10.3.14

Philippians 4:8 Now dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts in what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 

My Thoughts

As I think about this verse I think how when I have gotten upset and stayed that way, I was not thinking on any of these things. I was thinking on just the opposite of these things. And I am reminded too of how I can be in the grips of despair and something wonderful happen and life can turn around in a second in time. All because of what I was thinking on. 

Sometimes in life, things happen where it seems impossible to find anything true and honorable and right and pure. But if we aren't looking because we are so very focused on all that is bad or hurtful we will stay so lost in the despair we will miss out on blessings that abound in our lives. How do we do this on times of trouble and pain? That is where God's amazing grace comes in.

How do we think on the good? We ask God. I am reminded of the father in Mark 9 who ask Jesus to heal his child. Jesus ask this man if he believes, and the man says yes, but help my unbelief. This father didn't want anything, any tiny bit of doubt to stand between him and the miracle of Jesus in his daughters life. In the same way we can say to God please help me to thin on things that are true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Things that are worthy of Your praise. And God will help us! We can say out loud, get behind me Satan, I will only think on what is good! 

And if the only good we can think on for a while is that we are to think on what is good. Well then that is good enough to bring the presence of God upon us. It is just what will change the gears in our brains to move in the right direction. It is enough to stop us from feeding the ugly things in life and making them grow bigger and bigger and bigger. And in time sometimes minutes sometimes a couple of day, good thoughts will start growing. They will grow because those are the thoughts we watered. They will grow because God honors our efforts! They will grow because God is good, because God is love, because God is bigger and we have invited Him in to fight the battles in our minds! 

10.3.13

Philippians 4:8-9 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing.  Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

My Thoughts

We can kill two birds with one stone here... Psalms 50:14 tells us, Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God." So if each day we make sure to spend the day being thankful, we will be fixing our thoughts on what is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely and admirable. Things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 

God ask us to do this, I believe, because He wants us so totally aware of what He does for us so that we will depend on Him more and more and more.  And He wants us totally dependent on Him, because He loves us so much.  And God knows He can do so much more for us that we can ever do for ourselves.  God wants to do so much for us!  But because God gives us free will He only does these things for us if we invite Him into our lives to do them.  The more we fix our thoughts on good things, the more we know the good things are from God,  the more we will invite God into our lives and the better and better our lives will be. 

Some people come to know God and their whole lives change over night.  They "get it" all!  And they get it all at one time.  For most of us, I think, we get parts at a time.  We invite God in ... then we limit what He can do in our lives because we have invited Him into the guest room only.  We have not given him reign of the whole house.  Then we add rooms that we will let Him into.  What we don't get until we get to know God, really know God is that joy comes when we let Him into the attic where we have stored everything of value, and into the  basement where we have hidden all the things we want to forget about. 

Peace and love and change comes when we give God every part of our lives.  Not leaving one single thing out. And we can be most thankful when we aren't hiding anything from God.  We can better fix our minds on good and noble things when we are not busy trying to stand in front of the basement door. When we are not busy making sure we have locked the windows to our deepest darkest secrets. When we give God ever thing then we can fix our minds on the wonderful!  When we give God ever thing we can see joy in the ordinary.  We can be content with where God has us and know that He has so much more in store for our lives. 

Today I dare you to make a list of 100 things that you are thankful for. Yes 100.  Because then you begin to get past the obvious things...and you start remembering to notice the things we so take for granted, like the fact that we just flip a light switch in the dark!  Or that ................................... you fill in the blank.  Don't forget when you make the list to add, the Thank you God part! 

I find that when I send up thank you's to Heaven, joy falls down on my soul!

9.30.13

Philippians 2:16 Hold firmly to the word of life; then, on the day of Christ's return, I will be proud that I did not run the race in vain and that my work was not useless.

My Thoughts

Hold firmly to the word of life.  We can't hold firmly if we don't know God word!  It is essential that we read, for ourselves our Bibles, we are so blessed to have them.  For years I tried to be a good Christian person, I thought that I knew God. After all I went to church (a lot of those years).  I listened to the preacher and did my best to do what he taught me to do.  But I didn't read my Bible.  It just sat there gathering dust on the shelf.  Three years ago I was given a one year Bible by my son.  I started to read it every day.  Because I was going to finish it just once because John-Robert had given it to me, a Bible all mapped out for me to read each day.  At first I was as lost as when I would try to read my Bible in the past, but I kept reading...and just as God's word promises, (If you seek wisdom, wisdom will find you.) I began to understand what I was reading.  My life had changed so much at the end of that year that I knew I would never stop reading my Bible daily.  That was 3 years and 9 full months ago.  Some days life just gets in the way...but only some days and I miss a day, but I always try to catch up. A few times I have gotten a few day behind when that happens I read at least the New Testament, Psalms and Proverbs parts to catch me up to the current day.  But mostly, I would say 95% of the time I read my Bible each day, renewing my mind with what God wants me to know.  Now I know God, I don't just know who God is.  Now I know if someone is misleading me in what God wants. Know I know for myself what God wants for me. Now so much of the Bible is a part of my heart that when I face hard times or just when I face daily issues, I can call on God's word to make the right choice. Now I truly understand that God will forgive me.  Now I "get" what God's grace is and I call on it all the time. 

