Wednesday, July 25, 2018
Peace Beyond Understanding
"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:4-7
Peace. This is a word that encompasses the whole world. We pray for peace. We look for peace. We strive for peace. Many times though we find that peace seems to be elusive.
With the school shootings, the terrorist attacks here in the U.S. and abroad, the abused children, the hungry, the homeless, and it goes on and on.
For us as individuals we desire to live a life of peace, to find peace in our everyday lives but it seems to be a difficult thing to achieve and experience. Why is that?
I believe that we are searching and striving for an immediate gratification of peace. The feeling that all is right in our world, everyone is happy and content and there is no hardship, trials, temptations or loss if we have true peace. That is a false and fleeting feeling of peace if we ever experience that,
The peace that is referenced in Philippians 4:4-7 has a much deeper meaning than what we can even begin to comprehend. It is the peace of God through Jesus Christ, it is trusting that God has things under control no matter how chaotic and out of control everything might seem to be.
Paul was in prison when he wrote these words about being joyful and to rejoice in the Lord always! Isn't that amazing? I mean how could he write about being joyful and rejoicing in the Lord while he was being held behind bars? It was because he trusted in God and believed in Jesus Christ and he prayed! When situations in our lives get overwhelming and seem hopeless, we must rejoice and be thankful! For our God is with us! Always!
Paul tells us to not be anxious about anything! First thing that goes through my mind is "easier said than done"! What we have to remember is that fear does not come from God! Fear and doubt come from Satan. Satan wants to draw us away from God, from Jesus Christ through distraction, worry, and fear. There is a song that I love entitled, "Fear, He Is a Liar" by Zach Williams
Let us not Fear!! Let us rest in the arms of Jesus and the power of God knowing that they go before us and are already taking care of each one of our problems!
God bless each and every one of you this day!
Peace. This is a word that encompasses the whole world. We pray for peace. We look for peace. We strive for peace. Many times though we find that peace seems to be elusive.
With the school shootings, the terrorist attacks here in the U.S. and abroad, the abused children, the hungry, the homeless, and it goes on and on.
For us as individuals we desire to live a life of peace, to find peace in our everyday lives but it seems to be a difficult thing to achieve and experience. Why is that?
I believe that we are searching and striving for an immediate gratification of peace. The feeling that all is right in our world, everyone is happy and content and there is no hardship, trials, temptations or loss if we have true peace. That is a false and fleeting feeling of peace if we ever experience that,
The peace that is referenced in Philippians 4:4-7 has a much deeper meaning than what we can even begin to comprehend. It is the peace of God through Jesus Christ, it is trusting that God has things under control no matter how chaotic and out of control everything might seem to be.
Paul was in prison when he wrote these words about being joyful and to rejoice in the Lord always! Isn't that amazing? I mean how could he write about being joyful and rejoicing in the Lord while he was being held behind bars? It was because he trusted in God and believed in Jesus Christ and he prayed! When situations in our lives get overwhelming and seem hopeless, we must rejoice and be thankful! For our God is with us! Always!
Paul tells us to not be anxious about anything! First thing that goes through my mind is "easier said than done"! What we have to remember is that fear does not come from God! Fear and doubt come from Satan. Satan wants to draw us away from God, from Jesus Christ through distraction, worry, and fear. There is a song that I love entitled, "Fear, He Is a Liar" by Zach Williams
Let us not Fear!! Let us rest in the arms of Jesus and the power of God knowing that they go before us and are already taking care of each one of our problems!
God bless each and every one of you this day!
Tuesday, October 31, 2017
You Are Never Lost
I don't know how many of you might feel lost at times. I know I have. Life just seems to get out of control and things happen. Before you know it you look around and wonder how did I get here? How did I lose my direction? How did my life end up in a place that I never expected it to be?
Or maybe you feel alone, abandoned, by everyone and more importantly you might feel you have been abandoned by God.
For me, it happened in the year 2014 when my marriage of 33 years fell apart. I couldn't believe that this had happened and I didn't even know where to begin to find my way back to some kind of normal. Whatever normal is, that is.
