When you feel defeated, knocked down, like no one is in your corner. Jesus is always there for you. He always has your back. He will go to bat for you because He already did when lived a sinless life and died to pay for our mistakes.
He’s forever on our side.
Jesus is always there for us.
We can always talk to Him. He will always listening, because He loves us.
He loves us so much that He gave everything for us. He gave every second of everyday for us. He gave up His life for US!
I gave my life to Jesus because I tried doing life without him, I tried being happy without Him and it didn’t work. There was always something missing something I was striving for that I couldn’t grasp.
But life with Jesus is simpler, peaceful, and joy filled.
Don’t think I don’t have bad moments, I do, but those moments are the one where I don’t have Him in mind.
But it never fails that when I turn to Him, He shows me the sunshine through the rain. He shines bright and shows me where He is in that moment and He changes my perspective to find the joy in the sadness.
When we try to live without Jesus we are always striving to feel worthy, valued, loved and wanted.
But Jesus sacrifice already paid our debts and He gives us our worth and our value. He sees us as priceless, that’s why He gave His life for us. So that we could stop striving and start living in Him.
No matter you’ve done or how unworthy you feel, God will always see you as priceless and worthy because of His sacrifice, if we accept it.
Rehearsing over and over again our mistakes in our head just allows guilt and shame to have control over us. Even rehearsing the wrong doings of others against us gives them power over us. When we allow these things to dictate our decisions we give them control over us.
But when we surrender them over to Jesus and accept His grace for us and for them, we find freedom.
When we die to ourselves and allow God to live through us, His love and His grave cover our mistakes so that we can be free of guilt and shame, because we are dead and the dead can’t be offended, guilty or ashamed.
Instead we can rejoice in the freedom, joy and peace of God’s grace.
Surrender over to God whatever is holding you back, whatever you think you did or you are, that stops you from being who God made you to be.
The love of God transform us. It gives us boldness, strength and confidence in the toughest moments. God’s love not only cancels fear, it removes it. God’s love is all encompassing.
It gave David the strength to face Goliath, Daniel the stamina to face the lion den and Shadrach, Mesach and Abednigo the confidence to face the fire.
God’s love gives us all we need to face or overcome the trials we face in life. He gives us peace in the storm when we fix our eyes on Him. Like Peter walking on the water. When he had his gaze fixed on Jesus he was able to do what defied logic and understanding. But when Peter took his gaze off of Jesus and focused on the storm around him (his circumstances) he began to sink. So no matter what your surrounded by fix your gaze on Jesus and He’ll teach you to walk on the water and find peace that surpasses understanding.
So often we focus on the problem instead of the solution. Jesus is always the solution.
We all always just need more Jesus.
When were having ‘bad day’ and cant get out of our own funky mood, we need more Jesus.
When someone is getting on our nerves and we don’t know why, we need more Jesus.
When were in a circumstance and don’t know what to do we need more Jesus.
Jesus is the solution.
He can bring us joy and peace on the ‘bad days’, he can show us what is really bothering us and helps us find he root cause, and he can change circumstances.
We all always just need more Jesus.
He’s our attitude adjustment, our perspective changer and he can move mountains.
Think about it this way. Has being poking at, people pointing fingers at you, being teased, being told you are wrong, or protesting ever convinced you that you are loved by God. Then why would we think that it would convey that to anyone else.
Did Jesus do anything of those things? No.
When people met Jesus, they changed their ways by their own decision. The tax collector gave back the money he stole with interest and Jesus never asked him to. Jesus didn’t throw rocks at the woman who was going to be stoned for adultery, he defended her.
Jesus causes people to change their ways just by being love. It’s the love of God that causes people to choose to change, not condemnation.
Isn’t that what brought you to God?
His love and forgiveness.
We are not meant to be judge and jury. We are meant to show God’s love.
Jesus Freak by DC Talk was one of my favorite songs when I was in junior high, when I started to make my faith my own.
I was proud then and I’m proud now to be a “Jesus Freak.” Because that means that others see him in me and through me.
We are supposed to be different, we are supposed to stand out for Jesus. People are supposed to see us different and it’s supposed to be desirable.
