In our hearts and minds
the things we fear
loom larger, greater, stronger
than God. And,
if we’re not careful,
our awe of God will be
subtly replaced by that fear
of lesser things.
The Lord is my light and my salvation–
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life–
of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalm 27:1 NIV
This has been my problem:
I have not considered the fields
ripe for harvest.
I’ve thought of people as anything but
on the verge of salvation.
How differently we would speak
and act and hope and pray,
if we truly believed God is ready to save,
and people ready, even longing, to believe.
“I tell you, open your eyes and look to fields!
They are ripe for harvest.”
Jesus in the book of John, chapter 4, verse 35
I used to think Satan wins
every time we sin.
I don’t think that anymore.
Satan never wins,
even when the Christian sins,
because Jesus paid the price
for all of our sin–
past and present and future.
And, if not now, then in the end,
God will be glorified
because of the excellence of the sacrifice
that satisfied His wrath on our behalf.
That’s the glory of the gospel.
That’s the every day power of God
to all who believe.
But where sin abounded,
grace abounded much more,
so that as sin reigned in death,
even so grace might reign
through righteousness
to eternal life
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Romans 5:20-21 NKJV
“I don’t deserve to be so happy.
I can’t help it. I just can’t help it.”
Scrooge, A Christmas Carol
My favorite movie line.
It reminds me of our everlasting joy in Christ.
We taste of it now,
and will fully experience it in heaven.
The ransomed of the Lord will return.
They will enter Zion with singing;
everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.
Isaiah 51:11 NIV
We can trust God to give us
whatever we need
whenever we need it–
and not sparingly either.
And my God shall supply all your need
according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19 NKJV
Every word
in the Bible
is true.
And every promise
for us.
What a great God we serve,
that He would condescend to us
to give us His Word,
to let us know
what is on His mind
and in His heart.
And what a loving caring God
that He
would make promises to us,
when it should be
the other way around.
What then shall we say to these things?
If God is for us, who can be against us?
He who did not spare His own Son,
but delivered Him up for us all,
how shall He not with Him also
freely give us all things?
Romans 8:31-32 NKJV
We can not fret and be still at the same time.
Every moment a decision must be made:
worry or worship your God who knows best.
Be still, and know that I am God.
Psalm 46:10 NKJV
We learn to love the Bible
by continually asking God
to give us a love for it,
and by a stubborn persistence
in reading it.
It takes determination,
because everything in our natural selves
says the Bible is boring,
out of date,
and hard to understand.
Open my eyes that I may see
wonderful things in Your law.
Psalm 119:18 NIV
Sometimes one word
is all the advice we need…
pray.
Be anxious for nothing,
but in everything by prayer
and supplication, with thanksgiving,
let your requests be made known to God.
Philippians 4:6 NKJV
God’s favor flows through Christ,
for salvation and beyond.
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son,
that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world,
but to save the world through Him.”
John 3:16-17 NIV
Two precious
tiny
inked
feet,
smaller than the tip of Scott’s thumb,
prove to this grandma
that one day
her grandson,
James Lucas,
will walk up to greet her
on heaven’s golden streets.
What a day that will be!
Then they also brought infants to Him
that He might touch them;
but when the disciples saw it,
they rebuked them.
But Jesus called them to Him and said,
“Let the little children come to Me,
and do not forbid them;
for of such is the kingdom of God.”
Luke 18:15-16 NKJV
After everything has fallen apart,
we can trust God to put things back together.
And we know that in all things
God works for the good
of those who love Him,
who have been called
according to His purpose.
Romans 8:28 NIV
We should be careful not to condemn
the people Jesus came to save.
The self-righteous Pharisee
spoke to himself saying,
“This Man [Jesus], if He were a prophet,
would know who and what manner
of woman this is who is touching Him,
for she is a sinner [a prostitute].”
But Jesus said to the woman,
“Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”
The whole story: Luke 7:36-50
righteousness: the state or condition
of perfectly conforming to
God’s perfect law and holy character.
For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us,
that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
2 Corinthians 5:21 NKJV
When all we can do is pray,
prayer is enough.
The effective,
fervent prayer
of a righteous man
avails much.
James 5:16 NKJV
God’s Word is our bodyguard, keeping us safe;
our physician, keeping us well;
our counselor, keeping us sane;
our conscience, keeping us from sin;
our soulmate, keeping us company;
our teacher, keeping us informed;
our lover, satisfying our deepest needs;
and our treasure,
making us rich in all things that matter most.
See Psalm 19:7-11
Life for the Christian
is always an adventure,
because even in the down times
we are spending time with God.
Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Ephesians 3:20-21 NKJV
When all we have left are the promises of God,
we will see that they have been
only and exactly what we needed all along.
“Do not be afraid; only believe.”
You, Lord, are forgiving and good,
abounding in love to all who call to you.
Mark 5:36 NKJV, Psalm 86:5 NIV
dismay: to cause to lose courage or resolution.
Dismay implies that one is at a loss
as to how to deal with something.
‘Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you
with My righteous right hand.’
Isaiah 41:10 NKJV
The key to living the abundant Christian life
is not in trying to sin less,
but in trying to love God more.
‘And you shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart, with all your soul,
with all your mind, and with all your strength.’
This is the first commandment.
Mark 12:30 NKJV
