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Being Loved Abundantly

Being Loved Abundantly

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When I think about my relationship with God one of the first things that comes to mind is how blessed I am that He loves me. It still blows my mind that He not only waited for me, He sent His Son to save me. How awesome is that? 

Before we give our lives to Christ, most of us spend so much time trying to measure up…to fit in. When it’s not really necessary. For a while, it may even look like we are having some success. But it’s all a facade’. 

In Christ, we are abundantly blessed. God supplies our every need. He actually will give us more than what we need. The Bible says that He will give us exceedingly abundantly above all we can ask or think (Eph. 3:20). 

We spend so much time running from God that we miss how blessed it feels to be in His presence. I often wish I had given my life to Him sooner so that I would have more time loving Him, because He already loved me…I just didn’t know it.

God loves us abundantly, and nothing we do will ever change that.  And that is worth far more than anything money can buy.

Until next time…

Be blessed

It’s in His Word

It’s in His Word

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Part of going deeper in God is realizing that God didn’t give us a mediocre life. We were not meant to just go through life. We are supposed to LIVE life. His word says that we could have life and have it more abundantly. But here’s the thing…the only way to get that is through His Son, Jesus Christ. 

That scripture comes from John 10:10, and it actually says that the enemy (the devil) comes to destroy your life…literally. His job is to kill us physically and spiritually. But Jesus says, “I have come….” That statement right there changes everything. There is power in that statement. 

God didn’t let His One and Only Son go to the cross for nothing. And Jesus didn’t give His life so that we could live defeated and depressed. God loves us way too much for that. When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, and ask Him to come into our lives…He comes. And not only does He come, but He brings a whole host of angels with Him.

But in order to take advantage of that, we have to work on our relationship with God. And working on that relationship is like working on any other relationship we have with anyone we care for. It takes spending time alone with Him, and trusting Him enough to be honest with Him. There never has to be any pretense With God. We don’t have to hide anything from Him, because He already knows everything about us. He is the one person who knows us better than we even know ourselves. And how about this…He still loves us.

But I don’t care how many times we hear that, we won’t get it until we get to know Him for ourselves. Spend some time in His word. Every plan, instruction, or direction God has for our lives is in there, and that’s the only way to find out who He is, AND who we are.

Until next time…

Be blessed

By Faith

By Faith

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“By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.”  –Hebrews 11:8 (NIV)

The scripture above says, “By faith” Abraham believed.  He didn’t know where God was sending him, but He went anyway. That is what faith is all about. It believes without seeing. How many of us would do the same? 

I believe that I am heading in the right direction…but, I am definitely not there yet. My prayer is that my faith is growing to the place where I no longer question the things God is leading me to do. Of course, I usually only question Him when what He is calling me to do is something I don’t want to do, something I have never done, or something that takes me so far out of my comfort zone that it frightens me a little. But how do we get that kind of faith? 

I believe that we get that kind of faith from trusting what we know about Him. Remembering what He has done in the past. And believing what He will do in the future. But before we can do any of that, we have to first believe that He is. Once we believe that God is who He says He is…we have to then believe that He will do what He says He will do. That only comes through strengthening our relationship with Him. And that only comes through reading His word.

Because of God’s word,  my relationship with Him is so much stronger than it has ever been. I have learned how to really let Him have control of my life. He had to show me…sometimes over and over again that I was valuable to Him, and to the Kingdom of God. He had to show me that he made me on purpose…for His purpose. He let me know that my presence on the earth was not only relevant—but necessary. His love for me helped strengthen my faith in Him.

Sometimes we may have to trust Him on shaky faith, but the word says that we only have to have faith the size of a mustard seed. He is an all-knowing, all-powerful God, and because He loves us so much, He will never call us to do something that He has not prepared us for. By faith…believe, and watch Him work.

Until next time…

Be blessed!

Let God Lead

Let God Lead

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What a great and awesome God we serve. He never leaves us…not for a moment. He is constantly there to help lead us to our most highest selves. His love is so massive…that we can’t even begin to comprehend the depth of it. He is so much more than our words have a right to describe. His name is above every name. The word says that demons tremble at the sound of His name. It also says that when we submit to God, resist the devil, he has to flee (James 4:7). He has no choice. THAT is how big our God is. 

So why is it that we still get upset when people disappoint us…when they hurt us…when they act human….

We expect others to treat us the way we want to be treated. We keep looking to them and not to God. And every time we do that, we are going to be disappointed. In John 15:17 it simply says,” This is my command: Love each other.” It doesn’t say because we treat each other right, or because we deserve it….not even because we want to do it…but, because God commanded it. Period.

