I decided to start this blog (2010) because my son, John-Robert gave me a One Year Bible for Christmas, the New Living Translation... reading it has changed my life... I post a daily Bible verse on my Facebook page every day and it has been well received... I thought that this would be a wonderful way to share part of what I read each day!... I hope that you enjoy it.



This Year 2012 I am going to do things a little different... not much...just a little. I am again reading through my One Year Bible (for the 3rd time). But I am also using "The Secret Power of Speaking God's Word" by Joyce Meyer. This book is divided by putting scriptures under different categories so they can be used to speak over our life situations. Each day I will read a category of scripture and pick a scripture in that category to write about.



Hugs

Jeannie







Sunday, September 30, 2012

9.30.12

Philippians 1:11 May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation --the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ -- for this will bring much glory and praise to God.
 
My Thoughts
I love this... fruit of your salvation!!  I think this would have to be love, joy and peace. These are brought on my what Jesus did for us on the cross.  He made us right with God, righteous!  He made us able to receive God's grace in spite of our sins, because He died for our sins. And God's grace makes us able to life a right life, when we depend on God.  When we ask forgiveness when we mess up...and depend on God and His grace to make us more and more able to do better and better and better. God makes us able when we spend time with Him!!  When we do better at choosing to do right, when we ask forgiveness of our sins...we get to enjoy the fruits of our salvation! We get to enjoy love and peace and joy!  What wonderful gifts God gives us!!

Saturday, September 29, 2012

9.29.12

Ephesians 6:10-12 A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.  Put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all the strategies of the devil.  For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rules and arteries of the unseen world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
 
My Thoughts
We have to know God's word, we have to be in constant prayer... we have to be always drawing God near to us.  It is how we fight the evil that is in this world.  It is the only way to fight the evil in this world.  It is why we are to pray for the people we see as our enemies, the evil has gotten a hold of them and used them. We are stronger when they are strong in God with us!!  Evil can not win against God! It is impossible! So evil can not win against us if we choose to have God on our side.  We have the choice to choose to be one of God's children and then each day we have the choice to renew our minds in Him.  Each day we can choose to put on the armor of God which is truth, peace of the Good News, faith and salvation  (verses 13-17).  God gives us what we need to fight the evil in this world and win against it.  We just have to choose to use what God gives us.  When we do we can have victory. 

Friday, September 28, 2012

9.28.12

Ephesians 5:5 You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God.  For a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. 
 
My Thoughts
This bites!!!  I thought of ways right off that I am greedy.  It is more in little ways than big ways...but I can be greedy.  I use to be really greedy about yarn... I would buy more than I could use...I made myself get better about that one...I buy what I need for what I am making at the time now and I still end up with too much yarn.  I love looms... I am terrible to to think "I NEED a new loom!" without stopping to figure out if a loom I have will do the job.  When I fix our plates out night I can be really greedy about the meat... I am picky about meat and Robby isn't so I often give myself the better piece... I have gotten better about that, but sometimes I deceive myself into thinking I am not being greedy by asking Robby which piece he wants. He always gives me the best piece. If I were not being greedy I would not ask, I would just give him the best piece (sometimes I do, but not all the time). There is a new yarn craft I want to try and I want everything I need to do it!!  I am also really greedy with "me" time!!   There are some other ways I am greedy but this is not a share all..it is a learn to be a better person, a godly person, a person that is right with God person. 
 
I wonder how many times I have had an opportunity to buy a person lunch...but I was greedy with my "yarn" money and passed up on the chance to bless somebody?  How many times has God used the Holy Spirit to prompt me to do something that would make me "have less?"  We can get the concept of God doing for us when we do for others...but do we always trust that He will? 
 
This verse puts greed in there with immoral and impure... right there all in the same sentence.  We have become a world that "keeps up with the Jones'" instead of taking care of the Jones'. The sad thing is that it "feels" okay to do so!  After all TV tells us that it is okay to put those priceless moments on our credit cards!  We have become greedy not only with money that we do have...we now use money that we don't have to satisfy our greed. 
 
I think greed is probably one of Satin's favorite tools.. if he can keep our eyes on what we think we "have" to have... we will not take time to notice those people that don't have things that that "have" need of. 
 
I need to step back and make sure that my "needs" are not me being full of "greed."
 
 

Thursday, September 27, 2012

9.27.12

Proverbs 24:5-6 The wise are mightier than the strong, and those with knowledge grow stronger and stronger. So don't go to war without wise guidance; victory depends on having many advisers.
 
My Thoughts
We are at war every day in our lives.  We are at war against Satin and all the evil that he surrounds us with here on earth. God made sure that we have in our hands advice from many wise men who loved Him.  God spoke through them and saved those words so that we could use them today.  When we search them out God has placed many people in our lives who are wise, who know Him, who will share their wisdom, if we just ask.  We need that wisdom to fight and win the battles we face each day!! 
 
In the Book of James, James tells us, "If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and He will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking." (James 1:5). God is waiting to grow our wisdom. God wants to make us stronger and stronger. God wants to equip us for victory over the world.  Verse 6-8 go on to say, and this is important, "But when you asked Him, be sure that your faith is in God alone.  Do no waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.  Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do." 
 