I am not perfect, I will never be perfect. But thank you Jesus, I have a way to be made right. I am no longer tormented by Satin, because I know what His lies are and I know what God's truth about me is!  Each say I am amazed. Each day not only do I love God more, I love others more and I love myself more.  Each day not only does God forgive me, I am able to forgive me.  Peace and joy chase after me.  Because God's word is in me and I use it, mostly to fend off Satan. And it works!

If you are not in a place where you want to be. If your life is not where you would like it to be.  If you fight depression, anxiety and panic or low self-esteem, I beg of you.. Please pick up your Bible and start reading.  Don't give up it takes a few months, but you will begin to see wonderful changes in your life!!  When you do please tell me about them!  Share with others so they can have what you have.  Life can be amazing. God's word is life altering! 

6.24.13

Proverbs 17:24 Sensible people keep their eyes glued on wisdom, but a fool's eyes wander to the ends of the earth.

 

My Thoughts

Proverbs 2:6-8 tells us that God grants wisdom, from His mouth comes knowledge and understanding...and that He gives common sense to the honest. Above it tells us that we can look to all the world for answers... but that is foolish.  We must look to God for the answers. 

 

God knows the end from the beginning(Isaiah 46:10).  God knitted us together in our mother's wombs (Psalms 139:13). God created each of us with our own personality...He knows the answers to each of our individual problems.  God knows what we need.... When we search the earth for what we need we come back empty even after we have done what the world says will make us happy.  When we look to God for the answers, when we listen and do our part then we will have all that we need.  We may not have what the world says we need, but we will have what we truly need!!

 

I have found in the last few years that when I search God for my needs, when I search for answers in God's word I feel complete contentment.  When ever I feel like I am missing something I know that I have been looking in the wrong place, I have been looking to the world for answers.  Sometimes it takes me a few days to figure out that I have not looked to God for the wisdom I need...but I use to not look to God at all. I would try to please God without knowing what God wanted me to do.  I am getting better all the time.  The more that I know God's word, the more that I start out with the wisdom I need to face the world.  It is in those places where the wisdom is in my head and not dropped down into my heart that get me stuck every time.  But at least now I know where to turn..at least now I only wander in the darkness for a little bit at a time when I do wander.  At least now I know to keep studying because God will keep improving me until the day of Jesus' return (Philippians 1:6).  So I don't have to be afraid when  I mess up, I just have to confess my sin and ask forgiveness and know that God will send down His grace to help me grow, because I am His child!! 

10:9:12

Matthew 12:35 A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart.

 

My Thoughts

When I read this I thought, "What we keep in our heads and what comes from our mouths eventually drops down into our hearts."  To be good, we have to think on things which are good. Philippians 4:8 tells us this, "Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise." When we do this our hearts become good and our actions follow. 

 

When we dwell on upset and talk about it and talk about it and talk about it... our thoughts become angry, then our hearts... then our words and actions. 

 

To be produce good things from a treasury of a good heart we must put good things in our mind so that good falls down into our heart!!  This takes effort on our parts.. it is a decision we make. It is a choice we have.  To be good we must take our thoughts captive (2 Corinthians 10:5). Once we take our thoughts captive...our hearts and our actions will follow.

3.4.12

Philippians 4:6-7 Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.  Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.  Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds ad you live in Christ Jesus.

 

My Thoughts

My grandmother was a worrier, my mom was a worrier... I was destine to be a worrier.  If you just met me you might think that I am a bit of a worrier.   But if you have know me for even a few years you could see the wonderful change God has brought about in me!!  Sometimes I hold on to that worry, like the more that I worry the better chance there is for something to work out!! Or maybe it is more of a "I need to worry to show I care type of thing." I do remember my mother fussing at me before because I was not worried...oh she was so upset at me for not worrying. How could I not become a worrier, after all it showed I cared!! I became an expert at worrying.. I could worry about not having anything to worry about.  I couldn't function and still can function very well at all when I let myself get consumed with worry. It freezes me, stops me in my tracks. It puts me right where Satin wants me unable to do for myself or for others.

