Chris Tomlin - My Chains Are Gone

Check out this video by Chris Tomlin singing "My Chains are Gone".  I am so very thankful for God's Amazing Grace each day.  I am so very thankful that all chains are gone!  Take a moment today to give praise that your chains are gone too! 

Blessings,

Fruit of the Spirit - Faithfulness Part 3

Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT) 22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!


Today we complete our look at chapter ten – Following Through in Faithfulness in the book “A Woman’s Walk with God” by Elizabeth George. It is a study of the Fruit of the Spirit.

The fruit of the Spirit is…faithfulness. Galatians 5:22

“A great source of encouragement to be faithful is found in the extraordinary faithfulness of the women at the tomb. These dear women had faithfully ministered to the needs of the Savior by serving Him and financially supporting His ministry (Luke 8:3). But their most heroic act of faithfulness began as they followed Jesus on His last journey from Galilee to Jerusalem – on His journey to the cross, a journey that finally found this loyal band of ladies with Jesus the entire day of His crucifixion and death.”

We read how the disciples disbursed and did not hang around. Yet the women remained faithful and stood as close as they could to comfort Jesus by their presence in the closing agonies of the crucifixion (Luke 23:49). They stayed until the end. “And their faithfulness did not end with Jesus’ death. They waited at the cross to see what was done with His body, and then they followed and saw the tomb and how His body was laid (Luke 23:55). Then, surely weary after a long and agonizing day, these women returned home to perform two more acts of faithfulness. First, they prepared spices and perfumes to properly anoint Jesus’ body (verse 56). (And, according to Jewish Sabbath law, these preparations had to be completed before sundown!) And then these women practiced their faithfulness in another way: ‘On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment’ (verse 56). They were faithful to Jesus, and they were faithful to God and His holy Law.”

Mark 16:1-3
“And when the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, brought spices, that they might come and anoint Him. And very early on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. And they were saying to one another, ‘Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?’”

These women were indeed faithful. They weren’t lazy. They went to the tomb very early. They didn’t procrastinate. They did what they needed to do when they needed to do it. They didn’t rationalize that someone else would do it. No, they went about preparing to anoint Jesus’ body. They sure didn’t have apathy. They cared greatly for Jesus and what would happen to His body. And they definitely did not operate in rebellion.

The author states “Whenever I’m exhausted, stretched to the limit, and tempted to give up or wait until tomorrow, I think of these magnificent women. Their love for God overruled their emotional and physical tendencies and enabled them to faithfully do the right thing. Nothing kept these ladies from fulfilling what they considered to be their faithful duty to a friend.”

“We must respond! We must wonder, how can we become more faithful? How can we walk in this grace, too? What can help us to cultivate God’s faithfulness in our life?”

The author gives us a few practical suggestions.

1. Call upon God in prayer. “On the day I called Thou didst answer me: Thou didst make me bold with strength in my soul” (Psalm 138;3).

2. Be faithful in small things. “He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much” (Luke 16:10).

3. Rely of God’s strength. “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Phillippians 4:13).

4. Fight self-indulgence. “I buffet my body and make it my slave” (1 Corinthians 9:27).

5. Eliminate laziness and idleness. “[She] does not eat the bread of idleness” (Proverbs 31:27).

6. Begin at home. “She looks well to the ways of her household” (Proverbs 31:27).

7. Be faithful in all things. “Women must…be…faithful in all things” (1 Timothy 3:11).

8. Become a ‘hero.’

Here is a thought provoking question the author asks at the end of chapter ten:

Think back through your week. List any instances at home, in your relationships, or in ministry when you were unfaithful, when you proved unworthy of the confidence placed in you, when you didn’t follow through on your commitments and responsibilities.

Let’s pray. Father, we think You for all that we have learned over the last few days on faithfulness – our faithfulness to You and our faithfulness to others. Give us strength to combat the struggles that will rise as we grow in faithfulness. Help us to be more like the women at the tomb, faithful until the very end, never giving up. Thank You Father. We love and appreciate You. We declare that there is none like You! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Blessings,

Fruit of the Spirit - Faithfulness Part 2

Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT) 22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!


Today we continue our look at chapter ten – Following Through in Faithfulness in the book “A Woman’s Walk with God” by Elizabeth George. It is a study of the Fruit of the Spirit.

The fruit of the Spirit is…faithfulness. Galatians 5:22

We must realize that we have a need for faithfulness. “As women, you and I have many-many!-assignments from God which we cannot accomplish without faithfulness.” The assignments vary from wife, mother, home management, money management, maybe desk management, devotional life. We must also be faithful in church. “Serving God calls for faithfulness-to Him and to His call to use His gifts and serve His people.”

