March 11, 2026

Sunny Days

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Sunny days, keepin’ the clouds away
I think we’re coming to a clearing and a brighter day

So far away, still I think they say,
The wait will make their heart g
row stronger or fonder
I can’t quite remember anyway

So if you’re waitin’ for love
Well it’s a promise I’ll keep

If you don’t mind believing
That it changes everything

Time will never matter

Winter, spring is what love can truly bring
Ice turns to water, water flows to everything
You can lose your mind, maybe then your heart will find
I hope you won’t give up what’s movin’ you inside, no

If the car won’t start, when you turn the key
When the music comes on
All your cold, c
old heart can do is skip a beat

Jars of Clay
Songwriters: Stephen Mason, Charlie Lowell, Dan Haseltine, Matt Odmark

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There is a right time for everything,
    and everything on earth will happen at the right time.
There is a time to be born
and a time to die.
There is a time to plant
    and a time to pull up plants.
There is a time to kill

    and a time to heal.
There is a time to destroy
    and a time to build.
There is a time to cry
    and a time to laugh.
There is a time to be sad
    and a time to dance with joy.
There is a time to throw weapons down
    and a time to pick them up.
There is a time to hug someone
    and a time to stop holding so tightly.
There is a time to look for something
    and a time to consider it lost.
There is a time to keep things
    and a time to throw things away.
There is a time to tear cloth
    and a time to sew it.
There is a time to be silent
    and a time to speak.
There is a time to love
    and a time to hate.
There is a time for war
    and a time for peace.
Ecclesiastes 3

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Father, thank You for Your love.  Thank You for sending us Your Word through song and through the life we live.  Please send Your Holy Spirit to prompt us to do better…to convict us when we are wrong…and to celebrate the victories with us!  Thank You for Your love, mercy, and grace.  Thank You for Your provision.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Helmet of Hope

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Therefore, since we are justified (acquitted, declared righteous, and given a right standing with God) through faith, let us [grasp the fact that we] have [the peace of reconciliation to hold and to enjoy] peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One). 
Through Him also we have [our] access (entrance, introduction) by faith into this grace (state of God’s favor) in which we [firmly and safely] stand. And let us rejoice and exult in our hope of experiencing and enjoying the glory of God.

Romans 5:1-2  AMP

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How many times have we thought, “I am such a worthless sinner, how can God possibly love me, now?”  My friend, Paul so eloquently states here in these verses that, because of Jesus’ intercession on our behalf, we are able to enter into the presence of God.

I am currently re-reading Derek Prince’s book Faith to Live By. In his book, there is a chapter Faith versus Hope in which he states,

“Hope, in the biblical sense, is a confident expectation of good – a steady, persistent optimism. Hope protects our minds. Every Christian should wear a helmet of hope twenty-four hours a day. If we lay aside the helmet and begin to dwell on negative thoughts and gloomy forebodings, our minds are vulnerable to Satan’s subtle attacks.”

Our thoughts need to be focused on what is positive, good and worthy. Prayer—along with becoming aware of what we are thinking, watching, and listening to—will begin to change our thoughts and behavior patterns.  It will not be given to us.  We will have to focus on what is right.

God desires you to put Him first in everything.  We are to trust in His ability to provide for our every need.  Unless we train our minds to think like this, it is difficult to start.  Remember how we constantly thought of our boyfriend or husband all the time in the beginning of our relationship?  That is what God wants from us.  I find myself starting off my day, thanking Him and asking for His provision as my day starts…but often I may not think about Him until lunch time or later in the afternoon.  We need to be aware of Him in every aspect of our life.  We need to fall in love with God again.

Our desires drive us.  This week, let us begin again.  Let us put aside our failures, our hurts, and put on the helmet of hope and ask God to show us how to love again as a child.  A couple I serve with at church has a daughter who is almost 4 years old.  I love how she declares Jesus to everyone.  How she says Jesus died but rose again.  I call her a little evangelist.  She brings a smile to my face whenever I see her.  I pray she never loses her child-like love for her heavenly Father.  And I pray God will use her and our next generation in new and exciting ways!

