April 25, 2024

I Will Not Fear

July 31, 2015 by

Though the fig tree does not bud
and there is no fruit on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen
and no cattle in the stalls,
Yet I will triumph in Yahweh;
I will rejoice in the God of my salvation!
Yahweh my Lord is my strength;
He makes my feet like those of a deer
and enables me to walk on mountain heights!
Habakkuk 3:17-19

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I am claiming this verse today…and I am placing my needs before His feet. Fig trees and olive crops are symbols for the things of this world that we may lack at this very moment.  August is always hard here.  School is looming and there are always needs: clothes, shoes, school supplies (and now with one in college), the list goes on…and on. But isn’t God so much bigger than any of these?  {yes!}

It’s funny how God leads me to certain verses on the days that i write…and it always is something that I need to hear and to pass along to you.  What are you believing God for today?  Are you struggling to believe at all?  Sometimes things feel so desperate (and, truly, they may be).  There may be no food in the pantry and no money to go purchase any.  Or a really big bill is due and you have absolutely no idea how you are going to pay it.  Or an illness and a bad report has you feeling like there is no hope at all.

But the good news is this: There is always hope in Jesus!

I know that my sound cliche but it is so true! If you put all your hope and all your efforts into just praising Him today—though the problems may still be there—there will be joy in place of sorrow!  Hope will replace hopelessness and praise will replace pity.  We may not get to choose the circumstances in our lives but we can choose how we react to them.  (I am preaching to myself!)

Fear and worry are stealers, and they come straight from the enemy who wants nothing more than to rob you of all you have.  He especially wants to take your hope away.  But if we let him have that…we have let him win.  The enemy doesn’t go after your salvation.  He can’t have it!  But he can take the peace that comes with the salvation that Jesus gave His own life for us to have.  One of my favorite passages is Psalms 23.  It was one of the first ones that I learned in elementary school and it is one that has gotten me through a lot of hard times.  In verse 4 is says:

Even when I walk through the darkest valley,
I will not be afraid, for You are close beside me.
Your rod and Your staff protect and comfort me.

Today, as you read this verse, fill in the blank with your own valley.

Even when I walk through ________,
I will not be afraid, for You are close beside me. 

And know beyond a shadow of a doubt that whatever it is you wrote down, that your God is able to do this and so much more.  Claim it with me today…and enjoy the sunshine today!

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Let us pray: Dear God, You are so full of love for us and Your grace is sufficient for every minute that we breathe.  You are the same always; You never change.  Thank You for Your provision and Your hand in everything that we go through.  You waste nothing, oh Lord!  I pray today for all these friends reading this today, that You would give them back their joy and peace, oh God!  And that nothing that the enemy throws at them can take away the hope that they have in You.  Silence his lies today and everyday.  Remind them that feelings are feelings but that Your Word is truth.  Lead them to the truth today. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Love is the Home for Both

July 24, 2015 by

encouragementbloggraphicromans15

In the fifteenth chapter of Luke, starting with verse 11, we read the story of the prodigal son.  I’m sure you have read or heard this so many times but bear with me for a minute.  The actual word ‘prodigal’ means ‘the squanderer or the waster’.  And the prodigal son did squander his inheritance and totally wasted all that his father gave him.

If you think about it, we have all played both roles at some time in our lives.  Maybe at one point we are the older, responsible son—keeping everything in order and never disappointing our Father, and looking down on those who do and those who give the sinner a break.  We have also been the younger one—wasting our inheritance from our Father, turning to anyone or anything that will make us “happy”, and running so far the other way.  But instead of finding happiness and freedom, we find ourselves in slavery to this other life that we thought we wanted so desperately.  We find ourselves starving for real substance and we are desperate for the life we had before.

And then there’s the father who never gave up on his son, and continued to search and wait and believe that they will one day be a family again. The son returns and the father lavishes love and compassion and hugs. He gives him his best robe and a ring and acts as if nothing happened. Even when the older son gets mad and protests, the father does not judge him. He is fair and just, resembling our Father in Heaven.