That doesn’t mean that we wash down the gospel so that it’s palatable to people in there current point of view, it means that we show them that they can have peace and joy and hope and love through relationship with Jesus.
Being a Jesus Freak should be something we are proud of, not something we are ashamed of.
The breakup song by Francesca Battistelli is a great anthem for those moments of fear that sneak up on us.
The reminder that we have the power to tell fear to leave.
We don’t have to let it over take us every moment of every day you have the choice to let your self be ruled by fear or to choose your feeling and refuse to let fear control you.
Listen to the song sing along a tell fear to leave.
It’s easy this year to get caught up in what we can’t do or can’t give during this Christmas but are our family traditions or gift giving really the purpose of Christmas? As wonderful as they are.
No. Christmas is the celebration of Jesus birth and it’s his life that we should celebrate. A man who was poor and even had times with no where to sleep, but was forever kind and generous. It’s he that we celebrate, one that loved all humanity so much that he came to serve us, not allowing selfish moments but letting his love for us guide him.
Even if we were have nothing this Christmas season we can always be grateful for our friends and family and for Jesus birth.
So this Christmas no matter how different your celebration may be you can always count your blessings.
Listening to the song Last Christmas by Wham reminds me that we as humans are fallible, we all make mistakes and disappointment each other.
But the one that we can always count on is God. He is love, joy, peace, patience, kind, good, faithful and gentle. He knows what we need and when; and he’s always ready to love us when we let him in.
We as humans have misrepresented him because we are not perfect and we make mistakes. So please don’t let people keep you from knowing him, let him prove who he is to you himself.
Give him your big questions, he can handle it, but make sure you listen for the answers.
This Christmas give him a chance to share his love for you with you.
Watch this movie to help you learn how to hear God’s voice.
With all the gift giving this season. Don’t forget the reason for the season, Jesus.
What gift could you give him?
You may think you have nothing to give, but like the little drummer boy you give what you can, you give your gifts, your talents, your time, your life. Everyone has a life to give. And he deserves it because he gave his.
Even if you think you have nothing to give, Jesus says otherwise. He created you, he gave you gifts and talents you may not even know exist.
When you follow God’s plan for your life he uses those gifts and talents for him.
God gave me the calling to ministry ten years ago. And I didn’t start my blog till this September. He had to take me on a journey to teach me and grow and develop me into the woman that I am today. I am a very different person then I was ten years ago, because he had to mold me into who he made me to be and he’s still molding me.
That’s why I started this blog to use the gifts he’s given me to help others see God in their everyday lives.
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.
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.
Speaking the name of Jesus out loud is powerful, it brings an emotional response from us. Some fear, some worry, some peace, some joy, his name invokes something inside us.
We each have a different response when we hear his name.
But we can only truly know him, if we develop a relationship with him.
I can tell you all day about how amazing he is, that he’s completely changed my life. I can tell you how hearing his name brings so much peace and joy to my heart when I hear it that it can be overwhelming at times.
But you can never truly know him, till you know him yourself.
Today I just want to bring some sunshine to your day. God loves to bring joy and laughter into our lives and this song always brings a smile to my heart. Enjoy and laugh with Jesus!
As believers in Jesus its easy to look to heaven as the solution; to think that we just have to suffer till we get to heaven. But Jesus never intended for us to live this life alone.
Heaven can be here on earth now if we look for it, if we focus on Jesus. One of my favorite questions that I first heard from Graham Cooke is “What do you want to be for me now?”
Heaven is free of pain and hurt yes, but its also full of worship. So we worship while we wait, we worship while we wait for the healing, we worship while we wait for the provision or the answer. Worship brings heaven to us and worship opens us up to letting God lead. Its in worship that we surrender all our worries and concerns.
So no matter what we are going through, worship through it. Give God the glory and ask him ‘what he wants to be for you now?’
When we face times of stress or trials in life it’s easy to give up and give in to temptation for quick fixes that scratch an itch or satisfy for a moment but leave us feeling guilty and full of regret in the long term.
But because we know God loves us and he has a plan for us and that plan is way better then what might be right in front of us. We don’t take those quick fixes.