 

I have grown though!  I give everything to God now!..Sometimes I take it back and have to give it to Him over and over again... but eventually I let God keep it and when I do everything works out, because God is busy taking care of me and what I was worried about.  Sometimes it is something that makes me go right into panic mode...and I find that I have been worried for several days and at some point I calm down enough to hear the Holy Spirit telling me to "give it to God." Every time that I stop and give my worries to God I feel this wonderful peace come over me...a peace that is unexplainable and I can get on with my life. I can again move out of that circle that I have put me in the center of and I be aware of the people and things around me. I can hear God again.

 

How do I get there you may ask... I have learned that when I don't know what to pray.. when I don't have the thoughts or words I just start praising God..I praise Him and tell Him that I know that He knows my needs and that I am giving them to Him.  That is when God takes over best, those times I have no idea at all what I should do...because those are the times I have to let go completely and let God work his love into the situation. 

 

I am amazed every day as I watch myself grow in this area...the more I see God take care of me...the faster I give my problems over to Him to take care of.  The less I worry because I have God.... the less places I leave for the devil to sneak in and take over. 

 

Every day I am amazed at just how much God loves me!!  And the more I turn over to God the more I see His love in my life.  The wonderful thing is that God loves each and every one of us just the same... God will do amazing things in our lives if we just let Him. 

10.2.12

Philippians 3:18 For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears in my eyes, that there are many whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ.

 

My Thoughts

Wow! This verse took my breath away! It actually made tears well up in my eyes!!  I have done things in my life that I knew was wrong even before I did it I knew it was a sin. But never, ever once did I think of it as being an enemy of the cross of Christ!!  I have cut out a lot of what I use to watch on TV.. but there are still a couple of things that I can, at times feel questionable about. But never once have I looked at them as supporting something that was an enemy of the cross of Christ!!  Now, to look at is this way, makes me feel like I took a minute to march in the devil's army all for an hour of "relaxation." All I had to do was make a different choice, to change the channel or turn the TV off.  But instead I choose to take an hour of my life to march against the cross of Christ.  When I open my mouth to grumble and complain it is like switching sides and marching against the cross of Christ. 

 

I know a lot of people...that try to be good people... that choose to sin, make an actual choice to do something they know is sinful and I know that have never ever thought of it like this.  I think this verse alone would change many lives.

 

I can not even express how deeply this verse touched me today.  I feel overwhelmed by it!  Deeply troubled that I have been guilty of being an enemy of the cross of Christ!!  I will forever see my actions differently. 

10.1.12

Philippians 2:12b-13 Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.

 

My Thoughts

I love this...I love that God not only gives us the desire to do what pleases Him...but he also gives us the power to do what pleases Him.  If we just seek after God. If we take time to read God's word and pray, God will start working in us and change us in amazing ways.

 

I have heard this verse many times in my life... but once I picked up my Bible and started seeking after God I begin to see this verse working in me.  Each day bring me new joy... each day I get a new tidbit of information that makes my life better and better and better.  Each day my strength grows, my peace grows. Each day I am more and more in awe of God and His love for me and for you!! 

 

I have been in that place where I thought "Doesn't life get any better than this??"  Life can be so full... Jesus died on the cross so that we could have life and have it abundantly (John 10:10). I begin to know that abundant feeling when I picked up my Bible and started reading it... when I began to earnestly want to understand it.  Little by little my life begin to change...at first it was in tiny ways... it is like a snow ball rolling down a hill, as it rolls it gathers more and more snow with each turn.  No matter how small it starts out if it keeps rolling it grows bigger and bigger and bigger... gather more and more snow with each turn of the ball.  That is what God's word does.. at first we understand just a little bit here and there...and as we understand we are able to gather more and more and more... and one day we wake up and feel amazing!!  All because God wants to grow us.. If we seek after God, God will make sure we understand!!

 

If you feel helpless or hopeless I beg of you to pick up a Bible that you can understand... I love the New Living Translation, I have a friend who loves The Message.  It doesn't matter which one you like... it matters that you seek after God.  Once we seek after God, He does the rest!! I promise that in a matter of weeks you will begin to feel better... you will find hope where you were hopeless... you will find help to get through this day and the next and the next.... then one day you will wake up and realize that you feel joy! 

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!!

Ephesians 4:29  Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.

 

My Thoughts

Oh this verse is so important to our quality of life, and the quality of life of the people around us!!  Can we be frustrated, angry and upset? Yes! But we need to take those things to God. When we do God sorts them our in our hearts in the right way.  People tend to tell us what they think we want to hear, making us more frustrated, angry or upset.  God sets us straight... God gives us the best way to think through something.  Then our words don't make the situation worse for us or for others. 