Here is the story:

The Parable of the Lost Son

Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living.  After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.  When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’  So he got up and went to his father.  But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’  But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.  Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on.  ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’  The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’  ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ ”

Luke 15:11-32 (NIV)

Which son do you relate to?  Have you run so far or are you a slave to something other than God?  Have you wasted all that God has given you for something you thought was better?  Or are you the older brother, looking down on the one who made the bad choices, and maybe a little bitter when he is given mercy by others?

God is your Father and He loves you.  If you have run away, He is ready to meet you where you are.  He is willing to accept you just the way you are and give you the finest life and the abundant blessings that are yours!  All you have to do is ask.  God’s arm reaches so far and you can’t ever outrun Him.

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Do you know this Father I’m talking about?  Do you want this unconditional love that you’ve just read about?  Then pray this with me:

Dear God, I know I am a sinner and I need forgiveness.  I believe that Jesus, Your Son, died on the cross to save me from my sins and I will have Him in my heart forever.  I love You.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

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In You Alone

July 17, 2015 by

encouragementbloggraphicromans15

Let all that I am wait quietly before God,
for my hope is in Him.
He alone is my Rock and my Salvation,
my Fortress where I will not be shaken.
My victory and honor come from God alone.
He is my Refuge, a Rock where no enemy can reach me.
O my people, trust in Him at all times.
Pour out your heart to Him,
for God is our Refuge.
Psalms 62:5-8

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I read David’s writings daily.  Who can’t relate to an awesome king that loved God…yet was extremely human and sought forgiveness when he was wrong.  There is so much hope and healing in his writings and I find myself praying his words back to God.

David was a spiritual man and an extremely emotional one, too.  Many times he wrote these psalms out of his own feelings—feelings of amazement, fear, love, anger, and pain.  And this particular psalm was written in a time of disappointment, a time that David had been let down over and over.  If you have lived into adulthood, then you know how this feels.  It’s even harder when the person who disappoints you is a man or woman of God.  It can shake us off our firm foundation if we let it.

The person in David’s life was Saul and David’s eyes were opened as a teenager.  He couldn’t believe that someone could really go that far off the right path and let sin take him down so far.  Later in his life, David himself would slip, too.  No one is immune to sin and no one will ever walk a perfect journey here on earth—except Jesus!  Pastors will mess up. Friends in the congregation may stop coming. But good can from this…if we don’t let bitterness and resentment in.

The theme in this psalm of David’s is God alone.  He didn’t let bitterness come from his shattered expectations.  Instead he found hope in his Father.  He realized that the only constant on this earth is God.  Good people will hurt you and they will slip and sometimes they may never come back into God’s house again.  This shouldn’t sway you either way; and, if it does, it is time to do some reconnecting with God the Father.

Read verses 1-2 and 5-8 out loud.  Put the emphasis on every repetition of the words ‘God, He, and Him’.  Can you hear it?  See, because David poured out his heart to God, and he didn’t let it fester and build up, bitterness couldn’t take hold.  He had a hope and a rest in God.  In Hebrew, the word ‘hope’ means “a cord or an attachment.”  Everyone is holding onto something, or someone, for security.  Sometimes we hold onto a knotted rope and depend on whatever is on the other end to keep us from falling.

Picture that rope in your hands…
close your eyes and look up the rope…
who do you see on the other end?

Unless God is at the end of your rope, you’re about to fall…and you’re hanging on by a thread.  God alone can hold us up.  So the next time you allow someone to disappoint you, whisper two words to yourself—“God alone“.  When you decide to let that person off the hook and let God alone hold the other end of your rope, you will attach yourself to God’s strong arm.  He can hold you up over the deep and strong waves.  You will be secure enough to let one arm go free to help the person that disappointed you along the way, until he or she gets back on their feet.  And you will be able to say that it was worth all of the hard!  For you will really have found that your strength can only be found in Him.