We get some wisdom right here where we are told we can ask for it... depend on God...not on earthly wisdom and Godly wisdom. You can't depend on both. 
 
It is not that God does not want to help us and He is being stuborn.  It is that God knows that until you are truly ready to depend on Him, He can drop all the wisdom you would ever want down into you brain and you won't use it. 
 
Since I have been eating right I understand this more, the part about God not helping us until we total depend on Him.  I have people write me and ask me about eating right, they see that I feel better and they want to feel better!!  I can tell right off as I start talking to them if they are really interested or if they wanted a quick, easy fix, by what they say.  Sometimes they are just not commited and until they decided that feeling better is more important to them than that food that is bad for them, they are not going to do it different. What I have learned from that is this; God knows when we are ready to receive His wisdom, God knows when we are serious about doing things His way. When He sees that we are ready, He is more than ready to make us wiser and stronger, He is more than ready to send down His grace to make us able.  But, God give us free will, He gives us a choice, He does not force Himself on us. So He sits back and waits and when we are ready for that wisdom He has all stored up for us He sends it down with such a rejoicing...I imagine He sings with the angles, He throws a party, He celebrates! Because He knows that we are ready for Him and that now He will be able to make our lives so much better, God through His Glory will finally be able to give us victory!!  But we have to choose His victory!!  We have the choice of wisdom...we have the choice of God's wisdom.  Are you ready?? I took me years to be turly ready for God's wisdom... but now I get so excited each time He grows me more!!

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

9.26.12

James 12:13-17 13 Look here, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit.” 14 How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. 15 What you ought to say is, “If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.” 16 Otherwise you are boasting about your own plans, and all such boasting is evil.

17 Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.

My Thoughts

This part really stuck in my head  "What you ought to say is, 'If the Lords wants us to, we will live and do this or that.'" I thought, "How many things would I choose not to do if I start my plans with 'If the Lords wants me to I will _____." This would make us really aware of our plans and if they will please God.  It would make us more acute listeners of the Holy Spirit, I think.  We would be more likely to hear the Holy Spirit say "You should not do that!" or "You need to do this." It would make me more aware of needing to ask God what He wants me to do that day.  I need this phrase to drop down into my spirit for sure!! 

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

9.25.12

Ephesians 3:16-19 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.  Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him.  Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong.  And may your have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.  May you experience the love of Christ though it is too great to understand fully.  The you will be made complete with all fullness of life, and power that comes from God.
 
My Thoughts
Wow I love this!!  I feel like somebody prayed it over me, just for me and that the prayer is being answered.  The more I know God, the more I water my life with God's word and surround myself with people that love God, the more I feel my roots grow down into God's love... the stronger I get!! The more I read and learn the more I understand how much God loves me.
 
I love that I now know that God, before I was even born, knew every mistake I would ever make and He choose to love me still.  I love that before Jesus was sent to this earth to die for my sins, God knew what my sins would be and He still loved me. He didn't tell Jesus that He was going to go and walk the earth and teach about God and die for every body's sins but mine... He told Jesus that He was going to go and walk the earth and teach about God and die for ever body's sins including mine! The conversation may have went like this  "Jesus when you die on the cross you are dieing for Jeannie too, she has really messed up in lots of ways but I love her so much!  One day she will understand how much I love her, she will understand that you died for her. She is worth it just because I love her!!" Then Jesus said "Yes God, I love her too!"
 
The thing is that God had that conversation with Jesus about each and every one of us! God wants us to know He loves us. Jesus died for each of us because of that great love!!  God said in Philippians 1:6 that He will finish the work He began in us until the day that Jesus comes.  God knows our faults, that is why He sent Jesus. He knew our faults before He sent Jesus and He loves us just the same!!  More than anything He wants to make our lives better!!  I just get excited thinking about it!!

Monday, September 24, 2012

9.24.12

James 1:19 Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to get angry.

My Thoughts
I found it rather interesting that "quick to listen and slow to speak" was in the same sentence as "slow to get angry." I think we all half listen a big part of the time these days.  We have cell phones that go off... text messages that interrupt.  TV's on in more than one room.  Facebook to entice us and make us think people in the computer are listening better than people in the room. I think that maybe the draw to Facebook is that we can finish a complete thought without being interrupted. 

We even have TV in most of the places that we go out to eat at these days.  When I was growing up, part of the pleasure of eating out was that somebody was sitting face to face with you giving you their undivided attention.  Now their attention is completely divided among all the distractions! 

Robby and I were eating out just Saturday at Red Lobster (no TV). We got seated just after a large group of people. The waiter was apologizing because the food was taking a while.  I smiled and said "It's fine, we like each other!" He laughed and said "Oh, I can tell, you are talking to each other instead of testing!" We all laughed.  So often thought, even with us enjoying each other's company and companionship we are half hearing each other.  So often these days we are not even watching TV together, we are in the same room... with the TV on... him on is computer and me on mine. And we do like each other!!
 