The past few years have been a journey for me. At first I blamed my ex husband for everything that had gone wrong. But I have come to realize that there is blame on both sides. We got lost. We lost communication, respect, and the ability to find our way back to each other. The result was that we grew apart and finally ended up in divorce. In the end though the Lord gave us the gift of being able to forgive each other right before his death. But that's another story to share at a later time.
I tell you this not to receive your pity or sympathy but tell you that there is always a way back from darkness into the light through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
In John 6:38-40, Jesus said, "For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me (each of us), but to raise them up at the last day. For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him/her up at the last day." NIV
You see, Jesus pursues us and looks for us. It's just us who get lost. We get lost when we take our eyes off of Him. We lose our way when we seek to fill our lives with the things or people of this world first before we seek Him.
In my darkest times, Jesus never left my side and He never leaves yours. He's right there waiting for you to turn to Him and cry out for His help, His love, His guidance to lead you back into the light, His light. At first it might seem like you don't get an answer, but when you remain faithful, He begins to lead you out of the darkness. It might begin with a small light of hope shining in the darkness, but as each day goes on the light becomes brighter and brighter, and before you know it you are standing in the full light of His presence. You are no longer lost, you are found. You find that you are breathing in new air, new life once again and it feels so much sweeter than it ever has before.
Yes this life is hard and the journey can be quite difficult at times, heartbreaking. We make wrong decisions, we sin and fall short of the glory of God. But God never lets us go. He loves us too much for that. That's why He gave us His Son, Jesus Christ who died for our sins and then rose again after three days and is now seated at the right hand of God and because of this we have the promise and assurance of eternal life with Him! Hallelujah!
My friend, you may feel lost and alone but you are not. We are never left alone. We know this by the words Jesus spoke in Matthew 28:20b, "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." NIV
You are not lost my friend...maybe taken a detour....but never lost. Rest in the assurance that Jesus has you and won't ever let you go! He is the light of the world, the light of your heart, soul and mind. Just trust and believe. You are never alone!!!!
Many blessings to you!
Or maybe you feel alone, abandoned, by everyone and more importantly you might feel you have been abandoned by God.
For me, it happened in the year 2014 when my marriage of 33 years fell apart. I couldn't believe that this had happened and I didn't even know where to begin to find my way back to some kind of normal. Whatever normal is, that is.
The past few years have been a journey for me. At first I blamed my ex husband for everything that had gone wrong. But I have come to realize that there is blame on both sides. We got lost. We lost communication, respect, and the ability to find our way back to each other. The result was that we grew apart and finally ended up in divorce. In the end though the Lord gave us the gift of being able to forgive each other right before his death. But that's another story to share at a later time.
I tell you this not to receive your pity or sympathy but tell you that there is always a way back from darkness into the light through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
In John 6:38-40, Jesus said, "For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me (each of us), but to raise them up at the last day. For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him/her up at the last day." NIV
You see, Jesus pursues us and looks for us. It's just us who get lost. We get lost when we take our eyes off of Him. We lose our way when we seek to fill our lives with the things or people of this world first before we seek Him.
In my darkest times, Jesus never left my side and He never leaves yours. He's right there waiting for you to turn to Him and cry out for His help, His love, His guidance to lead you back into the light, His light. At first it might seem like you don't get an answer, but when you remain faithful, He begins to lead you out of the darkness. It might begin with a small light of hope shining in the darkness, but as each day goes on the light becomes brighter and brighter, and before you know it you are standing in the full light of His presence. You are no longer lost, you are found. You find that you are breathing in new air, new life once again and it feels so much sweeter than it ever has before.
Yes this life is hard and the journey can be quite difficult at times, heartbreaking. We make wrong decisions, we sin and fall short of the glory of God. But God never lets us go. He loves us too much for that. That's why He gave us His Son, Jesus Christ who died for our sins and then rose again after three days and is now seated at the right hand of God and because of this we have the promise and assurance of eternal life with Him! Hallelujah!
My friend, you may feel lost and alone but you are not. We are never left alone. We know this by the words Jesus spoke in Matthew 28:20b, "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." NIV
You are not lost my friend...maybe taken a detour....but never lost. Rest in the assurance that Jesus has you and won't ever let you go! He is the light of the world, the light of your heart, soul and mind. Just trust and believe. You are never alone!!!!
Many blessings to you!
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