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Let us pray:  Dear God, You are so great and You are fully able to do anything we ask or think according to Your will.  I am in awe of You.  Thank You for loving us so much and for sending Jesus to die in our place.  Oh God, forgive us when we place people above You and expect them to fulfill us…for only You can satisfy our every need.  Let us never forget that only You are perfect.  Help us to keep our eyes on You.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

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A New Name

July 10, 2015 by

encouragementbloggraphicromans15

Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit
and understand what He is saying to the churches.
‘To everyone who is victorious,
I will give some of the manna
that has been hidden away in Heaven.
And I will give to each one a white stone,
and on the stone will be engraved a new name
that no one understands except the one who receives it.’
Revelation 2:17 NLT

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What kind of names do you call yourself?  When I was in trouble as a child, I was called by all my names, my FULL name.  I remember one time begging my mom to change my name to some name I read in a book. Eventually she convinced me that my name was carefully chosen when I was born and that it was given with love. When I looked up the meaning of “Kimberly”, it said something about a forest, or wood clearing…so I went to my middle name which is “Ann.”  It means grace.  Oh, do I need some!

But often times, we call ourselves lots of other names that really aren’t chosen for us at all, especially by our heavenly Father.  We may call ourselves ‘ugly’ or ‘stupid.’  Or maybe someone else called you something early on in your life, and it stuck and you can’t seem to get it out of your head.  If this is you today then I encourage you to write those names down on paper and one by one throw them away in the trash replacing them with the names that your Father has given you.  For example,

He has called you His beloved
He has called you a treasure
He has called you royalty
(But most importantly) He has called you loved, and He has called you His

But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob,
And He who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by your name;
You are Mine.”
Isaiah 43:1

At the end of this time here on earth, the Lord will give each of us a new name which will be written on a white stone.  The Bible tells us it will be a name that only Jesus knows.

That name will represent what Christ was to you, and only you, here on this earth.  What is He to you?  For me…

  • He is my Stronghold in times of trouble.
  • He is my Provider in times of need.
  • He is my Deliverer when I am in over my head
  • He is my patient, long-suffering Lord that loves me with all that He is.

{And the list really goes on and on depending on my circumstances.}

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If you don’t know all that He is to you then I challenge you to get to know His character.  Read His Word and get to know His heart for you.  At the end of each day, write down all that He was to you that day. As you journal, go back and see all the ways He saves you and loves you.  And if you don’t know Him at all…and you really want to…I ask that you pray this simple prayer with me and cross the line from death to life.  Pray this…

Dear God, I know that I am a sinner.  I need a Savior.  I believe that Jesus is Your Son and that He died on the Cross to save me from my sins.  I want You to come into my life today and be my Lord.  Walk with me through this life.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Keep Your Eyes On Me

July 3, 2015 by

encouragementbloggraphicromans15

Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of Him to the other side, while He dismissed the crowd. After He had dismissed them, He went up on a mountainside by Himself to pray.  Later that night, He was there alone, and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.  Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake.  When the disciples saw Him walking on the lake, they were terrified.  “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.  But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”  “Lord, if it’s You,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to You on the water.”  “Come,” He said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.  But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and beginning to sink cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out His hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” He said, “why did you doubt?” And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down.  Then those who were in the boat worshipped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.”

Matthew 14:22-33 NIV

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How many times have you heard this story?  (If you’ve grown up in church, I know you’ve probably seen a felt board or two with this story demonstrated.)  These stories never get old though.

In this story, Jesus had just finished performing miracles and He sent His disciples on ahead of Him in a boat.  As they continued on, there came a storm and winds.  Then Jesus started to walk out there to them…yes…He walked on water.  In fact, the disciples thought He was a ghost!  The thing to remember is—Jesus knew that there was a storm coming but He sent them on anyway.  Maybe it was that He wanted to prove to them that He was stronger than any storm.

Jesus really is bigger than what you are going through.  And He knew, too, exactly where you would be today.  Are you going to trust Him?  What if He asks you to walk on water…like He asked Peter?  Would you stay afloat with your eyes on Him or would you sink in your circumstances?  Oh, friend, Jesus wants so much for you to trust Him, and to look to Him, and know that He is able to calm any storm or still those crashing waves around you.  Take that first step of faith today and walk out onto the water and meet your Savior!  Then, like Peter, you will say “Truly You are the Son of God!”