I spend a lot of time at home all by myself these days... I really need to use my words... I am really bad to jump in on Robby's conversation before he gets to the end.... I am hardly ever angry at Robby...maybe once or twice a  year do I get what I would call angry at Robby, and then it is often "my mood" that causes it.  But I am doing something apparently as bad as being angry I am not being slow to speak and quick to listen. 
 
The more I know God the more I see these instructions as bits of gold that will make my life better... so much better... if I use these wonderful nuggets of information several things will happen.  God will smile down on me, I will make God happy, I will improve my relationships with the people around me, my peace and joy will increase... my anxiety will go away...I will love others more...and they will love me more.
 
God is not pointing His finger in our face and saying you MUST do THIS!  God is holding our face in His gentle, strong hands and saying "My child, I love you so much!!  I want to make your life better and better and better!! Here is one thing (then another and another and another) that will bring you joy and peace and happiness. Just try it!" Aren't we special that God would tell us how to make our lives better.  We are special to God.

Saturday, September 22, 2012

9.22.12

Psalms 66:19-20 But God did listen! He paid attention to my prayer.  Praise God, who did not ignore my prayer or withdraw his unfailing love from me.
 
My Thoughts
God hears our prayers!! He listens!  He does not ignore our prayers. He will not withdraw his love from us!  The only thing that keeps our prayers from reaching is us.  When we feel our prayers stopping at the ceiling we need to look at our lives and be honest with ourselves so we can confess our sins.  When we do this God hears our prayers!  God cares!!

Friday, September 21, 2012

9.21.12

Galatians 6:15-16 It doesn't matter whether we have been circumcised or not. What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation. My God's peace and mercy be upon all who live by this principle; they are the now people of God.
 
My Thoughts
Today this could say, "It doesn't matter if you have the 'I am a Christian' t-shirt or bumper sticker. It matters if your actions are that of somebody that loves God.  May God's peace and mercy be on the people who's actions show how God has changed them; they are now the people of God."
 
This is how this has played out in my life.
 
When I was about 9, I "asked Jesus into my heart." not because He loved me and I loved him right back...but because I didn't want to go to Hell!!!  Who does?  Then I spent a whole life time of trying to be good enough for God to love me ... not because I knew Him enough to even feel how much He loved me but because I didn't want to go to Hell!!  Did I believe in Jesus? I did... because I had heard about Jesus all my life. I believed He died for my sins!  Well I believed He died for "our" sins.  But I never really trusted that Jesus died for my sins!! For me!!  So I keep trying to be good enough to stay our of Hell... I kept failing at it, because I was not relying on God's grace to help me. I would give up for a while and not really try at all. I felt like I was a Christian, after all I HAD asked Jesus into my heart. That is all I had to do?? Right??
 
Then I was given a One Year Bible, by my son, who I taught about God and Jesus. My son who I took to Church and Church camp.. who "got it" long before I did.  I started reading that Bible and I got to really know God. I got to really understand that Jesus died for ME. I finally understood that the only way I could be "good" was with God's grace. I finally knew, really knew Jesus. Finally I had a real relationship with God. And day by day, more and more I was able to turn things in my life over to God.  God began to change me!! God began to make me able.  Now my actions are that of a Child of God...I new feel like one of God's people. Now I feel confiding that if I were to die today I would see the face of God!  Not because I acted "right." but because God loves me and I love God, because Jesus died for My sins too!!  God is changing me and growing me every day. Each day I feel more joy and peace and love!  I am growing in confidence, not because of my abilities, but because I know that God loves me. He loves me even when I mess up and I am always messing up!! Now I can be like that child that runs to his earthly daddy with a broken toy that says "fix it." I can run to God and say, "I messed up God, fix me!" And right then I feel God start working in me, teaching me how to do it better next time. We don't have to do better... we have to believe Jesus died for our sins because He loves us so much, because God loves us so much. Then we keep our eyes and hearts on God... we call our for his grace and He makes us better! We go from seeing the information in the Bible as rules to follow... to seeing the information in the Bible as tidbits of pure gold that will change our lives and make them better.  God is amazing, His love for us is amazing!! 
 
I would love to hold your face in my hands and look at you with all the love in my heart showing through my eyes and say to you "Take time to know God because He loves you so much!! Please don't miss out on all the blessings He has in store for your life!!" Then I would kiss your cheek and hug you up and pray with all my being that you hear me!!

Thursday, September 20, 2012

James 1:5-8 If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and He will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. 6. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone.  Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. 7 Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.
 
My Thoughts
This verse got me to thinking about when I was a people pleas-er to a fault.  God could not help me... I was not depending on Him... I was depending on myself to please people and depending on them to validate my worth as a person by liking me. I lived in constant anxiety... constant!!  To the point where I begin to stay at home more and more and more.  After all if I was not around people I couldn't displease them could I!!! Staying home didn't help I needed people's approval!! I didn't have my trust in God, I had put my trust in people.  Even though I wanted to please God my loyalty was  was divided.  I was being tossed by the wind. I felt completely unstable!  I was unstable.  I was a mess. 
 
