Hold On, And Fear Not

Good Morning!! God's delays are never because of poor planning,...it's often a matter of our disobedience, or a matter of us needing to wait upon His perfect timing. It might even be a issue of God preparing us for something better than we've asked for. He knows we often wring our hands, wondering if this time He'll forget,...but the truth is, God never forgets. He sees us and knows our anxious thoughts,...has sent the Holy Spirit to be our comforter.

We wait in hope for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name.—Psalm 33:20-21 (NIV)

We all know waiting is never easy. The good news is, when we wait on the Lord, we can trust that it will be worth the wait.  We need to rest in the knowledge that He never sleeps, slumbers or forgets, and He never is late, and His plans for us will surpass even our highest hopes or biggest dreams.

Remember a time you had to wait for God to answer one or more of your prayers,...can you see how His timing was better than yours?

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Heavenly Father, we praise You for Your faithfulness. Help us to trust You, even when we can’t see what You are doing. Help us wait with anticipation as You reveal Your plans for our lives. Father we thank You for Your steadfast love. Amen.

"With God's strength behind us and His arms beneath us, we can face whatever lies ahead."

Seeing God In Adversity

Good Morning!! "Why is this happening to me?" If you've, never asked that, it's because you have not been through anything,...and if you have asked it, you're not alone. No one is exempt from adversity. It’s all around us. Some burdens come from the enemy, while others are caused by our own sin. Most, however, are the simple results of the fallen world in which we live. At one time of another, God allows trials caused by these circumstances to touch each of our lives. You may be wondering, "Why would a loving God allow His children to suffer hardships?" Again, you are not alone. I assure you that our Heavenly Father has not made a mistake by allowing adversity into our lives. He uses them for our good.

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)

Adversity can be a good thing depending on whose perspective we take. When we look at adversity form our viewpoint, we tend to ask, "What am I going to do?" When seeking God’s point of view through adversity, we ask; "What does God want me to do? or What is God going to do?" Many have come to believe that Romans 8:28 is God's perspective on adversity. He is at work on our behalf—for our good and His glory even when it doesn't look like it,...feel like,...or appear like it. Those are the times we have to rest in the comfort of His love, while we trust His hand at work in our lives. Don’t struggle through your circumstances alone. Climb into the Father’s lap, and tell Him all about your troubles. He understands,...and He has a plan.

God uses our trials to teach us about Himself, to create Christ-like character, to reveal His love and expand our ministry.

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Father God, forgive us when we forget Who's in charge, or feel alone and doubt Your promises. Forgive us for attempting to relying on ourselves, to work out our situation. Help us to believe and remember, that You alone are enough,...and You are working in our life for our good. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

"With God's strength behind us and His arms beneath us, we can face whatever lies ahead."

Captured And Marked

Good Morning!! God made us, rare and special creations, in His image. He told us to be fruitful and multiply. Throughout history, as the human race populated the earth, storms, diseases, devastation have constantly threatened mankind in one way or another. Not only do physical trials threaten, but spiritual temptations are all too common. The good news is that God has a plan for our eternal preservation.

"Because the poor are plundered and the needy groan, I will now arise," says the Lord. "I will protect them from those who malign them."—Psalms 12:5 (NIV)

God's plan, as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is to rescue us from the evils that would destroy His unique and precious children. In God's love and mercy, He reached down from Heaven, sending His son to capture our hearts. Jesus "marked" us with His love and empowered a lifestyle that would keep Christianity from becoming extinct. We can read all about it in the Bible,...especially the New Testament letters. Filled with the Holy Spirit we grow stronger in His plan that the world would know the Good News of the Gospel. We can step out in service, knowing that His shelter is always available. His strong mountain of power and peace is our refuge.

Because of our certain devastation as frail, faulty human beings,...we must turn to the Lord for eternal protection and sanctuary.

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Lord, we want to live in Your sanctuary. Capture us with Your love,...take all of us. Preserve us for Your service, and glory to bring Your Good News to future generations,...so that they may know that You alone are the Perfect Provider and Protector. Amen.

"With God's strength behind us and His arms beneath us, we can face whatever lies ahead."

Be Fruitful And Faithful

Good Morning, My Friend!! It's hard to continually do good deeds when there is no one to pat you on the back. It's even harder when you are torn down for it. So, how does one persevere in these situations?...It's all about focus and mindset. When we focus our minds on our real Supervisor and work solely for Him, there is peace, even in the midst of persecutions and triumph in trials. When instructions come from a not-so-gracious worldly supervisor, filter them through your Heavenly Supervisor,..."as if working for the Lord and not for men" (Colossians 3:23b).

Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free.—Ephesians 6:7-8 (NIV)

So, will good deeds earn us salvation?...certainly not. To say that our good deeds could earn us salvation is to say that Christ died in vain. It is through Christ alone that we are saved. "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith,...and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast" (Ephesians 2:8). The service of good deeds is an overflow of our love for God. Jesus said that when we shine our light for Him, others will see and believe. While our good deeds are sweet offerings to the Lord, the aroma can also permeate the heart of an unbeliever. It is our duty as Christians to let the goodness of God show in our service, thus piquing the curiosity of unbelievers. Let our good deeds be a living testimony to the goodness of God,...and let our joyful service spring from hearts that are eager to please our Lord.