We trust that his plan is better, that because he loves us he will provide. It seems counter cultural, but it’s the way he designed us. He has given each of us passions and skills. But they are meant to be used to share his love with others not for selfish gain or ambition.
God knows what were going through, he knows ever ache and pain, every anguish and He’s in it with us holding our hand, leading us, guiding us, holding us, because He always knows what we need, when we need it.
He’s with us when were having our worst day and our best day. He will comfort us when we need it and rejoice with us in our triumph’s. God does life with us, because He is our life. He’s our constant companion, our best friend and the one who loves us most. We need only to focus our attention on Him.
It’s so easy to get caught up in our thoughts. To become overwhelmed and insecure when we turn to our own opinion of ourselves or others opinions of us.
But the only opinion that should matter is Jesus, what he says is what matters.
He says we are loved, we are strong, we belong.
If you depend on getting your value from others you will always feel like your not enough. But Jesus says your priceless.
He paid everything for you, because he loves you
Today I had a rough day at work everything that could go wrong went wrong and by the end of the day I was stressed and tired because I had left Jesus out of the equation. I didn’t focus on him.
But on the way home I heard You Say by Lauren Daigle, and I knew what I needed to write about today.
It doesn’t matter what anyone else says about us. What matters is what Jesus says and he says we are loved.
Take a moment and refocus your thoughts as you listen to this song. Let the words speak to you and let Jesus remind you of who he made you to be.
Listening to O Holy Night, always helps me to stop and focus on Jesus to feel the peace and calm that he brings to the atmosphere, to remember that Christmas is about him and bringing glory to our savior.
He changed everything that night when he choose to come down to earth not as a king, but as a baby, to humble himself and live a life of service to his people.
Jesus didn’t come down to be served but to serve. He came to restore relationship between us and father God.
What we build our life on matters. Any builder will tell you the foundation is crucial. If it’s not firm and level the building will not last.
Our foundation is Jesus. He’s rock solid but when we mix other things in with him as our foundation we degrade the quality of our foundation. Making it easier to falter in storms and sink or lean over time.
But if Jesus is our only foundation then we will stand through the storm and time will show just how unchanging He is. His love for us is the same for all eternity and for every moment of every day.
He doesn’t change, our dependence and trust in Him is what changes. When He is not our focus and we allow other things in instead of Him we will falter.
That’s the power of free will that He gave us. We choose just how much or how little of Him that we want in our lives. If we want to stand firm on Him as our foundation then He must be the start, middle and end of our day. Our focus must be on Him and He will guide us through our day.
You may think I don’t have all day to spend in prayer. But that’s the beautiful thing about the Holy Spirit He is with us everywhere, all day, wherever we go. So start your day with a quick devotion, listen to songs, sermons, or podcasts that fix your mind on Him while getting ready for your day. Talk with Jesus as your drive to work or ask your kids what Jesus is teaching them as you take them to school. Rest in God’s presence on your lunch break. When you’re stressed ask God’s advice on how to fix it. Ask Him what to make or pick up for dinner. Ask whoever you live with what God taught them today. Read a Bible story to your kids at night, pray over them and have them pray over you too. Make your life all about Jesus in and through your daily life.
We don’t have to stop life to spend time with Jesus, we just need to include Him in it.
When we walk around with unforgiveness that anger and
bitterness spills onto everyone else in our lives. Because we haven’t dealt
with it, it just builds and builds until, it explodes on some unsuspecting
person that may have done the tiniest thing.
Acknowledging God’s exisistance is the first step toward
forgiveness. Acknowledging that he does love us and it’s because he loves us
that he gave us the free will to choose him or not. And it’s that free will
that causes us to hurt each other.
Even those that choose him are not faultless, we all still
make mistakes and no one is perfect except God.
Many peoples distrust of God is because others have misrepresented him, none of us are faultless. Only through knowing God ourselves can we really know who he his.
Don’t let others misrepresentation of him keep you from knowing a loving and trust worthy God that sacrificed his very life for you.
Seek to know God for yourself and let him show you who is he and the freedom that comes from his forgiveness.