We also have personal struggles to be faithful and can be struggles against our flesh. It surely isn’t easy. “The good news is that, as we yield our flesh to God and are led by His Spirit (Galatians 5:18), we can walk in faithfulness.”

“Walking in God’s faithfulness is a three-step operation.

1. Desire to live a godly life that manifests the graces of the Holy Spirit.

2. Look to God: His power from on high is available to us, and He gives it to us freely.

3. Follow God’s Word by moving out intentionally and confidently, empowered and guided by God.

This three-step process can always help us in our struggles to be faithful.”

The author discussed personal struggles:

1. Tiredness. Tiredness says, ‘I can’t do it. Tiredness moans, ‘I can’t get up…I can’t get up…I can’t make it to church…I can’t run the errands…I can’t study…I’m just too tired! In the flesh, we think and feel that we can’t do it.”

a. While tiredness says ‘I can’t do it,’ God’s Word says, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me’ (Philippians 4:13).

2. Laziness. Laziness is a mental struggle. Laziness says, ‘I don’t want to do it. Laziness whines, ‘I don’t want to clean the house…I don’t want to cook…I don’t want to get involved in ministry…I don’t want to discipline my children…I just don’t want to do it.’

a. While laziness says, ‘I don’t want to do it,’ God’s Word beckons ‘Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth’ (Colossians 3:2). It is sobering to realize that all you and I do is not done only for people, but for our Savior. Serving people is a primary way for us to serve our Lord.

3. Hopelessness. Hopelessness says, ‘It doesn’t matter if I do it.’ We feel like giving up and asking ‘Why try?’ Fear sets in, fear of failing.

a. Hopelessness says, ‘It doesn’t matter if I do it,’ God’s Word encourages us ‘Have not I commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; be not afraid; neither be thou dismayed’ (Joshua 1:9).

4. Procrastination. Procrastination says, ‘I’ll do it later.’ Procrastination announces, ‘I’ll prepare for that class later…I’ll finish (or start) that chapter later…I’ll reconcile the bank statement later…I’ll call the plumber later…I’ll do it later.’

a. Procratination says ‘I’ll do it later.’ God’s Word wisely prompts us ‘Whatever your hand finds to do, verily, do it with all your might!’ (Ecclesiastes 9:10). Do it…just do it...and do it now!

5. Rationalization. Rationalization is an evil but subtle perspective on life, ministry, and responsibility that says, ‘Someone else will do it.’ Rationalization calculates, ‘Someone else will set up for the meeting…Someone else will make the announcement…Someone else will lead the discussion…Someone else will do it.’ The godly woman who is faithful is ‘faithful in all things’ (1 Timothy 3:11), all of the time no matter what.

a. Rationalization says, ‘Someone else will do it’, God’s Word tells us to be faithful until death (Revelation 2:10). A faithful woman will successfully defeat the unfruitful thought processes that lead to rationalizing, ‘Someone else will do it.’ By desiring to grow in faithfulness, by looking to God’s Spirit to supply His faithfulness in weakness, and by following God’s call that we be faithful in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 1:1). The way I chip away at rationalization is very simple: I try to be faithful for one day only.

6. Apathy. Apathy says, ‘I don’t care if I do it.’ Apathy shrugs, ‘I don’t care if the dishes get done…I don’t care if I’m a good mom or wife…I don’t care if I read my Bible…I don’t care if I grow…I don’t care if I’m faithful…I don’t care if I do it.’ Apathy is a spiritual numbness that creeps in and corrupts the good that God intends for our life and the good that He wants us to accomplish for Him and His kingdom.

a. Apathy says, ‘I don’t care’, God’s Word forces our gaze off of ourselves and on to our Father, ‘not…to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many’ (Mark 10:45).

7. Rebellion. Rebellion says, ‘I won’t do it.’ Rebellion stubbornly states, ‘I won’t do what the Bible says…I won’t do the laundry…I won’t do what my husband asks…I won’t do what the counselor advised…I won’t do it.’ Rebellion is a hardness we should fear because, as the Bible teaches, ‘the man [or woman] who hardens his [or her] neck…will suddenly be broken beyond remedy’ (Proverbs 29:1). There is no deadlier attitude of the heart than rebellion – whether blatant, open, outspoken rebellion or quiet rebellion which simply and silently goes about life in its own way.

a. Rebellion says, ‘I won’t do it’, but we can pray along with David, ‘Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my thoughts; and see if there be any wicked way in me’ (Psalm 139:23-24).