Christ-centered living means that we do good deeds for the glory of God.

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Father God, create in us pure hearts, and renew in us right spirits. Saturate our attitudes with thanksgiving and joy. May all that we do be pleasing in Your sight. Let Your light shine through our good deeds,...to those who live in darkness. Amen.

"With God's strength behind us and His arms beneath us, we can face whatever lies ahead."

Character, A Lasting Foundation

Good Morning!! The decisions we make, and the accomplishments we celebrate, tell our children, our friends and everyone around us what we believe matters most. So, I guess we need to ask ourselves, "What am I building with? Whose words am I listening to as I lay a foundation for my life?" The world will tell us to build our foundation with the materials of power, performance and prestige. Television commercials communicate that academics, athletics and appearance pave the way to success. But Jesus says the opposite. He describes a successful life as one built on the foundation of His word. He knows that academics, athletics and appearance will take us places,...but only character will keep us there. All throughout scripture we find Jesus talking about the condition and character of our heart,...because that is what matters most.

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.—Romans 12:2 (NIV)

The world looks at what we do,...but God looks at who we are. He knows when we follow His ways and allow His word to shape us from the inside out, our character will be strengthened and our foundation made firm. This is an important truth to apply in our own lives, and also to pass on, because we're not just building our own foundation, we are laying groundwork for others to build on as well. We need to take time to tell others what matters most to God,...and then live out the truths of His word. You have eyes set on your construction site, so be careful what you build with, it will determine how your story ends! Character is what counts in building a life that will last. .

We are all building something, brick-by-brick with the choices we make,...we construct a life that reflects what is most important to us.

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Holy Spirit, help us to build a foundation that will last. We all want to leave a legacy worth living. Teach us the value of God's Word, and show us ways we can apply it in our every day lives. The world's measuring stick tempts us away from the truest measure of success: to have a heart that reflects Christ's character. Help us to hear His words, and apply what we hear,...and laying a lasting foundation for not only our lives, but all those that are watching us! Amen.

"Things come apart so easily when they have been held together with lies."

God In A Skin

Good Morning!! If you are like me, every day is crammed full of tasks, errands, deadlines, demands and activities. I run through each,...from the minute my feet hit the floor, until I crawl back into bed at night. Most times, it's in those quiet moments before sleep that I even think to ask; "Did you make a difference today? Is someone closer to the Light because you told them about God,...and what He has done in your life? Did you recognize that "intrusion" or "interruption" as a divine appointment from Him? After all the racing and rushing, does what you did today really matter?"

Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.—1 John 3:18 (NIV)

Sadly, I have to confess that many times the answer is no,...I miss far too many opportunities to participate in eternal business, because I am so focused on earthly business. Our agendas become our god, and time management our idol. I could have been "God in skin" to the frustrated cashier at Wal-mart instead of brushing her aside, because I was in a hurry to do something,...I deemed more important. I could have blessed the friend or family member who called, needing an encouraging word,...instead of preaching an unsolicited sermon. I could have taken a few more minutes to listen when the elderly man struck up a conversation with me at the gas pump,...instead of walking away, leaving him just as lonely as he was before we met.

With every breath Jesus was aware of the hurting and wounded,...pursuing the broken people instead of avoiding them. His time was invested, instead of spent,...and as a result, there has never been a life that made such a difference, or mattered so much.

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Father God, we confess to You that we are often too busy to hear Your voice or determine Your direction for our lives. Please forgive us for being self-centered. Help us to see those who cross our path like You see them. Help us to love them with Your love,...drawing them from the darkness into the Light. Amen!.

"Things come apart so easily when they have been held together with lies."

Unity

Good Morning!! Just before He was arrested and crucified, Jesus prayed for our unity. He was facing a horrible death on the cross,...but we, and His heartfelt desire for our unity in Him, were on His Mind. Why is unity so important to Him? In John 17:21, He explains, so the world may believe that God sent Him. Unity among believers is our greatest witness to Jesus. Unbelievers recognize us as Jesus’ disciples by our deeds of love for one another,....It's what sets us apart.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.—1 Corinthians 13:4-8 (NIV)

Unity has and requires many intricate parts, such as trust, forgiveness, grace, accountability, kindness and confidentiality. But it is the gift of God’s agape love that binds these parts all together. This kind of love is not our natural human tendency. It is not concerned with self, but desires to love by choice,...seeking little more than the same in return. The apostle Paul talks about, and describes this love clearly for us in today's verses.

I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me. ( John 17:23)

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Oh God, how we thank You for Your agape love. We thank you for Jesus who forgives us of our sins. We ask forgiveness now for when we have allowed our will to stand defiantly against Yours. Pour out Your love in our hearts for our family and friends,...and help us restore damaged and broken relationship today. Amen.

"Things come apart so easily when they have been held together with lies."