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Do you know Him?  He knows you and He wants you to know Him.  I hope you will pray this with me today…

Dear God, I know that I am a sinner and I need a Savior.  I believe that Jesus is Your Son and that He died on the Cross for my sins.  So I ask You to come into my heart and be Lord of my life.  Help me to walk closer to You.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

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A Beautiful Jar of Clay

June 26, 2015 by

encouragementbloggraphicromans15

We now have this light shining in our hearts,
but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars
containing this great treasure.
This makes it clear that our great power
is from God, not from ourselves.
We are pressed on every side by troubles,
but we are not crushed.
We are perplexed, but not driven to despair.
We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God.
We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed.
Through suffering, our bodies continue
to share in the death of Jesus
so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.
2 Corinthians 4:7-11 NLT

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There is so much brokenness in this world.  Look at the headlines every day…Christians are being tortured daily; children are being taken from their mothers; there is hunger and poverty…and the list goes on.  I’m sure if you went anywhere today, you passed a wife that cries every night because her husband is leaving or a father who is working so hard yet not being able to provide.  I know hard…and I know the One Who mends the hearts of all these people.  It is Jesus.

I went through a really trying time when my kids were younger.  It was a time that sometimes I wish I didn’t have to remember.  The memories sometimes are too much and I find myself wanting to erase them all.  But as messy as I see it, God sees it as a ministry that will give others hope and faith.  If I made it through and found joy and peace and restoration on the other side, then so can you.

Read the verses above; a jar that has cracks and holes can allow light to enter in those places.  And, as His children, we are never crushed!  We will always be able to withstand because we have Him to hold us together.  If your story is not the one you would have written for yourself, then thank Him for it anyway.  Our God is good and all He gives is good.  Your story may save someone else one day.  And God says if one person meets Jesus because of your story, then it was all worth it.  It may mean the difference between life and death for that person.

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Now, more than ever, we need Him.  And reading and studying His Word will help you know Him more and know His true character.  I just want you to know that all hope is found in Jesus!  Do you know Him?  Are you tired of running and hurting?  He wants to save you!  I ask you to pray this prayer with me:

Dear God, I know that I am a sinner and I need a Savior.  I believe that Jesus is Your Son and that He died for my sins—all of them.  I want You to be Lord of my life.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

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He Is My Rock

June 19, 2015 by

encouragementbloggraphicromans15

Since You are my Rock and my Fortress,
for the sake of Your Name, lead and guide me.
Psalm 31:3

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The verse today comes from one of my favorite chapters in the Book of Psalms.  Might I suggest that you read verses 1-8?  Here we see David asking God for deliverance from his enemies.  He is trudging along right now and life is really not going very good for him.  {Can you relate?}  See, back in the days of David, people were only aware of the hardships and trials that were going on right around them.  But today, we get to see worldwide disasters day-by-day on TV right in our kitchens!  We see so much violence and poverty and hatred that the good out there, well, it never makes the news.

So what does it do to us when we hear crisis after crisis?  Does it harden our hearts?  If so, don’t you think it is a defense—a wall that we have built around our hearts because of fear?  We build wall upon wall to keep from feeling the hurt.  But those same walls that keep things from coming in…they also keep love from coming out.  What if those walls become like a prison?  This is not what God wants for us.  He wants us to know that He is so able to help in our time of need.

We spend a whole lot of time, though, trying to avoid every kind of pain.  Including prayers begging God to deliver us or a friend or a family member from hardship that will cause them (or ourselves) hurt.  Isn’t that what God wants us to do—to ask? The answer is yes.  But the idea is not to live a life without any hurt and pain but rather to have God with us always…in the midst of it all…and to see His glory in all that happens around us.

Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away.
Each time He said, “My grace is all you need.
My power works best in weakness.”
So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses,
so that the power of Christ can work through me.
That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults,
hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ.
For when I am weak, then I am strong.
2 Corinthians 12:8-10 NLT

If God can bring glory to Himself without allowing us any pain, He really will!  But when He can’t, be ready for a little pain.  And know this: it will be worth it !!!