 

We need too, to be careful of the words we say to ourselves about ourselves. We need to but us up, as well as others... we need to have helpful dialog in our head about ourselves and our lives... we need our words spoken about ourselves to be words of encouragement!  We need to remember what God says about us!! 

 

God tells us He loves us so much that He let His only son die for our sins (John 3:16). God tells us that we are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalms 139:14).  God tells us that we matter so much to Him that even the hairs on our heads are numbered (Luke 12:7). I don't know about you, but with me that changes ever few minutes...and God knows when it does!!  God tells us that He cares about the desires of our hearts (Psalm 37:4). God cares about what we want!!... the list goes on and on. If we matter that much to God we should be kind to ourselves!!

 

We need to remember that we are all God's children!!  If we matter that much to God, the person next to us at any given time at any part of our day, matters that much to God to!!  Have you ever known a mother that didn't just love somebody to death that loved and encouraged her child. God feels the same way!!  When we love and encourage others we are loving one of God's children. That matters to God even more!! 

 

We need to remember the words of Thumper's that his mother taught him (from Bambi), "If you can't say something nice, don't say nothin at all."  Proverbs 18:21 tells us that our words have the power of life and death and that we eat the fruit of our words.  We need to be mindful of our words, not just letting anything flow from our mouths... the words we choose should be loving and encouraging, good words, helpful words.  We need to remember if we hear ourselves saying something we shouldn't that it is never too late to shut our mouths!! 

 

If we start out watching our thoughts, and think on things that are good and noble and kind, honorable and pure and lovely (Philippians 4:8). Then good and noble, kind, honorable, pure and lovely words will follow.  By taking our thoughts captive, we take our words captive! 

8.23.12

Philippians 4:8  And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

 

My Thoughts

2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us to take our thoughts captive.  The only way to get rid of the bad thoughts is to replace our thoughts with good thoughts.  It is when I mind seems rather empty for a moment that the devil himself moves in and starts filling our head.  Philippians 4:8 is our weapon against the devil filling our minds with his thoughts, and convincing us that they are our own.  We can tell ourselves "I refuse to entertain that thought, instead I am going to think about true and honorable things, right and pure things, lovely and admirable things...I am going to fix my mind on God at this moment and thank Him and praise Him.

 

How you ever noticed that when you are busy being thankful...when you are busy praising God it is hard to think of anything else!!!   One way to think on the things that are good is to count  your blessings.  When I have been so troubled that I could not concentrate without my mind wandering to a problem,  I have actually gotten out a pen and paper and made myself write down 100 things that I am thankful for... it helps.  We can refuse to think negative things about ourselves and about others...we can instead choose to thing on things that are good. 

 

When we learn to think on things that are good, we begin to notice the good around us. When we notice the good, our mood changes, whole days can be transformed by our thoughts when we make an effort... it has to be more than an effort...it has to be more a determination.  Whole days can be changed when we become determined to think on things that are true, honorable, right and pure. When we think on things that are lovely and admirable, excellent and worthy of praise!! 

 

It is so important to take our thoughts captive... what stays in our  minds eventually drops in our hearts... so when we refuse to think on bad things and instead think on the good... the good drops into our hearts... what is in our hearts become our actions. The only way to act and react good is for our thoughts to be good thoughts. What will your thoughts be on today??

7.1.12

Philippians 1:6 I am confident in this one thing, That He who begin a good work in me will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.

My Thoughts

Don't you just love this!!  I love it!!  God will make us better and better and better.. He will keep working on us to make us better until Jesus comes.  Every day God will improve us ... we just have to keep our eye on Him... keep seeking Him, His wisdom and His love, and we will get better and better and better... our lives will get better and better and better!! 

I am living prof of this verse!!  I still have so far to go!!  But I have come so very far in such a short period of time... so very far!!!   Once I started seeking God ... truly pursuing all that He has to teach me, God made sure that what I needed to learn started to drop from my head to my heart!!  Each day my life gets better and better... one baby step at a time!!!  The fun thing is ...as you grow those steps get bigger and bigger. I see God making changes in me all the time.  God is healing me!  First my spirit...and now my body... I can feel it and it brings me such great joy!! 

I wish I had know how to seek after God 30 years ago... the wonderful news is that I know now!!  And God is growing me by leaps and bounds.  Every time I listen to God and make a step forward my life just get better!!

