April 26, 2024

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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Finish What He Started

July 5, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

You take two steps forward and three steps back
On a journey of a thousand miles
And you cry and you pray
But you know at this pace you never will arrive
Well I know in your heart you believed from the start

God had a purpose He knit you together for
But life has pulled at the seams
And you’re unraveling
And you can’t hold it together anymore

But God will, He will finish what He started
No thread will be left unwoven
Nothing will be left undone
Every plan and every purpose
That He has will be accomplished
And God will finish what He’s begun

And it may feel like 40 long days in a hard driving rain
Or 40 years in a dry desert sand
But when He’s finished we will see
A beautiful tapestry
And know that nothing has been wasted in the end

And we’ll stand as the ones completed
By the miracle of His love
We’ll sing of His goodness and sing to His glory
As we tell the story of how

God has, He has finished what He’s started
Not a thread will be unwoven
And nothing will be left undone
Every plan and every purpose
That He has will be accomplished
And God will finish what He’s begun
I know that God will finish what He’s begun

Singer/Songwriter ~ Steven Curtis Chapman

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And I am certain that God,
Who began the good work within you,
will continue His work until it is finally finished
on the day when Christ Jesus returns.
Philippians 1:6

How many times do you say to yourself: “One day I will be a better ____.” or “One day I will finish____.”?  How hard we can be on ourselves.  Yet God is so very patient and He sees us, His masterpiece, as beautiful.  But He is far from finished with us.  And as the song says, God will finish what He has begun!

There are days that I feel like I have got it all together.  I have done my quiet time and used kind words with my children and put my husband’s needs before my own.  Then there are the days that my words crush spirits and I haven’t paused long enough to even say,”Dear God…” and the last thing I want to do is praise Him.  I am just being honest.  Have you had those days?  The truth is that we will take steps forward and steps backwards. And it is all okay because Jesus paid the price and so there is grace.

From the time that you entered this world, God has been sewing a beautiful tapestry of your life.  And all the pieces will one day fit all together and you will see the big picture. You will know the whys and hows of His beautiful plan.  But until then, we keep trusting and praying and worshipping His Holy name.  And we keep believing that, one day, He will be finished and He will say…”well done.”   It will all be so worth it!

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Let us pray: Dear God, You are so loving and merciful.  You are our Provider and Creator.  Thank You so much for planning this life out for us.  Your patience and grace meets us right where we are.  I love that You don’t expect us to be perfect ever. Jesus did that for us.  And until the day that He comes for us, You will still be working in us and through us; we are so grateful!  Progress, not perfection!  We love You.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

Filed Under: Psalms Hymns and Spiritual Songs Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

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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Heart Like You

June 28, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjvBurn bright in my life
Burn away the things I hold tight
Give me eyes to see Your Kingdom
The way You want it to be

What can be worth more than You
What do I have I wouldn’t lose
If it means You and I
Look more alike
That’s what I chose

I’d give up the world to find my soul
Pour out my life, give You control
I just want to be what You want me to be
I just want a heart that’s true
A heart like You
I just want a heart like You

As Your waves take shape
All my guilt and shame
Start to fade
And Your love takes their place
I become a well of Your grace, Your grace

I don’t mind the price it costs
I will count all I have as lost
When this fades away, what’s true remains
What can be worth more than You
What do I have I wouldn’t lose

I just want a heart like You
I just want a heart like You

Love And The Outcome
written by: Jodi King, Chris Rademaker, Seth Jones

Then Jesus said to His disciples,
“If any of you wants to be My follower,
you must turn from your selfish ways,
take up your cross, and follow Me.
If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it.
But if you give up your life for My sake, you will save it.
‭Matthew‬ ‭16‬:‭24-25‬ NLT

There is nothing on this earth worth holding onto if it gets in the way of your relationship with God.  Jesus said that we are to leave it all and follow Him just as He commanded the disciples.  Is there something you’re holding onto today?