Yet what we suffer now is nothing
compared to the glory He will reveal to us later.
Romans 8:18 NLT

God sent Jesus to come so that we might have life and have it abundantly.  But living behind a wall of fear isn’t the life that God intended for us.  The walls that we have built to keep pain away must be replaced with God.  He is to be our Fortress and He alone can protect us from evil.  He is the Rock that we must build our home on and not on the shifting sand of this world.

And we must not become so hard that we forget to love and are not able to feel anything for others anymore.  God wants us to love and to love so much!  And when there is hurt and pain then we are to have compassion, and to call on His name.  He will come near—He promises.  Oh, I pray that we will not let this world change us; but that we will let God break down barriers to get to us.  May we remember that we will bend, but we will not break because we are His….

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Where are you today…are you living behind walls that need to come down?  Jesus can do this for you.  If you don’t have Him as your Savior, I hope today you will pray this simple prayer with me and cross the line to life!

Dear God, I know that I am a sinner.  I am so tired of hurting. I need forgiveness.  I believe that Jesus is Your Son and He died for me on the Cross with my sins on Him.  He is the Savior and I want Him to be Lord of my life.  Come into my heart today. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Are You A Mary Or Martha?

June 12, 2015 by

encouragementbloggraphicromans15

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things,
but only one thing is needed.
Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
Luke 10:41 and 42

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I think of all the times I am Martha and I have chosen the things that can easily be taken away…and they have been.  I remember how important it was to entertain and have people over and show off all the beautiful things we had acquired; and I wasn’t putting Jesus anywhere in the mix.  And I sure had not sat at His feet that day.  Fast forward a few years and all the pretty things went away and Jesus became all that was important to me because I saw how fast and fleeting the material things of this world really are.  But Jesus is forever.

In this story in Luke, Jesus is visiting the home of the two sisters, and Martha had come to Him to complain about her sister Mary.

As Jesus and His disciples were traveling on their way,
they came to a village where a woman named Martha lived
and she opened her house to Him and she had a sister named Mary.
Jesus sat down in the home and began teaching in a secluded corner.
verses 38 and 39

The people are hanging on every word.  Mary is sitting at His feet just drinking in His Presence.  Martha is hurrying about, worrying about how everyone would get fed, where they would sit and how this would all come together for they were hosting Jesus!

But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made.
She came to Him and asked,
“Lord, don’t You care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself?
Tell her to help me!”
verse 40

Martha gets frustrated and interrupts this gathering to complain about her sister not helping and how all Mary is doing is sitting at His feet!  The others look up to Him to see how Jesus will react.  He tells her (verses 41-42) that Mary has chosen the right thing to do instead of being so busy—she sat at His feet first.  All the work will still be there when she gets finished hearing her Jesus but if she gets up too fast, she just might miss something important that Jesus might say to her.

Mary was preparing her heart for Jesus while Martha was running around.  She would grasp what little words she could hear Jesus say while she was serving everyone else.  But what does Jesus say is the right thing to do?  He says, “…Mary has chosen what is better and it will not be taken away from her.”  Jesus cannot be taken from her.

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Can you relate to either of these women?  Which one are you?  If you don’t know, then pray that God will reveal it to you.  Ask yourself if you remember to sit at Jesus’ feet before you do anything else…or are you too busy to just be with Him…always in a hurry and forgetting to listen for His voice.  We need to remember that God is able to fix those things that we are so busy trying to fix if we will only stop trying and start trusting Him.  Trust Him today, friend.  And if you don’t know Jesus or maybe you just haven’t made Him Lord of your life, I pray that you will join me in this sinners prayer.

