding out who we are, we can easily define ourselves by our mistakes and failures. But that’s the beauty of finding our identity in Jesus. He gives us new life and a new beginning each and everyday. We don’t have to be who we were yesterday or even a moment ago.
We can choose each moment to be who we used to be or be who God says we are.
We can’t earn God’s forgiveness, He gives it freely and it doesn’t matter how much we fail. He is always there to pick us back up and give us a fresh start.
But we have to make the choice to take the fresh start and change our behavior. To follow the leading of the Holy Spirit and make changes in our lives. Finding our identity in Jesus is a daily choice. We can choose to be who we used to be or we can choose to be who Jesus made us to be.
So who will you choose to be?
What binds your marriage?
A good marriage has to be worked at and fought for, it’s easy to take your spouse for granted because of the natural ease that brought you together in the first place.
Just because something is easy and comfortable, doesn’t mean it doesn’t need to be cared for. The movie Fireproof is a great example of how going though the motions and taking advantage of a comfortable situation can result in collapse.
Marriage is a bond that makes the two, one. Your spouse is your other half and when you neglect them, it’s like not taking care of yourself.
I have to be honest, I don’t have a perfect marriage, and I don’t always put my husband first. But when I do, I never regret it. I have, regretted not putting him first and neglecting him.
A strong marriage has to be built and maintained. But it also has to have something that binds you together. God is that binder. Putting God at the center of your marriage draws you closer to Him and each other.
Photo by Gabby Orcutt on Unsplash
True blessings
Jesus sacrifice gives us the opportunity for a deep intimate relationship with Him, Father God and the Holy Spirit. That relationship abounds with His blessings for us. But God’s blessings are not all physical, like we so often look for.
Most of them are spiritual. Peace of mind. Freedom from guilt and fear. Feeling loved more than we can imagine. These things can’t be taken from us.
God blesses us with the things that really matter.
An honest moment
Its easy to give up and feel discouraged. To feel like no one is listening. No one is reading, no one cares. I haven’t written as much as I would like lately, some do to moving across the country and some due to discouragement, wondering if any one is actually reading, am I really making a difference.
Honestly I started this blog because I knew I needed a platform for the books I know God’s given me to write, not because God told me to start a blog. But God has used it to teach me so much and how to share His love, even if it reaches one person, that one person matters. His love for us is not performance based. We don’t have to do anything for God to love us.
So whatever God has asked you to do. Know that it’s never conditional on His love but if we love Him, what He’s asked of us will deepen our love for Him and help us know His love more.
People make mistakes
Don’t let others miss representation of God deter you from knowing Him yourself.
Many people have walked away from their faith in God because they were hurt by other believers or believe that God betrayed them.
Just because others have represented God falsely, does not mean that is who He is. Don’t let others perception be your own. Seek the truth about God from God, only He can truly represent Himself in His entirety.
People are human and we all make mistakes, I make mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes.
I walked away from my faith when I was 18 because I felt at the time that my spiritual leaders were more concerned with bringing others to Jesus, then helping me through the things I was facing at the time.
I was WRONG. But that was my perception and interpretation at the time.
The truth is they didn’t help me because they didn’t know, I didn’t tell anyone. Instead I started looking to those outside the faith for my solutions and they provided nothing other then distractions to avoid my problems, rather then face them.
When I came back to my faith in God, I had more problems, not less. Life without God was miserable, I was always seeking the approval of others and digging my self into a deeper and deeper hole to do it.
Giving my life back to God gave me peace and freedom that I had not know during my time away from Him. God surrounded me with His love and forgiveness and brought many people into my life to encourage me to grow in my faith.
If you are questioning God I encourage you to go to scripture, flip open your Bible and begin reading. Don’t have a bible visit Biblegateway.com and randomly pick a verse. Talk to someone you respect for how they represent God and ask the hard questions. Talk to God and give Him your hard questions, but don’t forget to listen for the answer.
God is there and He loves you and He wants to talk to you. Give Him a chance. Don’t let other be the reason you don’t make up your own mind, make your own choices.
God knows you
We all search for and want someone who understands us, who gets us, and knows us to our very soul.
Jesus is that person. He knows us even better then we know ourselves. He knit us together in our mothers womb and He knows us to our very core.
We are the ones who put up the barriers and choose to separate ourselves from Him. We are the ones who surrender some of us, but still hang onto the most painful parts of our lives, to keep control.
I want to encourage you to surrender everything over to Him. Stop holding back and trust Him. I’ve never felt more myself then when I surrendered my life over to Jesus. I know it sounds strange, but He made us and He knows how to fulfill us.
We just have to trust Him.
Who God made you to be
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus:
God’s identity for each of us is so crucial to our relationship with Him. Who and what He has called us to is so much more then a career; it’s who we are.