The thing is to give others the same grace that God gives us. To love each other the way God loves us…unconditionally. I know that is easier said than done, but God knew that we wouldn’t be able to do it on our own. So He left us some help.

First, God sent His Son, Jesus Christ to save us.

Then Jesus left us a helper…The Holy Spirit.

And finally, the Holy Spirit leads us and guides us through all of those times when our “flesh” wants to be in control.

So, this week, let God lead. Open your heart to Him, and allow Him to do a good work in you. Put Him in the middle of every relationship–and then watch Him work.

Until next time…

Be blessed

Are You Afraid?

Are You Afraid?

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This month has been one of reflection, anticipation and growth. I have been exposed to a whole new level of God’s grace. Learning to stay focused on one thing at a time, one project at a time, one goal at a time is hard for me. I equate everything I do to time, and I sometimes feel that I just don’t have enough of it. 

I thought that I had learned to listen for God’s voice and not to follow where He wasn’t leading, but I have found that is not always the case. Even when we hear God’s voice clearly, we will sometimes doubt what we hear. That reaction is called a lot of different things, but it mainly boils down to being afraid.

Afraid that we waited too long. Afraid that we don’t have what it takes. Afraid that someone else will do it better. And sometimes we’re just afraid of failing. It’s like being caught between wanting to move where God wants us to be and staying where we feel all warm and safe.

I have been focusing on my relationship with God and trying to really grab hold of the things He has for me. It’s an awesome thing to know that God loves us so much that He is willing to wait for us to get it. He keeps showing up in the most unlikely places and sending people to say the exact thing we need to hear. I love that about Him. He lets us know that when we keep our heart focused on Him, He will be there for us.

But more than anything, we have to learn to trust God, trust the process and know that God’s plan is perfect. Things may not go the way we think they should, that doesn’t mean that we’ve failed…it just means that we still have some learning to do.

Until next time…

Be blessed!

Expectations

Expectations

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What a great and awesome God we serve. He never leaves us…not for a moment. He is constantly available to help lead us to our most highest selves. His love is so massive…that we can’t even begin to comprehend the depth of it. He is so much more than our words have a right to describe. The Bible says that His name is above every name. The word says that demons tremble at the sound of His name. It also says that when we “submit to God, resist the devil, he has to flee” (James 4:7). He has no choice. THAT is how big our God is. So why is it that we still get upset when people disappoint us…when they hurt us…when they act human….

I believe the reason is that we expect others to always put us…our feelings above their own. To treat us like they would want to be treated…to live by God’s standards. We keep looking to them and not to God, and every time we do that, we will be disappointed. The thing is to love each other the way God loves us…unconditionally, but still be able to extend the same grace to them God extends to us. I know that is easier said than done, but God knew that we wouldn’t be able to do it on our own.

First, He sent His Son, Jesus Christ to save us, then He left us a helper…The Holy Spirit to lead us and guide us through all those times when our “flesh” wants to be in control. We have to be willing to give up what we want and accept what God wants. In John 15:17 it simply says,”This is my command: Love each other.” Period. Not because you treat me right…not because I deserve it….not even because I want to…but, because God has commanded it.

So, this week, let God lead. Open your heart to Him, and allow Him to do a work in you. Put Him in the middle of every relationship–and then watch Him work.

Until next time…

Be blessed!

Who is on your front row?

Who is on your front row?

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I recently heard a preacher ask that question, and it really made me think about my own life. Who do I look to for confirmation, validation, or inspiration? And what will I do if the person I count on leaves? When the person I depended on can no longer be depended on. Why am I so connected to people that they have the power to command not only my attention, but also my day? Why does his/her opinion matter so much?

I know I have been freed from people-pleasing, but there is this place in me, and in many of us, that needs to know that somebody somewhere will be on our side no matter what. We were created for connection. It’s in our nature to desire kinship. It’s deeper than just wanting approval. It’s about relationships. God-centered relationships. He created us to have a relationship with Him, and with one another. But our expectations are so high sometimes that we can’t even live up to them, and yet we expect others to be able to. It’s actually a little unfair when you think about it.

God had to show me that I was putting the wrong people on my front row. We bear the image of God, but we can’t expect them to BE God. No one will ever be able to give us what can only be found in Him. He is the One who will ALWAYS be there even without being asked. He is the One that knows what we need even before we do. And He is the One who loves us even when we’re not so lovable. So, check your front row. Make sure you have the right person sitting front and center, and let everyone else off the hook.

Until next time…

Be blessed