Then John-Robert (my son) gave me my One Year Bible...and I began to read it every day. How can you not when  you son gives you a One Year Bible all laid out day by day.  As I read it..those words began to change me.  I started becoming a God pleas-er not a people pleas-er. I still love to please people, it makes me happy...but not at the expense of doing something that would not please God.  My anxiety is pretty much gone...at least in this area of my life.  I don't feel the weight of the world anymore... I feel joy!!  I am amazed by life!!!  I know that I have value because God loves me!!  God made me.. He is not surprised by me... He forgives me when I mess up... God loves ME! So if a person doesn't like me that is okay because my value is measured by God. God thinks I am wonderfully made!!
 
I do still have anxiety sometimes... this passage tells me that when I feel that anxiety I need to ask myself, "Where is my loyalty divided? Who or what am I depending on besides God?"
 
I can look back at a recent time when I was worried about one of my children...I wanted to "fix it" for them. They are both adults now... very capable of making their own decisions. My anxiety came because I wanted to fix their problem. And when I look back the anxiety left when I turned them over to God. When I gave what I say as a problem to God and not to me and God. 
 
I need this passage to drop down into my soul...deep and rooted... If it take me writing it over and over and over again.  I need to always be aware that my anxiety is a "caution sign" that I have not given something to God completely. 
 
God is growing me every day... and I love the changes taking place in my spirit, in my mind, in my world. I feel so very blessed!! 

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

9.19.12

Isaiah 31:1 What sorrow awaits those who look to Egypt for help, trusting their horses, chariots, and charioteers and depending on the strength of human armies instead of looking to the Lord, the Holy One of Israel.
 
My Thoughts
I love how differently I see Bible verses as I grow to know God more!!  This is my third time through the Bible...and my favorite time... just think how I will feel in a few more years!!  It is exciting!!
 
Here in this verse this city of people were dependent on Egypt.  They had made friends with Egypt!  Egypt had proved to be a strong army with many horses and chariots... they had a huge army!  The looked like they could win any battle. From a human perspective that didn't take God into account it looked very much like the right thing to so.  This city of people didn't put their trust in God, they put their trust in people, in the world.  They were trampled. 
 
There are accounts in the Bible where small cities defeated huge, strong cities... one time God even had Joshua to weed down his troops to 300 men so that the city about to be defeated would know that it was defeated by God... So that Joshua and his people would know that God would protect them because they loved God. 
 
We face different kinds of battles today.  But they are battles non the less.  They are our battles, our own personal battles.  With people, with jobs, with people, with family. With sick bodies. With day to day life.  We often go about asking people how to solve our problems... sometimes people that seem really wise.  No wonder we stumble and fall, even when we have the "smartest" advise.  We didn't ask God.  God knows all the people involved. God knows our hearts and their hearts.  God knows the answers and will protect us if we are seeking after Him. He will protect us if we go to Him for the answers. He will put the right people in our paths that speak His words of wisdom.  He will help us win our battles, overcome our struggles no matter what they are.  Even if we are a small single person going up against a huge corporation we can win with God on our side.  But we, us, me and you... it is up to us to do the seeking of God.  God is always there waiting for us to ask Him to join in the battle.  Do you know why God waits for us to ask??  Because until we ask we are not ready to listen and do!!
 
Do you have a battle you want to win??  Ask God what to do!!!   I need to get busy asking God about a lot more things in my life.

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

9.18.12

Isaiah 28:29 The Lord of Heaven's Armies is a wonderful teacher, and He gives the farmer great wisdom.
 
My Thoughts
I got so excited about this verse that when the phone rang and interrupted me before I put my thoughts on paper, I felt like I already had... then I remembered that I had not.

The verses before explained about how a farmer knows just what to do.  I think that knowledge was sent to the farmer, by God,  in many forms. It was passed down, he could find it in book, some of the knowledge transferred from one plant to the other and sometimes the farmer didn't know how he knew he just knew.  Either way all of the knowledge that the farmer needed was given to him by God. God gives farmers great wisdom.

God gives us each great wisdom of some kind. The farmer can use his wisdom to feed his family, his community and sometimes people over the oceans.  I can loom knit, crochet, weave and spin yarn...I am even learning finally to knit on needles. I am not a good pattern follower, but God gave me the ability to look at something, take it apart in my head and figure it out.  I learn a little more and a little more all the time... God just keeps putting that knowledge in my head.  One day I prayed that I would learn to understand patterns and in a couple of weeks I noticed that I could, finally!, understand patterns.  God answered my prayers.  He is a wonderful teacher!!  What can I do with my yarn "art?" Bless others... God gave me the ability to loom and weave and knit and crochet to bless others!!  I believe that He gave me the passion I have to be able to sit for hours on end and knit away, so I could bless others.  One person at a time.  My knitting may not change the world, but God taught me how for a reason... and for all I know it may change one life...or at least one person's day! 

I am  not fully sure what the purpose of my loving yarn is.  But I do know that we are called to love others and I can love others with the things I make. 

We all have a purpose... God teaches each one of us...and He teaches each one of us different things. We each meed different needs in the world. We are all part of the body of Christ and we all have an important purpose.  We need to embrace the knowledge God gives us and us it for good, use it for God.  After all what we are good at is ours, our very own special, made for us, gift from God.