God wants to grow us.. He wants to make us the best we can be!!  It is so exciting that God can keep making us better no how far we have come so far...we get to be even better and better and better until Jesus comes to take us to heaven where we will be perfect!!

The thing is, God gives us free will.. so it is up to us to seek Him... All we have to do is seek... then God takes over and does the rest!!! 

1.19.12

1 Peter 5:8 Be well balanced (temperate, sober of mind), be vigilant and cautious at all times; for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring [[a]in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon and devour. (Amplified Bible)

My Thoughts

Joyce Meyer words it like this, in "The Secret Power of Speaking God's Word," "I will live a balanced life because God's word states that if we are not well balanced we open the door for Satin to come in and devour us."

God has really been dealing with me about balance...then I came across this scripture in Joyce's book... and it really spoke to my heart.  I have spent a couple of weeks thinking about it, on and off. Then today this came up in my reading again... and finally I could see it so clearly!  When there are things we need to do and don't do them...the devil loves to use that to tell us how unworthy we are, how lazy we are... how incapable we are...and soon we believe him...and instead of tackling what we have been putting off we begin to think "I can't"... as soon as that I can't comes in to play the devil has his hold.  As soon as we start believing the "I can't-'s" and the "I am useless-'s" the less productive we become... what the devil has first taken from us is our energy... negative thoughts zap of us our energy faster than a hard days work ever could. When we plan our days with balance...we can nurture our soul, get things done, be creative and spend time with loved ones and friends... all while feeling good about ourselves. When we feel good about ourselves, when we believe what God tells us we are, and not what the devil says about us..the cracks in our armor begin to heal and the devil doesn't have a something to use against us. We then have room for the joy of the Lord...and joy..well that produces energy.

Balance was eluding me... even though I knew I needed balance I just didn't know how to go about getting any.... I am an all in person...or an all out person... so this balance thing is not something I really have ever mastered.  Over the last few weeks... after repeating "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13)"...and then learning that "You have not, because you ask not (James 4:2).... I begin to understand that God wants me to have balance... so if I ask God for balance, something He wants for me, then God will give me answers, and strength to have that balance.

So just this morning several things came to mind just how to plan my day with more balance... not somebody else's plan... a plan for me. That is a God thing!  I am today putting that plan in order... it is basically very simple... it is 30 minutes of each activity... a little work, a little play, some folding of the hands... then a little work a little play, a little folding of the hands. God is so good to give us answers! God made us, he knows us...he knows what we need...  God knows what will work for each of us, based on our personality and our abilities. God has the answers...we just have to ask the questions. The thing is God wants us to have balance, God will always give us what He wants us to have, we just have to let God know that it is a desire of our heart.

12.27.11

Psalm 146:8b The Lord lifts up those who are weighed down. The Lord loves the godly.

My Thoughts

I love this! God has so lifted me up this past year! So many times... I could not have gotten through the death of my mom had I know grown so close to God. Sure I would have made it when my mom died... but it would have been so much harder...I would have gone into a deep depression, I am sure had I not had the relationship I now have with God. God loved me so much,  that even when I didn't know him like I should, he set it up so I would be close to Him when my mom died. I will always believe that! God knew that I had the desire to love Him, and that I just didn't know how. God put my One Year Bible in my hand through my son so that I would read it. God put Life Church in my path so that I would be surrounded by people that would help me grow. Then when I faced the hardest thing I have ever faced God lifted me up.

I have learned so much in the past two years about giving all my cares to God! It is amazing how much my world is the same but my life is so completely different!! Now when I feel myself going into one of those places that use to put me to bed for days!!  I first tell the devil that God is on my side and that I will not believe his lies. Then I give my day to God. I say, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13)." I talk to God about what is bothering me.  I repeat scripture that builds me up and makes me know that I am not alone, I know that I have God who is bigger than anything in the world (1John 4"4). Before you know it I am going about my business feeling pretty joyful and I have forgotten that I had even started to get upset. Actually completely forgotten that I was even about to be upset! Then later in the day I remember and think I can't even believe that I let that upset me for a minute!!... I am talking about a problem that use to put me to bed from stress!!!  God does lift up those who are weighed down!  I am constantly amazed at the love that God has for me! God loves to take care of us! Our part, and we always have a part, is to give all our cares to God and let God do the rest.

My wish for 2012 is that I can reach somebody, make them understand that reading God's word will change their life...and  that their relationship with God grows as much as mine has. That one day I can hear them say what I feel, that the joy of the Lord is my strength!! God is so good! God loves us so much! God is bigger than anything we face in this world. God wants to take care of us...we just have to learn how to let Him.

12.26.11

Psalms 145:20 The Lord protects all those who love him, but he destroys the wicked.