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Father, we thank You for Your hope.  Let our hope in You spill over to others.  We pray for this helmet of hope to cover us and to be placed there when we forget to ask for it.  Help us guard our hearts and minds against what would destroy us.  Help us to learn to rebuke evil and to be brave when You call upon us to act.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Your Grace On Which I Stand

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Therefore, since we have been justified by faith,
we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Through Him we have also obtained access by faith
into this grace in which we stand,
and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
Romans 5:1 and 2

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This anchor for my soul
This everlasting Hope
Your grace on which I stand

It’s where my life begins
My future held within
Your grace on which I stand

Oh, this grace on which I stand
It will hold me to the end
Never failing

Oh, praise the One who rescued me
Jesus, You will ever be
My salvation

And when I’m on the run
The road that leads me home
Your grace on which I stand

And when I see Your face
The only claim I’ll make
Your grace on which I stand

Worthy is the Lamb of God
Who takes away the sin of the world
Worthy is the Lamb that was slain
To receive all honor and praise

Lift Your Head, Weary Sinner

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Lift your head weary sinner the river’s just ahead
Down the path of forgiveness salvation’s waiting there
You built a mighty fortress 10,000 burdens high
Love is here to lift you up, here to lift you high

If you’re lost and wandering
Come stumbling in like a prodigal child
See the walls start crumbling
Let the gates of glory open wide

All who’ve strayed and walked away, unspeakable things you’ve done
Fix your eyes on the mountain, let the past be dead and gone
Come all saints and sinners, you can’t outrun God
Whatever you’ve done can’t overcome the power of the blood

David Crowder Band
Writer(s): Ed Cash, David Crowder and Seth Philpott

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I remember getting lost in the woods of our hunting camp and, though it’s been a while ago, I still remember that feeling.  It was hot and, at first, it was like an adventure. We looked at the trees and different birds and soaked in the beauty.  Fast forward an hour or so and we were still going in circles…and now we were thirsty and ready to get back home.

That’s how it is when we go off course on our own…away from God and the life He has for us.  We walk in circles and hunger and thirst for something that only He can satisfy.  The awesome thing is that He is always waiting with open arms.  We are His prodigal sons and daughters.   His gates are always open.  When we are tired of wandering on our own and doing things our way, we have a place to go.

Is this you today?  Are you ready to come home?  
God is waiting!  Lay it all down at His feet.

Here are some Scriptures to cling to:

‘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 15:31-32

‘I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the LORD;
and they will be My people, and I will be their God,
for they will return to Me with their whole heart.
But in their distress they turned to the LORD God of Israel,
and they sought Him, and He let them find Him.
Jeremiah 24:7 

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Pray with me: Dear God, You are so good and so loving. You are the only constant, You are never changing.  Lord, we are tired of wandering and we are ready to come home.  Your ways are so much better than the path we have been on. We love You and praise You.  Thank You for always welcoming us back in love.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen.

Roasted Chickpeas

Roasted Chickpeas

I’m a nibbler.  Are you?  I can sit for an hour with a book, popping snacks into my mouth!  If you are a nibbler like me, it’s best to have some healthy treats around the house.  Popcorn is usually my go-to, but this recipe for Roasted Chickpeas may be my new favorite!

Get two cans of chickpeas (or do you like to call them garbanzo beans?).  Pick out your favorite flavors to add:  curry powder, a spice rub, a lemon pepper shake, even taco seasoning or a Ranch dressing packet.  Mix, roast, crunch!  These guys are like healthier Corn Nuts.  Yum!