I remember hearing that whatever we put before Jesus will eventually make us torn.  God created us with an insatiable desire to have Him first in our life and though we may try lots of things, God is our ultimate Stronghold and He is for you.  He wants you to succeed in life; to spread His name to all who will listen and show people that it was worth it when you gave it all for Him.

One day we will see Him face to face and all this will pass away and we will be able to say…it was worth it all.  We will see that God has taken all our guilt and shame away and in its place will be a crown of glory!  Are you ready?

Let us pray: Dear God, You are amazing!  You are the beginning and the end!  You never change!  Oh God, nothing on this earth compares to You.  You are our true Stronghold and our Safety forever.  Thank You for the grace that You so freely give when we place things before You.  Help us to always put You first.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen.

Filed Under: Psalms Hymns and Spiritual Songs Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

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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Slumber

June 14, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

Days they force you
Back under those covers
Lazy mornings they multiply
But glory’s waiting
Outside your window
So wake on up from your slumber
And open up your eyes

Tongues are violent
Personal and focused
Tough to beat with
Your steady mind
But hearts are stronger after broken
So wake on up from your slumber
And open up your eyes

All these victims
Stand in line for
The crumbs that fall from the table.
Just enough to get by
All the while you’re
Invitation
Wake on up from your slumber
Come on; open up your eyes 

Take from vandals
All you want now
But please don’t trade it in for life
Replace the feeble
With the fable
Wake on up from your slumber,
And open up your eyes

Sing like we used to
Dance when you want to
Taste of the breakthrough
And open wide

Sing like we used to
And dance like you want to
Open up your eyes

 NeedToBreathe
Bo Rinehart and Bear Rinehart

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Jesus came so that we might have life…not just mediocre life, but abundant life!  A life full of joy and laughter and peace in the midst of hard.  He didn’t come so that we can just have the “crumbs” that fall off the table, but for us to have the full loaf and so much more!   He doesn’t want us just trudging to make it to the next bank deposit, or the next new car, or the next new outfit.  No, Jesus wants us to skip along and smile and laugh in spite of those hard things.

She is clothed with strength and dignity,
and she laughs without fear of the future.
Proverbs 31:25 NLT

I know there are days that we see the sun and instead of seeing it’s beauty, we really want to climb back into bed.  We are raining on the inside.  But God has an invitation for us to wake up and see the world that He created for us.  He wants us to feel the love that He feels for us and to embrace the grace that He so freely gives us when we trip and stumble and fall.  And when you sing and dance just because, He smiles on you and dances over you from heaven.

The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves.
He will take great delight in you;
in His love He will no longer rebuke you,
but will rejoice over you with singing.
Zephaniah 3:17

What does your life look like today?  Are you truly living the life that Jesus died for you to have?  Or are you just walking through life with your eyes half open, just barely making it.  If that is you, I pray that Jesus will send you so much joy and sunshine that you can’t miss it…and you will want to open your eyes and just breathe it all in.

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Let us pray: Dear God, You are so amazing and loving and want so much for each of us.  Thank You for the sunshine and for the abundant life that You sent Your only Son to die for.  Oh Lord, forgive us when we take our life for granted and all the blessings that are staring us in the face for there is always something to praise You for!  We love You and we praise You.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

Filed Under: Psalms Hymns and Spiritual Songs Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

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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Have Everything

June 7, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

The first time I met You, I was on my knees
Praying, “Lord, if You’re out there, can You speak to me?”
‘Cause I was in a desperate place,
My life looked like a hurricane
The moment I felt Your grace

You can have me, You can have everything
Oh, I am Yours
Not holding on, onto anything
But Your promise, Lord
It’s a new day, it’s a new dawn
I’ve found a place where I belong
Nothing I want more than what You’ve given me
Hey, so You can have everything
You can have everything
You can have everything

You are like the sunshine in the dead of night
You’re the only One standing when my world ignites
So why would I hold anything back
‘Cause You keep my world intact
It’s true, oh, God, it’s true, so I’ll say

Every day
I’m gonna wake up, gonna wake up
Wake up and say
You can have me, have everything

David Dunn
written along with Justin Ebach

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I love to talk to Jesus when I’m on my knees.  It’s a position of total surrender and love and submission.  And my prayers will be…to let Him have everything.  To surrender all the worldly things that I hold on to and worry about, and to know that when its dark, He shines so bright!