Once again, the author gives us a lot to take in. However, “Our great God has made all we need to be faithful available to us through His grace. He wants us to do what David, the shepherd-king of Israel, did when he ‘strengthened himself in the Lord his God’ (1 Samuel 30:6). David repeatedly declared, ‘the Lord is the strength of my life’ (Psalm 27:1).”

“Praise God that you and I can go to Him when we are too tired, too lazy, too uncommitted, too sick, or feeling too sorry for ourselves. In fact, moments like these are precisely when we need to call upon God and be filled with His faithfulness. We can go to Him and ask Him to fill us with His strength. We can find in Him the strength (His strength, the vision (His vision), and thereby the faithfulness (His faithfulness). Indeed, He is waiting to give us His faithfulness.”

Tomorrow we will finish looking at the fruit of faithfulness and will look at women who were faithful to Jesus and walking in faithfulness.

I look forward to seeing you back here tomorrow as we finish our look at faithfulness.

Blessings,

Fruit of the Spirit - Faithfulness Part 1

Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT) 22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!


It has been several months since we last looked at our reading of “A Woman’s Walk with God” by Elizabeth George. It is a study of the Fruit of the Spirit. We still have three more fruit to look at and we will cover them over the next few days.

Today we look at chapter ten – “Following Through in Faithfulness.”

The fruit of the Spirit is…faithfulness. Galatians 5:22

The author, Elizabeth George, starts off by giving us five insights into faithfulness. She states that God’s faithfulness must be a part of our character “because faithfulness marks God’s presence in our life. When you and I are faithful, we show that we are born of God and belong to Him.”

1. The God of Faithfulness. We see throughout the Bible that God is faithful. “You and I can endure our trials by counting on God’s faithfulness.” Jesus is faithful. God’s Word is faithful.

2. The Core of Faithfulness. “Faithfulness is defined as loyalty, trustworthiness, or steadfastness. It is characteristic of the person who is reliable, and it applies to the Christian’s behavior in respect to people as well as toward God.” When I read this, I wondered if we tend to think that our faithfulness to others is not as important as our faithfulness to God. But that statement tells me otherwise. “Faithfulness is a major distinction of Christian women and a quality God uses to benefit the church, the body of Christ.”

3. The Marks of Faithfulness. The author gave an extensive list of what faithfulness does and what it looks like in action. I thought it was pretty impressive and want to share it with you. Take time to slowly read through the list and ponder each one.

a. She follows through – on whatever she has to do.

b. She comes through – no matter what.

c. She delivers the goods – whether a message or a meal.

d. She shows up – even early so others won’t worry.

e. She keeps her word – her yes means yes and her no means no. (James 5:12)

f. She keeps her commitments and appointments – you won’t find her canceling.

g. She successfully transacts business – carrying out any instructions given to her.

h. She discharges her official duties in the church – and doesn’t neglect worship.

i. She is devoted to duty – just as Jesus was when He came to do His Father’s will (John 4:34).

I join with the author in saying “So, my friend…take a quick inventory of your own Christian walk. Let these points stretch your understanding of the fruit of faithfulness, a fruit that is so needed in our world today! And then ask God for His strength to go to work cultivating His faithfulness in your life.”

4. The Opposites of Faithfulness. Opposites of faithfulness include fickle (changing your mind, your loyalties, your standards); unreliable (doesn’t come through, can’t be depended on, can’t be trusted with responsibility).

5. The Essence of Faithfulness. The author shared her own definition of faithfulness and I like it too. “Do it!” “Faithfulness means doing it…no matter what, doing it…regardless of feelings, moods, or desires – if the Lord wills (James 4:15). Let the motto “Do it!” move you toward greater faithfulness.”

We are not finished with the chapter but that already is a lot to think about, a lot to let soak in so we will stop there for today. Tomorrow we will continue on the fruit of faithfulness and look at the need for faithfulness and the struggles to be faithful.

I look forward to seeing you back here tomorrow as we continue looking at faithfulness.

Let’s pray. Father, I thank You that You are a faithful God, Your Word is faithful. I ask that You help me and those reading this that we will strive to be faithful to you and to those around us. We ask that You will give us strength to work on cultivating Your faithfulness in our lives. Father, may Your faithfulness shine out of us to those around us. Thank You Father. We love and appreciate You. We declare that there is none like You! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Blessings,

Natalie Grant - Your Great Name

Check out this worship song by Natalie Grant titled "Your Great Name".  It's a beautiful song and will bless you richly.  

Blessings,

God Cares for Us

Picture with me, if you will, walking around with a heavy, loaded suitcase, one that we can barely move.