Some people have the gift to reach thousands... some of us have the gift to reach a hand full...some of us have the gift to reach just one person.  We tend to see the person that is intended to reach thousands as more important somehow. But think of it this way...what if you were some body's one person..what if you were the only person that that person was ever going to reach... how special you must be to God if he created that person just to make sure that you, YOU became a child of His!! How special is that!!!  It is special...so is the person that listens to God and reaches the one!!

We all have gifts that God gave just us.... we all have a purpose that is important to God and to man. The more we know God the better we can use that Gift, that knowledge that He placed in our hearts.

Monday, September 17, 2012

9.17.12

Galatians 3:22 But the Scriptures declare that we are all prisoners of sin, so we receive God's promise of freedom only by believing in Jesus Christ.
 
My Thoughts
I use to think of salvation as a thing that happened. Now I think of it as an ongoing process.  Once I believe in Jesus I am going to heaven. I do believe that.  But the more I know Jesus, the more I believe in Jesus the more I receive a daily salvation here on earth.  The more I grow in Jesus, the better my life gets.  I love how it is worded in Philippians 1:6 "He that began a good work in me will carry it to completion until the day of Jesus." God begins a good work in us the day we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior... God works on that good work every day in our lives all the way until Jesus comes back.  Making our lives better and better and better. Our part is to listen to the Holy Spirit inside of us. Our part is to pick up that instruction book on life, the Bible, and read it and learn and grow and get to know Jesus more and more and more.  The more we know Jesus, the more we know God the better our daily salvation becomes.
 
When I look at my whole life laid out before me, not sinning seems impossible, and it probably is.  But if I look at just today, it seems possible for today, God grace makes it possible for us to be free from sin.  Will we mess up sometimes? Sure we will! But that should never ever keep us from trying for today to have a day free from sin.  If we take one day at a time, renew God word in our hearts, listen to the Holy Spirit inside of guiding us...use Jesus as our compass we won't have to be a prisoner of sin!!  God keeps working with us! Day by day by day, God works with us...Jesus died for our sins so that we could be free, so we could have a better life. Our part is to take advantage of that by getting to know Jesus more and more and more...by learning to hear and learning to listen to the Holy Spirit... our part is to stay in communication with God...then God does the rest!!

Sunday, September 16, 2012

9.16.12

Galatians 2:19 You and I are Jews by birth, not 'sinners' like the gentiles.  Yet we know that a person is made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ, not by obeying the law.  And we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we might be made right with God because of our faith in Christ, not because we have obeyed the law.  For no one will ever be made right with God by obeying the law."
 
My Thoughts
There were some Jew who believe that if they followed the letter of the law that they were made right by following the law.  They could be mean people in so many ways... they would often use the law as an excuse not to do the very things they needed to do.  Their heart was not about loving God but about saving themselves while they acted like they wanted to act. 
 
What I seemed to do with the "rules" in the Bible was to use them to be "good enough" for God to love me.  Then I would mess up and feel so unlovable that I would go for a while without even trying.  Then I would get convicted again and start the process over again.  I never felt worthy of God's love, because I never felt like I could be "good enough."
 
Through reading and studying God's word I have learned that what I have to do is love God, because I love God... when you get to know God, really know God, He is so easy to love!... God already loves me, no matter what I have done!!  There is nothing I could do to be made right with God but to love Jesus and to love Him.  Once I understood that it got easier and easier to do what God ask me to do.  When I keep my eye on God I want to please Him.  Because He loves me so much I want to be good.. Because I love Him so much I want to show Him I love Him by doing what He ask me to do.  When I mess up, I don't feel unlovable! God loves me always... so I ask forgiveness, think about how and why I messed up and I move forward able to do better.  God's love keeps me from giving up.  When I depended on me I was giving up all the time... now that I depend on God I never give up, because I know that God never gives up on me.  I keep trying... God's love makes me able to be a better person. 
 
I had it all backward...I thought that if I was good enough God would love me. The fact is God always loves me no matter what... knowing that and loving God back along with His grace and  along with knowing and understanding that Jesus'  made a sacrifice for my sins,  makes me able to be a better person. The more I know God, the more I love God. The more I love God the better I get at being good.
 
 

Saturday, September 15, 2012

9.15.12

Psalms 59:16-17 But as for me, I will sing about your power.  Each I morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love. For you have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress.  O my Strength, to you I will sing praises, for you, O God, You are my refuge, the God who shows me unfailing love.
 
 
My Thoughts
Wow!!  These verses so explain yesterday's verse that I wrote about from James about not grumbling.  In the verses before David is talking about his enemies ...they are at his door, evil is on their lips, they are criminals and murders there to ambush him.  If there was ever a time to grumble and complain it would be then... people wanted to kill David!!  But David didn't complain, David didn't grumble! David sang about God and his power. David was thankful that God kept him safe. David sang praises!!
 
David was able to sing praises even in a scary time because his hope, his eyes were on God.  David put his future and his present in God's hands.  His life didn't depend on what was happening around him.. his life depended on God.   And God kept David safe, because David loved God. 
 