Most of the time, left on our own, our lives can really be a mess and God is the only One Who can straighten them out.  But all we have to do is ask Him to take over!  How simple is that?  So simple that we sometimes forget that He can.

Daily, we must empty ourselves of our own agenda and ask God to fill us with His.  You don’t have to be in a desperate place to cry out to Him, but if you are, there is no better place to be than at His feet.

As you listen to this today, may you use these words as a prayer to Him today.  No matter where you are or what you are struggling with, He is not far away.  He always answers the prayers of His children.  Are you far from God?  He is close to the brokenhearted and He will shelter you from all this world.  All you have to do is ask!

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
Psalm 34:18 NLT

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me;
Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me.
Psalm 23:4 KJV

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Dear Lord, You are so awesome and full of love for us.  You never change.  Thank You for being there for us as a constant.  For sheltering us from storms and giving us hope in this hard world.  You are the light in the darkness and the lover of our souls.  Today, I pray for those who are hurting and need You.  I pray that they would release it all into Your mighty hands.  We love You and we praise You.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

Filed Under: Psalms Hymns and Spiritual Songs Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

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!

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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.

Filed Under: encouragement Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Your Grace Finds Me

May 31, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjvIt’s there in a newborn cry
There in the light of every sunrise
There in the shadows of this life
Your great grace

It’s there on the mountain top
There in the everyday and the mundane
There in the sorrow and the dancing
Your great grace
Oh, such grace

From the creation to the Cross
There from the Cross into eternity
Your grace finds me
Yes, Your grace finds me

It’s there on the wedding day
There in the weeping by the gravesite
There in the very breath we breathe
Your great grace

It’s the same for the rich and poor
The same for the saint and for the sinner
Enough for this whole wide world
Your great grace
Oh, such grace

There in the darkest night of the soul
There in the sweetest songs of victory
Your grace finds me
Yes your grace finds me

Your great grace
Oh such grace
Your great grace
Oh such grace

So I’m breathing in Your grace
And breathing out Your praise
I’m breathing in Your grace
Forever I’ll be

Your grace finds me
Yes Your grace finds me

Matt Redman
written along with Jonas Myrin

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

As long as there is sin, there will be grace.  And, even when we don’t realize it and we aren’t even looking for it, grace finds us.  Can you think of a time lately when you needed grace?  The awesome thing is that it really is everywhere.  It’s in the thorns that pierce us and the heavy loads we carry.

Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me.
But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you,
for My power is made perfect in weakness.”
Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses,
so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
2 Corinthians 12:8-9

Grace meets us when we need His mercy and compassion.  Sometimes the pit we fall into isn’t always one that we chose…maybe someone pushed us in and we are struggling to get out.  More than anything we need His hand of grace to pull us out and His mercy to steady us so that we can keep moving forward instead of looking behind.

Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence,
so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Hebrews 4:16

And when we do breathe in God’s grace, we need to breathe out His praise for all that He is and all that He does.  And when we are doubting that we are even worthy of coming to His throne, may we be reminded that nothing that we have done or will ever do is what qualifies us to receive His grace and mercy.  It is the love that God has for us that He would send His only Son to die.  It was the carrying of the Cross and the death of Jesus that gives us our grace ticket into His presence.

Do you need to be reminded again that you are loved and wanted?
Listen again to the words of this song and claim them as they are for you…

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

Let us pray: Dear heavenly Father, You are so amazing and loving.  You are so full of mercy and compassion for each one of Your children.  Your forgiveness has no end.  Lord, we praise You today for the Cross. Because of the love You have for us, we will not be shaken because You have placed us on a firm foundation.  Thank You that we can come to You freely with any request and You listen.  You are always working on our behalf.  Please wrap Your arms around those today that need to be reminded.  We love You.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

Filed Under: Psalms Hymns and Spiritual Songs Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,
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