We all have cares that we carry around with us. The suitcase signifies cares and burdens that we carry.

A few years ago, I received a devotion which got me to thinking about what burdens was I carrying. At the time, my brother was facing surgery where he was diagnosed with having an early stage of melanoma and he is not a Christian. I then listed two other cares that were on my mind. They were not life and death but rather stuff. I had not thought that these “cares” could be slowing my walk.

I asked my children to name some cares. They came up with secrets, peer pressure, and family. These could indeed become cares. Can you come up with a few more?

So often we think of “cares” as being pretty major stuff – not everyday stuff perhaps dealing with our job or our family. Maybe we think of God wanting us to cast our big cares on Him and we can handle the small ones – like dividing up what we can handle and what God can handle. Perhaps we feel as though it is our personal responsibility to carry our own burdens and maybe everybody else’s as well. Just like carrying the suitcase signifies carrying our cares around with us everywhere we go, so we carry our cares around with us everywhere we go. We tend to think that they are manageable, that we can handle them. But our cares could hinder or stop us from using both hands to work, to do for the Kingdom of God. We only can do things halfway, not fully. We cannot dance, jump, embrace because we are tied to the small suitcase filled with our cares. We continue to think that what we are carrying around is manageable.

All along our Father is there calling out to us to come to Him.

Take a moment and read the following scriptures:

Matthew 11:28-30
Matthew 6:25-33
I Peter 5:7
Psalms 55:22
Philippians 4:6

Are you heavy laden? Are you carrying a load that seems overwhelming?

We need to:

• Go to Jesus
• Learn of Him
• Exchange His easy yoke and light burden for what you are trying to carry in your own strength
• Ask Him to teach us His ways so we can learn to find rest for our soul

I also asked my daughter if she thought if we could dwell too much on our cares and of course she said yes. In those times when our cares consume our thoughts, we need to recognize it and then turn our thoughts onto other things. The bible says “whatsoever things are pure…to think on these things”. And the bible says that if we keep our mind on Him, He will keep us in perfect peace.

I want you to take a moment to think about what cares you are carrying right now. How are they affecting you and your walk with God? Are they hindering you from doing what you need to do? Are they hindering you from embracing someone or reaching out to others to help them in their time of need? When we are bogged down, we are not able to be the eyes and hands of Jesus. Take a moment to write down one or more of cares that come to your mind.

Now take a moment to pray about these cares.

Father, we ask You to help us – help us to exchange Your easy yoke for our cares. Help us not try to make it our personal responsibility to carry our cares but rather turn everything over to You. Help us to think on good things as the scripture tells us. Thank You Father for your help and for caring for us. We love and appreciate You. We declare that there is none like You! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Blessings,

William McDowell - I Give Myself Away

My son loves to listen to black gospel.  One day he and I were in the car listening to black gosepl and a song came on that I just fell in love with.  I told my husband that we just had to learn it for church, and we did.  The song is by William McDowell titled "I Give Myself Away."

Listen to the words and let it be our prayer today, that we give ourselves away so God can use us. 

Blessings,

Mercy Me - Beautiful

"No matter what others think of you...say to you...or say about you....You are beautiful and worthy in the eyes of Jesus...Never forget..."

Recently my son and I seen Mercy Me in a concert and they sang "Beautiful".  "Beautiful" is a beautiful song, so inspiring, so encouraging to girls of all ages - and boys too. 

Remember today that you are beautiful.  You are sacred.  You are His.

Blessings,

Hiatus

Hiatus

a: an interruption in time or continuity : BREAK; especially: a period when something (as a program or activity) is suspended or interrupted

I know. I have been gone a long time. I guess you can say I have been on a hiatus. The only thing is that I have not done anything during this hiatus for my blog. Rather, I have gotten bogged down with life – the kids, the church, the job.

I am back now and have even made some changes to my blog. I hope you like it. I am still playing with it and will be adding some things later.

You know, I think I had thoughts of what I would do next here and when that didn’t happen, I just didn’t do anything. Have you ever been there? You thought your life was going one way and when it didn’t, you got in what felt like a holding pattern. Sometimes the holding pattern lasted a week, a month, several months and maybe even a year. For me, it’s been a couple of months. I think I can point to a couple of key things that kept me in that holding pattern. One pretty big key point is out of the way which feels like a load has been lifted. I feel like I am out of that holding pattern and can now move forward with several things, including this blog. I am excited and have several ideas for future posts.

I hope you will join me on this journey of becoming the woman God has created us to be!

Until next time…



Blessings,