It is no wonder that we grumble about each other, about our jobs, about our government, so many of us put our hopes and the responsibility for our happiness and joy in people, in our jobs and we want our government to protect us.  So often our hopes are dashed by people. 
 
When we grumble about people, about our jobs, about our government it is proof that we have put our hopes in the wrong place... our grumblings are a manifestation of where we have put our hope.  God will take care of us, God will fill us with joy no matter what is happening in this earth around us.  If we are able, in these times to sing praises, and to go about without grumbling it is a direct result of where we have placed our hope!!  It is a direct result of God taking care of us because we keep our eyes on Him!! Because we keep our heart on Him!!  Because we put our trust, our lives in His hands. 
 
David was facing something that most of us in America don't face... David's enemies were at his door, ready to take his life! Yet David kept singing!!  We can too if we just put our faith, if we put all we have in God's hands!!
 
 
 


Friday, September 14, 2012

9.14.12

James 5:9 Don't grumble about each other, brothers and sisters, or  ou will be judged. For look--the Judge is standing at the door!
 
My Thoughts
First, God is always there watching, always!!  Second, have you ever noticed that when there is lots of talking going on ... if it is not planning for something it is usually grumbling.  We are a world of complainers.  We even grumble about people grumbling.  I have really noticed it on Facebook the last few weeks.. people are grumbling about the upcoming election...then people are grumbling about people grumbling about the upcoming election.
 
In the work place people are either busy working and planning... or they are grouped together grumbling.  We go about all the time grumbling.  We grumble if we have too many places to be...and we grumble if we have no place to go.  Grumble, grumble, grumble... I can't believe that there were not 8 dwarfs in Snow White.  There should have been Grumbley too. 
 
God is always there, standing at the door... you know the one our back is facing... listening to our grumbles.  He has given us so very much,  yet when we open our mouths He hears our grumbling.  If we can be spouting thankfulness and praises, if we can't remember to notice the joy that God has given us then the least we could do is keep our mouths shut and quit grumbling about life...and especially about each other. 
 
We grumble about the people in this world we love the most... what if.. what would happen... to us, to our relationship with those people and with God... if when we opened out mouths it was to speak out loud what a blessing the people around us are??  Just imagine how different our reaction to them calling, or walking through the door would be if all day we has spent being thankful for all that they bring to our lives. 
 
If we can't speak thankfulness and praises... at least God, as he stands at the door listening to us, should hear silence, not grumblings. I am going to work on that one!!  In James chapter 3 it talks about our tongue being so hard to control.. it says that if we could control our tongue that we could for sure control the rest of what we do.  What if we made a commitment to start by controlling the grumblings of our  mouth. Will you make that effort with me today???

Thursday, September 13, 2012

9.13.12

1 Corinthians 13:14 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
 
My Thoughts
One of the definition of fellowship is friendly relationship, companionship. I think of having fellowship with someone as having a conversations with somebody you like and trust.  Here Paul says, May the fellowship of the the Holy Spirit be with you.  We are suppose to take to, listen to the Holy Spirit, seek his counsel. The Holy Spirit is always with us...we we can be in constant fellowship with Him about everything! Every decision we make...every word we speak... every thought we have... we have the Holy Spirit with us all the time, we are never alone and we never have to make a decision all by ourselves.  We need to keep the Holy Spirit central in all that we do...not push Him back in to the corner...we are to be in constant fellowship with the Holy Spirit.  When we do this we will begin to see dramatic changes in all areas of our lives.

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

9.12.12

Psalms 56:8 You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.
 
My Thoughts
If you read this and believe God's word you can always, always know that God cares when you are sad or uncertain, worried or distressed....I cry when I am angry... so God cares then too!!  He has even collected our tears in His bottle...recorded each on in His book.  God cares and one day...when we get to heaven I believe we are going to get to crawl up in His lap and be comforted for each one!!  He throws our sins into the sea of forgetfulness, but He collects our tears!!  I think, I hope that now when I cry, that I will just stop and close my eyes and think of God holding me!! 

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

9.11.12

2 Corinthians 12:9 Each time the Lord said, "My grace is all you need. My power works best in your weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.
 
My Thoughts
What a fitting verse to read on the 11th anniversary of 9/11.  I have never in my lifetime seen a country come together to cry out to God as we did on that day.  My grandparents say it happen during the WW II and the great depression. I was just a toddler when my parents witnessed it when President Kennedy got shot. But at moments when we felt weak as a country, we drew on the strength of God. When our country is strong we walk around all proud with that "Look at us we are big and powerful!" strut. Thinking that nothing can happen to our great country.  Nothing can happen to us IF we put our faith, our trust, our future in God.  We can't keep turning out back on God and stay strong.  Sometimes God has to allow us to go through hard times so that we will depend on Him. So that we will allow Him to take over and do His thing!!  We, even as a great nation, can not be strong enough, without God.  If we realize that when we are strong and stay close to God our nation can stay strong!!  But if we are too proud for too long we it is possible that we could forget about God all together and even in our weakest moments we will not know who to call out to.  We are so blessed that we live in a county where we are able to call out to God...in our homes, on the streets...we are so blessed that we can go to Church in the light of day without being afraid.  We need to act at all times like we acted on 9/11 and give our country to God...we need to be on our knees every day saying God please take care of this great nation of ours!  Please keep us strong!! We need to remember that we are always, always weaker than God and always give our lives, our families, our friends, country and even our enemies over to God... God always knows best.

