Category Archives: God’s Grace & Love

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March 30, 2015

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Attitudes & Behavior, Bible Stories, God's Grace & Love, Joy, Knowing Him, Peace of God

WHAT JOY IN PRESENTS?

The one thing I want from God, the thing I seek most of all, is the privilege of meditating in his Temple, living in his presence every day of my life, delighting in his incomparable perfections and glory. There I’ll be when troubles come. He will hide me. He will set me on a high rock out of reach of all my enemies. Then I will bring him sacrifices and sing his praises with much joy. [Psalm 27:4-6 (TLB)]

3-24-15 presentscropwebA recent television ad for insurance shows two women talking. One asks, “Did you know that genies can be really literal?” The scene shifts to a man polishing a small lamp while cleaning out his garage. In a puff of smoke, a genie appears and asks, “What is your wish?” The unsuspecting man’s reply is, “A million bucks!” Instantly, he is surrounded by an enormous herd of deer. This scenario reminded me of childhood discussions I had with friends. We’d debate about what we would request if, in an astonishing bit of luck, we discovered a magic lamp or managed to free a genie from a corked bottle. Of course, we decided the wisest wish would be for three more wishes, always being sure to ask for three more before using the last one.

David, however, had the right idea. Instead of desiring an unlimited number of wishes and treasure from God, he said the only thing he truly wanted was to be in God’s presence. If he remained in God’s presence, David knew that everything else would fall into place. He acknowledged that troubles would still come his way, but knew that, in God’s presence, he would remain untroubled by them. In God’s presence, David would experience joy; after all, isn’t joy what all of us want? We will never find joy in fame and fortune or presents from a genie; we will, however, find joy in the presence of God.

Trying to be happy without a sense of God’s presence is like trying to have a bright day without the sun. [A.W. Tozer]

Heart, body, and soul are filled with joy. …You have let me experience the joys of life and the exquisite pleasures of your own eternal presence. [Psalm 16:9,11 (TLB)]

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March 20, 2015

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Attitudes & Behavior, Challenges & Difficulty, Family, Friends & Fellowship, God's Grace & Love, Holidays & Holy Days, Joy, Nature, Today: Make it Count

IN THE BLEAK MIDWINTER – for the First Day of Spring

O Lord, God of my salvation, I cry out to you by day. I come to you at night. Now hear my prayer; listen to my cry. For my life is full of troubles, and death draws near. … My eyes are blinded by my tears. Each day I beg for your help, O Lord; I lift my hands to you for mercy. [Psalm 88:1-3,9 (NLT)]

3-20-15bleak-r-cropWEBPsalm 88, written by Heman the Ezrahite, was sung to a tune called “The Suffering of Affliction.” Clearly not a light-hearted ditty, this likely could be the most depressing of all the psalms. Written in a state of despair, the only glimmer of hope in the psalm is that the psalmist chose to pray at all. And pray he did, as he poured out his concerns and sorrow to God, the god of his salvation.

Last month, we went walking in a snow storm. It looked like a Psalm 88 kind of day: bleak and dreary with no hope of spring. Except for our parkas and the lone fox we surprised, we could have been in a black and white photograph. As we walked, my mind kept echoing the words, “In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan, Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone.”

I remembered a friend’s comment about the way she once viewed life. Bereaved and emotionally numb after some distressing years, she saw the world only in black, white and various shades of grey. Regardless of the weather outside, she remained stuck in a bleak midwinter. While the calendar tells us when seasons change and winter turns to spring, there is no designated date for spring when one is experiencing an emotional winter in life.1494-cropRWEB

Eventually, after making a concerted effort to move out of the bleakness of winter, spring arrived for my friend. Once again she saw the world in its amazing Technicolor. As she prayed, her faith strengthened and she moved out of isolation into God’s love. She cautiously stepped out of her lonely sorrow and into new friendships. With the warmth of God’s love and Christian fellowship, she again grew and blossomed, much as a spring flower does after winter. As color came back into her life, she brought color into the lives of those she met.