For me, it’s writing, it’s who he made me to be and even though I don’t earn a dime from it currently, it’s still who I am. Writing uplifts me, it causes me to think about who God is, what He’s done and what He is doing. Writing about Him is how I understand Him and know His character. Over the past several years God has repeatedly told me to write and I have off and on. I have a fully written book in it’s final editing process and this blog which I’m sad to say I’ve neglect as of late. But as I come back to it I feel uplifted and free, because I’m doing what God’s called me to do.
In our American society we get so encapsulated that our job or career is our identity, but we are so much more the what we do for a living. Our identity can never be stripped away. We can lose everything and everyone and God will still be God and we will still be who He called us to be; His kids.
Paul knew that and that’s why he says by the will of God, because God completely changed who he was, God gave Paul a new identity, a new purpose and even a new name.
God does this with us too. When we seek God and ask Him who He made us to be. He reveals His identity for us, who He designed us to be. We become fulfilled by Him the more we walk in the identity He’s called us to.
Who has he called you to be?
More each day
What was it that attracted you to God?
For me it was His redemption, unconditional love and acceptance. He knew all my junk but still I felt His love and forgiveness the moment I surrendered my life to Him.
What keeps me in relationship with Him, is His never-ending love, grace and beauty. I feel His love each day, His grace when I make mistakes and He shows me His beauty more each day.
We should never stop falling in love with God, just as we should never stop falling in love with our spouse. Each day we need to see them both in a new light, a new appreciation.
God wants to reveal Himself to us more each day, we just have to let Him.
Happy Fourth of July
First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
Regardless of your opinion of our leaders, we are called to pray for them. Whether we agree with them or not.
As I said in a on previous post the best way to change someone, is to pray for them.
So take a moment today and pray for our leaders.
Shine Bright
Have you ever noticed how lights seem brighter in the dark. Like Christmas lights they shine brighter and more beautiful in the dark.
Gods light is like this, he shines in and through us as we grow in relationship with him and choose to let him shine instead of us. When we are in a dark situation he can be that light and shine for us and to others, showing them the way out of the darkness.
So we should not fear the darkness, but look at it as an opportunity to shine Jesus brighter.
Find the Light
Light even in the darkest place will help you see, if you look for it.
Have you ever closed your eyes in a dark room and been able to see better when you opened them.
If we stay in the dark, we will get used to it and think that this is how life is.
But if we seek out the light and look for more, you will find the light and eventually leave the darkness behind.
God gave me a vision a long time ago of him walking in dark woods with no path, but as he walked the footprints he left behind illuminated to guide me where he wanted me to go.
We can find the light if we look for it.
Jesus is always with us waiting to be the light, to guide us even in the darkest places.
Close your eyes and ask him to show you the light, to show you the steps he wants you to take.
Trust the light of the world, Jesus.
You have a choice
Seeing God is everyday life is about asking him to speak to you through and in everything.
One of my favorite quotes from The Lion King is when Rafiki says “You can either run from your past or learn from it”
One the greatest gifts God gave us was choice.
We have the choice to choose our actions and reactions.
You can choose to let things in your past dictate how you act, speak and interact with others or you can make a conscious choice not to let your past determine your future.
The amazing thing abut Jesus sacrifice is that it gives you a fresh start.
Every moment of everyday you can choose to allow the Holy spirit to guide to be made new in Jesus or you can choose your own selfish desires.
What will you choose?
What is God teaching you?
Sharing what God is doing in our lives and others sharing what he is doing in their live is how we encourage and build each others up. We are the body of Christ and how can the body function if it doesn’t communicate with itself. When one part of the body suffers others parts of the body come to heal that part.
When we lived in Michigan we were part of a small group that had no curriculum, no required reading, no plan, except to that each week when we gathered we asked each other one simple question.
‘What has God been teaching you this week?’
Our facilitator/host always had something prepared but we rarely needed it. Some of the members would share, not always the same people even but somehow it always all connected. We would teach each other what God was teaching us and encourage each other to grow in our relationship with God. Sometimes when one or a few of us were struggling or hurting we did what the body does we would focus on that person and help them to heal. Even when we didn’t know what to do we followed the leading of the Holy spirit and let God teach us all. But we made learning a sharing experience.
Sharing with each other and those who don’t yet know God builds faith and trust. It shows that he is real and that he does make a difference in our lives and he can do the same for everyone.
Share your life share your stories of what Gods done for you and seek to learn from others what God has done for them.
What fills you?
Soaking is a term meaning to literally sit in God’s presence and soak it in. You don’t have to pray or sing or do anything. Just sit and let everything go, all your worries all your concerns, all your pain and frustration and just let him be enough for it all.
If you’ve never tried it, I want to encourage you to put on your favorite worship music station and just let everything go and let God fill you up with his peace, joy, love and presence.