Monday, September 10, 2012

9.10.12

Proverbs 23:1-3While dinning with a ruler, pay attention to what is put before you. If you are a big eater, put a knife to your throat; don’t desire all the delicacies, for he might be trying to trick you.

My Thoughts
When the scripture talks about kings I have begin to think of them as people who have or can get anything they want. Just by demanding it. So much is at their beck and call. Imagine what a feast at a king’s table must look like! Imagine if you were a big eater and the king had researched you, sent people out to friend you and ask about all that you loved to eat. Imagine that he also knew that if you loved chocolate cake, he would know with out a doubt that you would love Double Chocolate, Chocolate Ripple cake filled with a creamy chocolate filling. If he wanted to win your heart, or maybe just your loyalty he would fill his table with all kinds of chocolate deserts. He would tempt you… and promise you more and more and more. Imagine what he could do to destroy you while he had you at his table every night distracting you while he went about taking everything that was truly valuable to you. There you are eating away, being dined by the king, how could anything be going wrong?? Yet while you have your mouth and tummy full, while you are to busy to notice, the king at his beck and call has people taking your life apart while he has you busy thinking all is good with the world.

Look at all Satin has at his beck and call!! Look at how Satin uses what can be used for good and makes it something awful. Take TV for example… it is a wonderful tool .. It is affordable… not many homes at all are without one these days…if they are it is by choice. But the wonderful advantage to television is that we can get important news out to everyone! We can be alerted about storms so we know to get in safe place. We can bring church into homes where people are housebound. We can be entertained. But we can also be distracted to the point of not knowing about anything that is going on around us. Television has made it possible to live in our own little world and never get board enough to care about what is going on in the world around us…even in our own streets. Television distracts us while Satin goes about destroying the world around us. We have all kinds of distractions today… work, things, things and more things, the latest fashions, so many kinds of food, just for the asking…we sit at a table and just order and pay. Some of us don’t even pay now…we promise to pay later with our pieces of plastic that promise to give us those wonderful priceless moments. We get so distracted by our wants and our work to pay for those wants… we get so distracted by entertainment…that we forget to take time with God. When that happens Satin has us right where he wants us… too busy to notice that our world is in need of love… love for God and love for each other.

This scripture tells me that we need to be very careful of distractions… because it is one of the tools the devil uses to steal our souls.

Sunday, September 9, 2012

9.9.12

Proverbs 19:11 Sensible people control their temper; they earn respect by overlooking wrongs.
 
My Thoughts
The Amplified Bibles says it like this....Good sense makes a man restrain his anger, and it is his glory to overlook a transgression or an offense.  The definition of glory is very great praise, honor, or distinction bestowed by common consent 2.something that is a source of honor, fame, or admiration; a distinguished ornament or an object of pride.
 
The devil tries to trick us by telling us we look like a fool if we don't stand up for ourselves.  I have heard people say, "I was not going to stand there and look like a fool."
 
Even if people don't respect us for overlooking wrongs, God does.  When we choose to please God over people, God takes care of the rest.  And if we control our temper and over look wrongs we get to walk away knowing that we have not done a thing to add to a bad situation.  We get to sleep good because we don't have to worry about what we have said in anger.  And when the devil tries to tell us what "we should have said," we get to say... I did what God ask me to do and God sees me as worthy of praise and honor because I walked away!! 
 
It is our choice, because God gives us a choice. We can be sensible, God give us His grace and makes it possible to be sensible...then after God gives us His grace, to be strong and walk away, God give us glory.  How amazing is that... God makes us able and rewards us for it!  Our part is to make the right choice and depend on God to do the rest.

Saturday, September 8, 2012

9.8.12

Proverbs 22:24-25 Don't befriend angry people or associate with hot-tempered people, or you will learn to be like them and endanger your soul.
 
My Thoughts
We have all seen it happen, the work place is one of the most notable places to see this, someone gets upset and angry at the boss and then before you know it everybody is upset at the boss... people that were happy at their jobs are all the sudden very unhappy.  Anger spreads like weeds, it takes over.  We just need to be careful... we need to pay attention... it even says here that we need to stay away from angry people or hot-tempered people.  We need to find ways to remove ourselves from their presence or it can endanger our souls. 
 
Once you become angry, you begin to see all the wrong in people, in work places, in families... in the world.  Anger can take over our lives. It can keep us from seeing the good in anything.  Angry is right where satin wants us.
 
God is good, and God is very present on this earth of ours.  We can find God everywhere we look, but not if we are angry.  God is good, God is love. God is where love comes from, happiness comes from that love. 
 
The flip side to this scripture is that if we look for loving happy people to be around our souls can be protected.  We will feel loved then we will spread love.  Loving people are happy people and happy people see the beauty around them... they see the joy that is brought down by God.  Happy people overlook wrong and see the best.  Loving, happy people recognize God in the things around us, because God is where love comes from. 
 