Jesus brought sight to the blind; not all the blind, however, are visually impaired. Many, like my friend, are temporarily blinded by their tears. If that is you, reach out to God in prayer and to your brothers and sisters in Christ. If not, do you know someone who needs the warmth of Christian fellowship to break the ice in their hearts? Is there someone who needs to experience some of God’s loving grace so they can, once again, experience spring and the world in full color? Is there someone who needs to know the rest of the song’s words: that the answer is in Jesus Christ?

“In the Bleak Midwinter” [Christina Rossetti (1872)]

In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
In the bleak midwinter, long ago.
Our God, Heaven cannot hold Him, nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away when He comes to reign.
In the bleak midwinter a stable place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty, Jesus Christ. …
What can I give Him, poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part;
Yet what I can I give Him: give my heart.

In that day the deaf will hear words read from a book, and the blind will see through the gloom and darkness. [Isaiah 29:18 (NLT)]

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March 14, 2015

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Bible Stories, God's Grace & Love, God's Promises, Thanks & Praise, Trusting God

YOU PROMISED!

Yes. I’ll stay with you, I’ll protect you wherever you go, and I’ll bring you back to this very ground. I’ll stick with you until I’ve done everything I promised you. [Genesis 28:15 (MSG)]

Moses said to God, “Look, you tell me, ‘Lead this people,’ but you don’t let me know whom you’re going to send with me.” … God said, “My presence will go with you. I’ll see the journey to the end.” [Exodus 33:12a,14 (MSG)]

In the same way I was with Moses, I’ll be with you. I won’t give up on you; I won’t leave you. [Joshua 1:5 (MSG)]

“I promise I’ll be there.”… “I promise nothing bad will happen.”… “I promise I’ll pay you.”… “I promise I won’t be angry.”… “I promise I’ll get it done in time.” We all make promises; usually, we truly mean to keep them. Sometimes, however, we break our promises. Perhaps we didn’t even try; maybe, we tried but just not hard enough. We may have tried our very best but simply didn’t have the ability or means to fulfill our promise. Sometimes, circumstances totally beyond our control defeat us. Whatever the reasons, our promises are often broken.

God, however, has no limitations when He guarantees something. Unlike you and me, God is absolutely true to His word; He will never break a promise. Moreover, unlike you and me, He is entirely able to fulfill every one of his promises! There are no things beyond his ability and no circumstances he cannot control.

God made promises to Jacob, Moses, and Joshua: He would not leave them. That same promise was repeated by Jesus and made to us. He is with us in the valleys and on the mountain tops, in times of plenty and famine, in times of joy and sorrow. As our captain, He’ll never abandon ship; as our shepherd, He’ll never leave his sheep; and as our Heavenly Father, He’ll never forsake his children.

Thank you, God, for never leaving us alone; no matter what the circumstances, you are always with us. Help us to truly trust your promises and your mighty power to keep them so that we truly rest in the peace of your presence.

God never made a promise that was too good to be true. [Dwight L. Moody]

I’ll be with you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end of the age. [Matthew 28:20 (MSG)]

When God wanted to guarantee his promises, he gave his word, a rock-solid guarantee—God can’t break his word. And because his word cannot change, the promise is likewise unchangeable. We who have run for our very lives to God have every reason to grab the promised hope with both hands and never let go. It’s an unbreakable spiritual lifeline, reaching past all appearances right to the very presence of God. [Hebrews 6:17-18 (MSG)]

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March 10, 2015

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God's Grace & Love, Joy, Knowing Him

TOTALLY IMPARTIAL

For the Lord your God is the God of gods and Lord of lords. He is the great God, the mighty and awesome God, who shows no partiality and cannot be bribed. [Deuteronomy 10:17 (NLT)]

When my father-in-law was a salesman, he would occasionally encounter buyers who wanted special favors, gifts or even kick-backs to purchase his product. Grandpa always refused. He knew that if a buyer would accept his bribe, the untrustworthy man would probably accept his competitors’ bribes as well. Fortunately, God isn’t like those dishonest buyers. What kind of god would we have we could buy or bribe our way into heaven? What kind of god would we have if he only granted forgiveness or salvation to the highest bidder?