My Thoughts

I love this!!  If we just love God, really love God we become so precious to him that he protects us. It doesn't say he protects us when we are perfect. It doesn't say He protects us if we never sin. He protects us if. It says God protects all those who love Him. When we love God he is always watching over us!!... Always. The wonderful thing about loving God is when we do, we we get to know God enough to really, truly love him, he gives us the desire and the power to do better (Philippians 2:13).  So even as we are learning...even as our desire is growing, even as our power is growing, God is protecting us.

We see so many things as lucky when luck has nothing to do with it..it is God with his mighty hand protecting us.  Those are the moments that we can see...the moments when we almost have a wreak or we almost fall. Moments when we almost do the wrong thing but do the right thing instead...that is God protecting us!  There are no telling how many times in a day when I life could have changed in an instant that we don't even know about. Times when we run into a friend that seems to take to long...times when we end up in the "long" check out line....that could be God keeping us out of harms way... we just never know what God does protect us from. All we have to know is that when we love God, truly love God, He protect us all the time.

Next time we have a moment when you think "Oh, man was I lucky!" We need to top and thank God for being there to protect us!

12.23.11

Zechariah 4:6 The he said to me, "This is what the Lord says to Zerubbabel: It is not by force nor by strength, but by the Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven's Armies."

My Thoughts

God was saying that Zerubbable could do what God wanted because God was giving him the Spirit. He wouldn't win because he was strong or because he was smart...he would accomplish what he was told to do by God because God was putting the Holy Spirit inside him to make it possible!

When we ask Jesus into our heart, God sends the Holy Spirit to live inside of us... giving us the ability, because of the Holy Spirit to do what God ask us to do!!  There is always a right answer to any problem.... and answer that God wants us to choose.... and answer that God gives us when we ask.  If we choose God's way, God makes it possible to accomplish what he tells us to do.  Even if the right answer is the hard answer God will get us through it because he has given us the strength of the Holy Spirit. When we choose God's way it is always easiest...if not in the moment, it is in the long run. God protects us when we choose to do what is right. God gave us the wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit to get us through, to make us able, to help us stand against our enemy satin... God makes it possible for us to win when we depend on The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. We should never believe the devil when he tells us something is just too hard...we should always believe what God says "All things are possible through Christ who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:12) All things...!!!

11.18.11

James 2:17 So you see, faith by itself isn't enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.

My Thoughts

To be honest I had to really think about this verse... it got me in my gut... made me a little afraid if you want to know the truth.  I spent lots of time reading how Paul told the believers that your good works would not get you into heaven... it is by grace that we are saved. We could never be "good" enough without God's grace.  Then I read this verse and it tells me that unless my faith produces good deeds, it is dead and  useless. My heart started pounding and I started to feel afraid.

Then God reminded me of this verse... Philippians 2:13 says For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. God can not do that if I walk down the isle of the Church and ask Jesus in my heart then go about being the same person.  It is my job to seek after God, it is my job to learn all I can about what God has planned for my life... I have to make an effort to have a relationship with God... when I make that effort God helps me grow.  Philippians 2:13 says that God is working in me.... that means to me that it takes a while to get where I need to be.  God gives me his grace to get better and better at doing what pleases him.  God wants to look down and see that I am growing and learning. It is by faith we are saved.... by believing what God tells us... to believe what God tells us we have to know what God has told us. True faith in God will change us it will grow us into the people we need to be.

I asked Jesus in my heat when I was nine. When I was 47 I picked up my Bible and started getting to know God.  All the years in between... I tried to be a good person.... I wanted to go to heaven, who doesn't?  I went to church on and off.... I said I had faith.  I thought I had faith.  When I started seeking after God, truly seeking after God... I wanted more!!  Was it slow at first? Yes it was... I am still growing and growing...but each day God puts a new desire in my heart and as I seek after that new desire God gives me the strength to do what he puts in my heart to do.  The more I know God's promises for my life the more faith I have that God is taking care of me.  The more faith I have that I can do what God sets in front of me to do... not because I am capable...but because I am learning to call on God's grace to make me strong enough.

I worked with a man once... oh he talked about loving God... he talked of all the good things he was going to do... all the good works we were going to do for the community... when I listened to him I was so impressed with how much he "loved" God.  Then I was around him, he mistreated his employees, he stole from the company, not just stuff, but time and money.  His "faith" did not produce good works...it just helped  him make a good first impression.