Roasted Chickpeas

Ingredients:

  • 2 cans chickpeas
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons (or more) of your favorite spice powder mix – see above for ideas

Directions:

  1. Drain the chickpeas and rinse in a colander.  Let dry for about half an hour.
  2. Preheat oven to 400*F.
  3. In a bowl, mix together chickpeas, oil, and spices.  Add salt if your spice mix doesn’t include it (curry powder never has salt in it, so you will want to add about half a teaspoon of salt.)
  4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.  Spread out the chickpeas into one layer and place the sheet pan on the middle rack.  Bake for 20 minutes.  Stir to make sure they’re not sticking or burning, then bake for another 15 minutes or so (maybe another 5 minutes more or less, depending on your oven.)
  5. Remove from the oven and let cool, then munch away!

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana


To view even more of Dana’s unique recipe, you can visit her at Frugal Girlmet!

He Is My Rock

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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.

This Week…Jeremiah 29:11

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 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord.
“They are plans for good and not for disaster,
to give you a future and a hope.
Jeremiah 29:11

This week, here on the Seeking Him devotional blog, we are continuing a mini-series on the subject of HOPE.  Our devotional writers have shared the Truth given us in this week’s passage reminding us that God’s plans give us ‘a future and a hope!’  Here are a few of their thoughts….

In Hope for Good, Ahmee wrote reminding us that God is good and only gives good….

Jeremiah 29:11 is one of the most popular Scriptures known to Christians…that and John 3:16.  Jeremiah 29:11 has been misquoted, misused, and misunderstood, as well.   Sometimes, we like to take Scripture and toss it around, in a well-meaning (but incorrect) fashion.  What I like most about Jeremiah 29:11, though, is that it reminds you that God cares for you and all that you do.

Jeremiah 29:11 reminds us that God is on our side.

  • He does not harm us
  • He does no ill to us
  • He does not give us cancer
  • He does not cause accidents
  • He does not burn down houses

He does not do any of those things!  There is no burning down your house to give you a better house.  God doesn’t do wrong, bad things, or cause harm.  God, however, can make good come out of bad.  But He does not make bad happen so that good can happen.

In God’s Declarations and Thoughts, Ann wrote about the importance of following God’s example in making declarations….

The Jeremiah 29:11 declaration which God made is so powerful.  This shows that declarations are a way of establishing things in our lives.  His declaration shows how He thinks of us, along with His will and His purpose for our lives.

Thou shall declare a thing and it shall be established.
Job 22:28

What is it you declare and think about your life…family…job…school, etc?  Be positive: declare and think that which will make your future bright.  God’s thoughts over us are of good…not of evil; and He declares the same.  As we think of ourselves, we, too, should not think that which is evil but only that which is good and declare it.

In Hope in the Lord, Tina reminded us of Daniel’s example of holding to hope through intercessory prayer….

Daniel, who was one of those who were taken into exile in Babylon.

In the first year of his rule, I, Daniel, saw clearly from the books
the number of years given by the word of the Lord
to the prophet Jeremiah, in which the making waste of Jerusalem
was to be complete, that is, seventy years.
Daniel 9:2 BBE

Daniel was a man after God’s own heart.  He immediately began praying, asking forgiveness of sins for himself and for those of God’s people.  Daniel was in reverent awe of God’s mercy, grace, and righteousness toward them.  Daniel’s prayer is an example of intercessory prayer.  We should all strive to do this, and most of us moms do pray and intercede regularly for our children and our family.  Our hope is in God’s mercy and forgiveness.  We have to be willing for God to use us where needed.  He will use our willingness to serve to give hope to those who have no hope.

Often, when we feel we are not worthy, that is when God will use us.  When we are empty of ourselves is when God can fill us with His hope and joy until it overflows and effects others around us.

In The Big Picture, Cynda reminded us of the security our hope gives us because of the One in whom we trust and hope….

Job 11:18 ESV states “And you will feel secure, because there is hope; you will look around and take your rest in security.”  Hope gives us security.  There is no need to rush ahead, to solve the problem, or to  resolve the issue, without waiting for God’s instructions.  Because we have hope we can rest, secure in the knowledge that God has the perfect plan for us.  He sees the big picture and knows exactly what needs to happen and when.  His time frame, not ours.