My uncle used to call me his “favorite youngest niece.” I always felt so special, being his favorite, even when I realized that I was his only “youngest” niece. My sister, of course, was his favorite “eldest niece!” He was an impartial, yet loving, man. God, like my uncle, is loving and fair and everyone is His favorite, as well. There are no “teacher’s pets” in His classroom! What kind of god would we have if he had favorites: those who were prettier, smarter, funnier, or more talented? What kind of god would he be if he allowed his favorites to adhere to different guidelines or push their way to the front of the line?

Thankfully, our God can’t be bought. After all, what could we possibly give Him that isn’t His already? Fortunately, our God doesn’t play favorites either. He disciplines and forgives, blesses and loves each of us each as if we were His favorite and only child.

God loves each of us as if there were only one of us. [Saint Augustine]

Remember, you both have the same Master in heaven, and he has no favorites. [Ephesians 6:9b (NLT)]

Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ. But if you do what is wrong, you will be paid back for the wrong you have done. For God has no favorites. [Colossians 3:25 (NLT)]

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January 30, 2015

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Attitudes & Behavior, Church & Worship, Family, Friends & Fellowship, God's Grace & Love, Love & Works, Temptation & Sin

HE CAME FOR EVERYONE

For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. [John 3:16 NLT)]

That’s you, my friend, and me. It’s everyone else, too. Salvation isn’t just for the rich or pretty, the respected and comfortable, the intelligent and wealthy. It’s for all of us, no matter our color or nationality, our education or profession, our hygiene or attire. Let’s always remember that God has an “open door” policy; he loves us all and all are welcome in His house.

Jesus surrounded himself with an assorted group of people: tax collectors, fishermen, the mentally ill and handicapped, laborers, children, and even women of questionable reputations. He came for them all and loved them all. Every church has an interesting mix of people and we might find some of them a bit annoying at times. Perhaps it’s the special needs man who talks too loudly, the oddly dressed woman who seems to come only for the cookies and coffee, the smoker who brings the aroma of stale cigarettes with him to the sanctuary, the woman who falls asleep during the sermon and snores, the cougher who sits behind you and the lady next to him who loudly sings off key, the babies who cry, the kids who fidget, the person with body odor who sits beside you, or the ladies who whisper to one another during service. If we don’t like the person we’re sitting next to at church, it’s time to do a little soul searching. Remember, since God loved him enough to die for him, we ought to be able to muster up a little love, patience and tolerance for our neighbor. After all, he may have some misgivings about us, as well!

Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other. [Romans 12:3-5 (NLT)]

Respect everyone, and love the family of believers. [1 Peter 2:17a (NLT)]

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January 28, 2015

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Challenges & Difficulty, Faith & Hope, God's Grace & Love, God's Word: The Bible, Miracles, Prayer

NO SUCH WORD AS “IMPOSSIBLE”

I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me? [Jeremiah 32:27 (NIV)]

butterfly (monarch) - naplesBotGa38WEBOur God is an awesome, all-powerful, and unlimited God. There is, however, one word that isn’t in His vocabulary: “impossible.” He is the God of amazing miracles; therefore, nothing for Him is impossible. If He chooses not to do what we ask of Him, it isn’t because he can’t; it’s because He won’t. Apparently, God has a different (and better) plan for us.

If nothing is too difficult for Him, why, do we insult Him by offering only timid and trivial prayers about lost glasses and broken appointments? Why do we hesitate giving Him the stuff that really matters: lost souls and broken hearts? Perhaps we’re hesitant to give God the big stuff because we’re afraid He can’t do it! Of course, He cares about the mundane aspects of our lives, but let’s honor Him with prayers that show we truly do believe in Him! As long as we always remember that prayer is request, not a demand, we can ask anything of God, secure in the knowledge that while it is in His power to do anything, it is also in His power to answer every prayer in His own way.

But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord [James 1:6-7 (NIV)]