Dear God, I know that I am a sinner.  I need a Savior.  I believe that Jesus is Your Son and He died to save me from my sins.  I ask for forgiveness today.  Will You, Jesus, come into my heart today and be my Lord?  I want to know more about You as we walk together through life.  Thank  You for loving me and for forgiving me.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Be Bold

June 5, 2015 by

encouragementbloggraphicromans15

And He said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’? I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise and give him whatever he needs.  And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.  What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?  If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”

Luke 11:5-13

Jesus is never annoyed with your prayers—the bolder they are the better—because you are saying that He truly can do anything!  In this account, the disciples had just asked Jesus to teach them how to pray (see Luke 11:1).  Then Jesus tells them this parable of the persistent friend.  So in Jesus words, He is saying to them: pray often and pray boldly.  And He tells us the very same thing.

In this story, neighbors are friends, not strangers.  In the Greek language, a friend means ‘to share common interests’, so the seeker friend wasn’t asking anything that would go against the interest of the giver friend!  Now the giver friend may have wanted to wait until the morning, but he wasn’t against giving his friend all he needed.  Jesus is our Friend and, if we spend time with Him and truly get to know Him, we will know more about Him and our wants will most likely go along with what He wants for us.  Yet sometimes we do ask for things that aren’t right for us or maybe it’s not right at this very time and so the answer is ‘no’.  God isn’t saying that He will give us anything we ask in His name just because we are bold enough to ask.  Remember, friends don’t ask of one another what they would be opposed to giving.  And friends know one another so well that they know if what they are asking is okay  to ask.

Is there something that you are praying for today? Don’t be afraid to be bold.  Don’t ever think that Jesus will get tired of hearing the same request over and over because He never tires of hearing your voice.  I do prayer walks when I am really seeking something from Him.  I make a circle around it and I keep on asking until the miracle happens.  Remember, our timing is not His so don’t lose hope!  Be bold today!

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

And if you don’t know this Jesus that I am speaking about, I would love for you to get to know Him today.  He is a life changer for sure and You will never be the same.  Would you pray this prayer with me?

Dear God, I know that I am a sinner.  My life feels so out of control.  I need You in my life.  I believe that Jesus is Your Son and that He came to die for me so that I can spend eternity with You in Heaven.  I want Jesus to come into my heart.  Please walk with me through this life.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Peace I Leave You

May 29, 2015 by

encouragementbloggraphicromans15

But as He came closer to Jerusalem and saw the city ahead, He began to weep.
“How I wish today that you of all people would understand the way to peace.
But now it is too late, and peace is hidden from your eyes.
Luke 19:41-42 NLT

Jesus really had emotions. Sometimes He wept and other times He danced with joy.  And there were times when He truly grieved.  In the Scripture passage above, Jesus wept because the city had refused Him.  And not only Him but the peace that only He could bring them.

As a parent, I truly want the very best for these precious children that I have been blessed with.  When I am no longer here, I hope that they have joy and peace and a faith that cannot be shaken.  Those long nights on my knees, praying over each one of their hearts and the days that were spent investing in their eternal future will pay off because, no matter what, they will know about their Savior.  I hope that they know that the things of this earth are so temporary and that only Jesus and a relationship with Him will give them eternal life. And while they wait on Him to return, that they will claim the peace that Jesus came to give them.

Isn’t that what Jesus wanted for us?  Right before His crucifixion, Jesus promised something so valuable—peace.

Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you.
I do not give to you as the world gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
John 14:27

He didn’t leave us fame or fortune or tangible things…although He can provide those things.  He left us something more beneficial. And if we are to be a Jesus follower and lead others to Him, we must have peace and joy to share with this struggling world.

What do you need from Him today?  Is there an area of your life where you find yourself needing peace?  I know that I have to be reminded daily that He doesn’t want me to worry about the cares of this world, so I write this verse so many places.  Maybe you have been struggling with something that you have been asking God to take away.  Don’t lose hope!  God may not choose to take your thorn just yet; however, you will still receive His peace.  And remember: regardless of the trial, Jesus will give you your inheritance…today, and everyday, He offers peace.

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

Do you know Jesus?  Do you need His peace today?  If so, I ask that you pray this simple prayer with me….

Dear God, I know that I am a sinner.  I am struggling today with so much and I just want to be free.  I believe that Jesus is Your Son and the Savior of the world.  He died for me so that I can live forever with You.  Help me to know more about You.  Thank You for loving me.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

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