The more I know God the more my life is changing... so much of me has changed. My mouth is better! I am kinder! I am less and less and less afraid! I recognize my sins much more quickly now and can actually stop myself in the middle of one! I am more careful about what goes in body through my eyes and ears! God is changing me little bits at a time... carving away the bad... sanding away the rough edges... We are God's life's work.... He will work on us for our whole lifetime... giving us new desires and new strengths... giving us his grace to do what he calls us to do.  As Joyce Meyer says "I am not where I want to be, but thank God, I am not where I use to be."  God is always working within me changing me...give me the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.

Now I read what James is saying and I believe James is telling us be careful not to have "faith" for appearances sake... God sees in our hearts... true faith in God makes  us want to seek after him. True faith realizes the huge sacrifice that Jesus made so that we could be forgiven of our sins. True faith is about relationships not just words.  James is saying to us if the desires of your heart are not changing, if you don't find yourself doing good, and being better, STOP and rethink, reassess your relationship with God. Don't fool yourselves into believing that you believe.  Make sure that you see the fruits of the spirit, love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23) growing inside of you so that you know, that you know, that you know, that you are truly a child of God. James is telling us if we don't see those things we are in danger of having fooled ourselves into believing we have a relationship with God.

Will works save  us? No, only Jesus could save us. But true faith will make us want to do good works it will  make us want us to be better people....Good works out of love and kindness are what begins to grow from forth from us when God is working in our lives.

11.8.11

Ezekiel 18:31-32 “Therefore, I will judge each of you, O people of Israel, according to your actions, says the Sovereign Lord. Repent, and turn from your sins. Don’t let them destroy you! Put all your rebellion behind you, and find yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why should you die, O people of Israel? "

My Thoughts

I feel like God was saying and that he still says....Look people... I love you so, so much... please be good....do what is right...I am telling you how.... I will give you a new heart and spirit and make it easy!! If you let me I will give you the desire and the power to do what pleases me (Philippians 2:13). I want you to live forever in heaven with me!!!  I don't want you to die!!!  I want you to live in love..with me in heaven... Please listen to me.  I have so much to give you if only you will grow up!!

My visual is like a parent that has a beautiful car to give his child...he wants him/her to have it so much!!  It is a classic...beautiful, expensive .... the parents want to give this to their child... but they can't give it to him/her if they know it won't driven safely...that could put the child they love and other in danger..... so the parent waits until the child will treasure himself and the people around him enough to receive such a wonderful gift.

God has so much he wants to give us so much!!  He can't wait to give us blessings, He wants to pour out his blessings on us...but we have to be ready and responsible... we have to be able to use our blessings for others and for ourselves in safe and good ways.  Then God showers us with amazing things...the most amazing of all is the gift of eternal life with him!!

11.5.11

Psalms 105:37 The Lord brought his people out of Egypt, loaded with silver and gold; and not one among the tribe of Israel even stumbled.

My Thoughts

I just loved this verse when I read it.... It said so much to me. God sent His people out loaded with treasure!!... all they would need... God was taking care of them from the get go!!  So much treasure that it may have even felt like a burden... but, God was with them and one even one of them stumbled. 

I believe that the gold and silver could have been seen two ways .... It could have been seen like too much to handle... or it could have felt like a gift!!.. The Israelites had been in captivity for years at this point.... I believe that they didn't stumble because they were thankful to God at that point....they had their hearts and minds in the right place.... they had their eyes oh God.... their hearts on being thankful. They were aware of where their treasures came from.

I wonder how many times we get our mind off of God and forget where our gifts come from.... and we begin to feel loaded down.... we stumble from all that God has given us... because we forget to be thankful...we don't stop and take time to notice that what we have is a blessing.  When we stay thankful...when we keep our eyes on God, when we seek after God... God will make sure that we don't stumble under the weight of our blessings....that we are strong enough to handle all that we have been given.  We can see our jobs as a blessing, fully aware that our job is a blessing from God...and we will be strong enough, capable enough to handle it...or we can take our eyes off of God, off of the place our blessing came from and forget that our jobs are gifts and they become so heavy...they can seem too hard to carry...we take our eyes off God and we stumble under the weight of the blessings God has so graciously given us.

The Bible tells us that "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:13)  When we keep our eyes on God and our heart thankful... we see our gifts as what they are gifts.... living in the joy of those gifts makes the load something that we are excited to carry... Keeping our hearts thankful gives us not only our strength but the strength of God who is able to carry anything without stumbling.

When we hold our head up... toward God...it changes our center of gravity and makes us strong!!  

11.1.11

Hebrews 3:14 For if we are faithful in the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed we will share in all that belongs to Christ.