When the Lord is our hope,

  • He becomes our Help and our Shield (Psalm 33:20)
  • He shows us mercy and love us steadfastly (Psalm 33:18)
  • He faithfully answers our prayers (Psalm 65:5) [just not always in the ways we think they should be answered]
  • He is our trust and confidence (Psalm 71:5)
  • We are blessed (Jeremiah 17:7)

The Lord is our hope.  We can have confidence that our future is secure in His hands.

Let all that I am wait quietly upon only God.
May I silently submit to Him,
for He is my hope.
Psalm 62:5

Who I Am

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

Another voice, another choice
To listen to words somebody said
Another day, I replay
One too many doubts inside my head

Am I strong…beautiful
Am I good enough
Do I belong
After all that I’ve said and done
Is it real when I feel
I don’t measure up
Am I loved

I’m running to the One who knows me
Who made every part of me in His hands
I’m holding to the One who holds me
‘Cause I know whose I am, I know who I am
I am sure I am Yours

Turning down, tuning out
Every single word
That caused me pain
Unashamed, and unafraid
‘Cause I believe You mean it when You say

I am strong…beautiful
I am good enough
I belong
After all
‘Cause of what You’ve done
This is real what I feel
No one made it up
I am loved

I am sure I am Yours
I know who I am
I am sure I am Yours

Fearfully, wonderfully, perfectly
You have made me

I’m running to the One who knows me
I’m holding to the One who holds me

Blanca
Written by Blanca Callahan / Seth Mosley / Mia Fieldes

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I am sure I am Yours
And I know who I am

It’s quiet in my house sometimes…  Rare?  Yes, but it does happen.  In the early morning hours and late at night when everyone else who I share my home with is asleep. You would think that I would soak this quiet in…that I enjoy every second of it  (and there are times I do!)  but there are other times when the quiet is an opportunity for me to process my day, my week, and even my life.  I would love to say that this reflection is positive but more often than not it is filled with questions and doubts.

I think most women have played the words of this song through their minds and hearts…

Am I strong…?
Am I beautiful…?
Am I good enough…?
Do I belong…?
After all That I’ve said and done…?
Is it real…?
When I feel I don’t measure up…?
Am I loved…?

We talk to ourselves more than we talk to anyone else, and more than anyone else talks to us.  What are we saying?  Are we allowing doubts to cloud the image of ourselves?  Are we allowing the enemy to reinforce our insecurities?

In the rare quiet times I talked about before, I try to read.  I love reading and rarely have an opportunity to do so without being pulled in different directions.  One main theme in the books and articles I read is the importance of knowing who we are in Christ. Knowing how He sees us, and knowing who He created us to be.  Being reminded that we are fearfully and wonderfully made is like the light breaking through the clouds.  Knowing that the One who created us, Who formed each of us in the womb is still here, shaping us, and loving us, is like having a safe place to run to when the doubts try to creep in.  My goal for this week is to constantly combat those doubts with the words of this song.  I am going to intentionally run to the the One who holds me.

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Let’s Pray: Heavenly Father, the enemy has a way of getting to us through our thoughts and images of ourselves.  We question and wonder…we worry and doubt….  But You, Lord, are there with Your arms wide open, fully embracing us in those times and every other time.  Thank You for how You see us. I pray for each and every woman remember to run to Your arms when they feel less than who You created them to be.

The Big Picture

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“For I know the plans I have for you” 
— this is the Lord’s declaration —
“plans for your welfare, not for disaster,
to give you a future and a hope.”
Jeremiah 29:11 HCSB

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H. O. P. E. =  Holding On Praying Expectantly

So many times we’re in captivity or we’re having great problems; we think, “Oh, God has forgotten me.  He is not thinking of me anymore.”  Oh, that’s not so. God is thinking of you.

“But God is always looking down at the end of the road.  Our common mistake is that we are always looking for immediate advantage, immediate fulfillment.”