We need to see our souls as something that needs to be protected.  We can protect our souls by choosing the right friends, by removing ourselves from bad situations, by talking to God constantly throughout the day.  We can protect our souls by studying God's word so that we can better recognize the things that truly come from God.  We have to become aware that everything effects us, so everything matters. What we allow ourselves to be subjected to matters.  What we surround ourselves with effects our very souls, we need to surround ourselves with love!!

Thursday, September 6, 2012

9.6.12

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.
 
My Thoughts
Do not depend on your own understanding!!...I am learning to take things to God so that he can explain them to me!!  When I do He will point out my error in thinking or the way I saw something.  Remember God is always fair.. He is fair to us and just as fair to others.  I am learning that if my feelings have been hurt... or somebody says something that upsets me... if I talk to God about it, He will explain their side to my heart.  I use to see it as me trying to talk myself into giving someone the benefit of the doubt... now I recognize it as the Holy Spirit telling my heart the truth.   It is amazing when it happens.  It makes me able to walk away with a song in my heart.  A better understanding. It makes me better able to love others!!  God's understanding is far beyond anything we can understand.  God sees the big picture, God sees every body's heart, God knows all sides.  Our understanding of a situation is never full, it is always lopsided, it is filled with our opinion.  God's understanding is perfect, it is from all sides, it is fair to all sides it is truth in it's purest form.  We can't go wrong by trusting God's understanding of all situations in our lives.

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

9.5.12

Ecclesiastes 10:10 Using a dull ax requires great strength, so sharpen the blade.  The value of wisdom; it helps you succeed.
 
My Thoughts
I love how the Bible gives us advice about everything!!!  How we learn from it's history. How the wisest king ever to live, Solomon, wrote down so much for us to learn from. How God gave him that knowledge and made sure that it lasted for the ages so that we could learn from it. I love how that even though this Book was written so many, many years ago we still benefit from it today!! I love that each time I read through the Bible I learn more and more and more!! 
 
I love that right here it tells me that getting prepared saves me time and energy!!  It tells me that if I will seek wisdom I will succeed. I love that all that we need to know is written down, it is right at our fingertips... it is ours for the taking.  We just have to pick it up and start reading!! 

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

9.4.12

Ecclesiastes 7:29 But I did find this: God created people to be virtuous, but they have each turned to follow their own downward path.

My Thoughts
If God created us to be virtuous it is possible, with God's grace.  It may not always be easy but it is always possible.  This verse also tells me that when we act in a way that is not virtuous it is our own doing...we can not be pushed, led, dragged... we do it ourselves. We make the choice.  We can't blame anybody else.  We have God's grace to make the right choice no matter what anybody else chooses.  It tells us in 1 Corinthians 10:13 that God will not let us be tempted by more than we can bare and that God always gives us a way of escape. God gives us His grace always to make the right choice.  Only we can make the choice.  Only we are responsible for the choice we make.   

Monday, September 3, 2012

9.3.12

Ecclesiastes 4:4-6 Then I observed that most people are motivated to success because they envy their neighbors.  But this, too, is meaningless--like chasing the wind.  "Fools fold their idle hands, leading them to ruin." And yet, "Better to have one handful with quietness than two handfuls with hard work and chasing the wind."
 
My Thoughts
So often we are motivated by our need to "Keep up with the Jones'" when our motivation needs to be the needs of our family.  We often look over emotional needs because we are trying to give our children what "everybody else has."  We are always chasing "happiness" when happiness comes when we slow down and give each other love. When we give each other time.  When we give each other ourselves.  We are so much more able to do that when we give ourselves to God, so that He can take care of us while we take care of each other. 

Sunday, September 2, 2012

9.2.12

Ecclesiastes 3:22 So I saw that there is nothing better than for people to be happy in their work. That is why we are here! On on will bring us back from the death to enjoy life after we die.
 
My Thoughts
Here King Solomon is pondering life...trying to figure out the meaning... he is not finished pondering yet.  But this verse made me think, "We don't get a do over on any day we have, we need to find the things in our day to enjoy!"  Some people live whole lives and never enjoy more than a few hours of that life.  The only way to enjoy life is to be thankful for what God has given us...to see each good think in our life as a gift from God.  To do that we have to remember, make an effort, to be aware of the good.  When we become aware of the good around us, and how much it is a gift from God our life changes.... even though our it will looks much the same from the outside on the inside we will be different.  We we see life through new eyes and we can go for miserable to happy.  The choice is ours.. to look for what we don't have and never see what we do have... or to look at all that we do have and recognize the blessings from heaven when they fall down on us. 

Saturday, September 1, 2012

9.1.12

2 Corinthians 5:14  Either way, Christ's love controls us.  Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life.

My Thoughts
When Jesus lives in us we are always strong enough to turn away from sin, always!!  It says here that Jesus' love controls us!! All we have to do is call out to Jesus to make us strong enough.  We always have a choice, because God gives us a choice.  But we can always choose to live under the control of Jesus' love.