My Thoughts

I asked Jesus into my heart at 9... I had cried that day at church and was told later that day what was stirring in my heart... I made the decision more because I was told to.  Over the years I rededicated my life more than a few times.... I wanted to know God.... My babies came along and we got in Church because we wanted them to know God.  I tried to be a good person. I tried to be a good mom and teach my children about God.... We read Bible stories each night.   We said prayers with them each night until they were were probably in the 5th and 3rd grades. I prayed for people when they asked. I prayed for my kids to have a good life. I often heard people talk about their relationships with God in a way that made me wonder what it  was  that I didn't know.  My son grew up going to RA camp each summer .... he loved it!!  He knew God.... I always felt like God loved him special in some way because he seemed to really know God.  My prayers were simple prayers...which is fine... but they were more like prayers at God...not to God... they were  not prayers where I actually talked with God.  I was probably pretty much as faithful as I was when I first believed... because all I knew was that if I asked Jesus into my heart I would be saved.... this is true!!... but I didn't know or understand at all how, HOW to have a relationship with God. I was always searching for what was missing in my life...I had a wonderful husband, still do! Precious children....I had all that I even knew to ask for...... but I was often anxious and depressed... overwhelmed by life.  John-Robert would talk about praying...I would ask, "What do you say in your prayers, John-Robert?" He would say I just talk to God all the time...I tell him about my days.  If you asked me if I loved God I would tell you yes. But, it was because I was suppose to love God.... like you love that aunt you don't really know..and see only at Christmas.   If you asked me if I was going to heaven I always thought, "I sure hope so."  I wanted to be a good person... I wanted to be a Christian... I wanted to "know" God.  I just didn't know how to know God. Nobody really told me how.

Then one day my son gave me a One Year Bible for Christmas... well when your child gives you a One Year Bible... that is all separated by days... so that you can get through it on a year... you read that Bible!!  I started reading on January 1st 2010.... at first it was so confusing to me... but I kept reading.  The Bible tells us that if we seek wisdom, wisdom will come to us (James 1:5). The more I read... the more I began to understand. The more I read the more my prayers changed.  I was building a relationship with God.  I was learning to know God!!  Then one day I was at the doctors office... I met a young lady there... not by chance I now know!!...God put her in my path... she remembered me enough to find me on Facebook..then after a few weeks she invited me to Bible Study. I kept reading my Bible...and by this time I was writing about a verse or a few verses that I read...learning so much while I wrote!  I didn't know it but what I was doing was meditating on God's word when I wrote.  Joshua 1:8 tells us if we meditate on God's word we will be prosperous and successful....I was getting prosperous and successful...I was gaining wisdom...I was building a relationship with God. That meditation was causing God's word to go from my head to my heart.  I started going to the  Bible study I was invited to..... and learning so much... and little did I know it...but I was surrounding myself with Godly people who would become my dear friends. I am learning so much from each one of them... learning how they apply God's word to their lives... and they too are learning from me. 

I love God more today than I did two years ago...I love God more today than I did a year ago... Why? Because, I know God more... I know more how much God loves me... I actually know how much God loves me... I seek to know more and more and more!!!  Do I aways do it right? Oh, no!!  But, I am trying and getting better...and better ...and better.... I have learned to hear the Holy Spirit inside of me guiding me... I hear him better each day!!.. Am I sometimes fooled by the devil, you bet I am... but, I am learning... I am seeking after God, I am seeking to know God more... I am seeking wisdom...and applying it.  Those years of doing it wrong...they are still all tangled up inside me and often I find myself going back to my old habits...then the Holy Spirit nudges me and I get back on track.  The more I hide God's word in my heart the more I make right choices.  To keep on track I have to keep making the effort... the exciting thing is God gives me the desire and the power to do what pleases him (Philippians 2:13). This is my favorite verse!!  God gives me the desire and the power!!!  My part is to seek after him... to hide his word in my heart.  There can be so much that I have trouble remembering ...but, God makes sure that his word is there for me when I need it!!!  God has changed my life in amazing ways!!!  I still have the same sweet husband,  the same wonderful kids... I have all that I could ever ask for!!... Now I am free from anxiety..yes it tries to creep up on me...but I rebuke it with God's word... I am free from depression... I have moments of depression, maybe a day here and there...but I don't have weeks of it anymore!!  I do have joy!!! and peace!!...Amazing joy and peace...I find joy in the smallest things... When something makes me smile...which I do often...I know without a doubt, that the thing that just made me smile was a gift from God that he meant especially for me!!  Now I know that I am truly  loved by God...me, full of faults me...God loves me!! He loves me so much...i actually feel it in my being!!  God loves me!

God can change us!!  God makes us whole!  Our part is to seek after him...when we do he will give us the desire and the power to do what pleases him.