– Chuck Smith (click here to read entire commentary)

I cannot begin to count the number of times I have jumped into something considering only the immediate results instead of thinking about the long-term consequences.  I wanted the problem fixed NOW and knew just what to do.  How many blessings have I circumvented?  How many additional problems have I caused simply because I didn’t see the big picture? How much different might things have turned out if I had just held on to hope and continued to pray expectantly?

And you will feel secure, because there is hope;
you will look around and take your rest in security.
Job 11:18 ESV

Hope gives us security.  There is no need to rush ahead, to solve the problem, or to  resolve the issue, without waiting for God’s instructions.  Because we have hope we can rest, secure in the knowledge that God has the perfect plan for us.  He sees the big picture and knows exactly what needs to happen and when.  His time frame, not ours.

When the Lord is our hope,

  • He becomes our Help and our Shield (Psalm 33:20)
  • He shows us mercy and love us steadfastly (Psalm 33:18)
  • He faithfully answers our prayers (Psalm 65:5) [just not always in the ways we think they should be answered]
  • He is our trust and confidence (Psalm 71:5)
  • We are blessed (Jeremiah 17:7)

The Lord is our hope.  We can have confidence that our future is secure in His hands.  God is always thinking of us.  He has great blessings in store for us when we wait patiently and follow His lead.  He sees the big picture and has our future all mapped out accordingly, as long as we don’t rush ahead.  So my prayer today is:

Let all that I am wait quietly upon only God.
May I silently submit to Him,
for He is my hope.
Psalm 62:5

Held In Your Hands

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Look up, another day before me
Look back, another day is gone
Should my heart begin to worry
Lift my eyes to find again the promise of Your love
Lift my eyes to find again that You will be enough

All our yesterdays and all of our tomorrows
Held in Your hands, held in Your hands
All we know to pray and all we’ve yet to face
Is held in Your hands, is held in Your hands

I know, Jesus, I can trust You
I know in all things You are good
I’m casting every care upon You
You knew my name, my every pain, before this breath was mine
You made a way, You overcame with love that outlives time

These hands that carried the Cross
Carry us now every moment, every hour
These hands that carried the Cross
Carry us now never failing, only good
Never failing, only good

Rush of Fools
writers: Kevin Huguley, Wesley Willis, Jason Ingram

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Take a moment, would you, to listen to this song again.  And, while doing so, think of Jesus’ hands…. Think of how they would look to you…maybe you picture them in just one way—bleeding and oh-so-very painful as He carried the Cross. Or perhaps you picture a whole vignette of scenes featuring Jesus’ hands ministering over and over and over…. Here are a few instances that I recalled from the Scriptures:

Jesus holding out His hand to the woman caught in adultery (John 8)

This they said to try (test) Him, hoping they might find a charge on which to accuse Him.
But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger.
Verse 6

Jesus holding out His hand to Peter while walking on the sea (Matthew 14)

Instantly Jesus reached out His hand and caught and held him,
saying to him, O you of little faith, why did you doubt?
Verse 31

Jesus holding out His hand to the man healed of leprosy (Matthew 8)

Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.”
And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
Verse 3

Jesus holding out His hand to heal the ear of the man in the garden of Gethsemane(Luke 22)

But Jesus answered and said, “Stop! No more of this.”
And He touched his ear and healed him.…
Verse 51

Jesus holding out His hands to Thomas (John 20)

Then He said to Thomas, Reach out your finger here, and see My hands;
and put out your hand and place [it] in My side.
Do not be faithless and incredulous, but [stop your unbelief and] believe!
Thomas answered Him, My Lord and my God!
Verses 27 and 28

Think about it, my friend—Jesus is holding out His hand at this very moment to you (and me, too!)  With the very same degree of compassion and love, He is reaching to you (and me, too!) and is willing and able to support, provide for, guide, and protect you (and me, too!)  In what area of your life, do you need to be held in His hand ?