WHAT'S ON GOD'S MIND?

Psalm 139:17 How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! 

Have you ever wondered what's on God's mind?  Well He reminds us in this verse that He's thinking about us all the time. You and I are on God's mind! How amazing is that!

We know our God is the God of restoration, the God of the 'Come Back' the God of doing 'over and above all we expect or imagine' so we can know those are some of the things God has on His mind for each of us as well. 

It's good to be reminded of that fact when we're in the midst of our humdrum everyday lives, and I believe God wants us to look up today. He wants to remind us of how big and wonderful He is. He wants us to get our hopes up because faith is the substance of things 'hoped' for.

What are you hoping for? Romans 15:13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. If you've let your hopes slip then may I encourage you to get them back out, dust them off, and start super gluing your faith to them. Nothing is impossible with God and we need to remind each other of that all the time. 

We need to remember we're dealing with the One who loved us more than life itself, who gives us all things to enjoy so we can have an abundant life. He has plans for us that we don't even know about yet and they're good ones! 

God came down to our level in Jesus so He could raise us up to His level. So let's do some rising up today. Let's lift our eyes up to Him and allow the Holy Spirit to fill us with hope again and get some fresh perspective and see what God has on His mind for us in the coming days. I can promise you it's good!😊

BACK TO THE BEGINNING

Revelation 21:6  And He said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts.

It's probably a while since you played Snakes and Ladders but you'll remember landing on the snake's head and having to slide all the way back down to the beginning!

Occasionally we can feel like that with everyday life where things haven't gone according to plan and we feel like we've taken some backward steps. But don't be discouraged because it's not unusual. When we read about many of the people in Bible days we find them seemingly going backwards and then being wonderfully blessed and restored as God rescues them and they climb back up the ladder.

Joseph is a prime example. He goes from favourite son to being thrown in a pit to become a slave. Then he becomes favourite slave, being promoted to head of Potipher's household, only to find himself thrown in prison for years for something which wasn't his fault and he didn't do. Then finally we see him being raised back up to being in command of the whole country second only to Pharaoh and being restored to his family! All he went through strengthened him for the position God had prepared for him.

So be encouraged knowing that whatever 'setbacks' you're experiencing at the minute God has a 'setup' already prepared for you to rise back up and be all that He wants you to be. Jesus is the 'Beginning' and the End so He has a new 'beginning' all through our lives as one season ends and another one begins.

Our lives are a journey and Corrie Ten Boom said they look like a mess of tangled threads on a piece of cloth but when we turn the cloth over one day we'll see a beautiful patchwork picture. God is making a beautiful picture out of your life too so just rest in that as you begin a new week and remember you are Highly Favoured, Greatly Blessed and Deeply Loved by God.

SEE THE POSITIVES

Romans 8:28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

As I look out my lounge window there is a winter wonderland with thickly falling snow. There are usually two schools of thought with snow - you either absolutely love it or it makes you miserable! It's a bit like life - you can choose to enjoy it or be 'under the weather' and choose to allow things to make you miserable or frustrated.

I've heard it said that when life gives you lemons to go and make some lemonade. In other words make the best of whatever situation you have to deal with and ask the Lord to help you see the positives in it. Let's be people who see the bright side and lift other peoples' spirits up rather than moaning and pulling them down even further. We do get the choice. How we react will affect others! So I throw out the challenge to you to go out with a smile and an upbeat attitude and amaze everybody!

So today, even though it's snowing, or whatever is happening in your part of the world, let's believe God is bigger than our circumstances and will work all things out together for our good - even the snow.

Go out and throw a snowball at a tree if that helps relieve your frustration but don't let it get you down! Believe the Lord to give you a great day!😊

TIME PASSES!

2 Peter 3:8 But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day.

Everyone you speak to seems to feel that time is passing by very quickly and we all wonder where the last few years have gone. If you're older you're probably thinking the last 20, 40 or more years have whizzed by! But more importantly don't let's forget the Lord's blessing in all of them.

It's easy to bemoan the passing years but a much better thing to do would be to focus on Jesus and all He's done for us and how He's rescued us time and again, favoured us when we didn't deserve it, protected us when we never even knew it. He's lifted us up when we were down, He's given us joy and laughter to offset the sad days, loved us when we've been unlovely. He's prospered us and blessed us so we could be a blessing to others.

However time is passing for you, whether it drags or goes at the speed of light, and here we are at another weekend, just stop for a little while and let's count our blessings. 

Let's spend some 'time' giving all the praise, thanks and glory to the One who makes our lives possible and let's remember God has planned an amazing future for us with Him still to come in Heaven. Woohoo! Thank You Lord.

WHAT ARE YOU WISHING FOR?

Matthew 21:22 You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it.

Matthew 7:7 Ask, and it will be given to you...

Do you have a Wish List this Christmas? Have you written down all the things you might dream of having but probably think you never will? For instance I'm needing to renew my iphone, my ipad and my laptop. They're all old, out of date and not performing well, all at the same time, so I would really appreciate newer ones! They are on my 'Wish List'!

So I ask what's on your 'Wish List', those things that seem too big to ask for? Now, what if I ask you what's on your 'Believing List'? There's a big difference! God says we can have what we believe for if we don't doubt in our heart.  I felt challenged by the Lord this morning to stop wishing and start believing! 

The things that seem big to us are actually small to God. We often feel 'oh I can't ask for that, it's too much!'  But I believe God is saying to us to 'ask and you will receive'! God is the God of More Than Enough, the God of Overflow, the God of 'my cup runs over'. God is the One who gives us our heart's desires when we seek after Him. Nothing is impossible with God and nothing is too hard.

So what is your heart's desire, what would make your heart sing? We gave our grandson a 'Bugs in the Kitchen' game for his birthday yesterday but it had one extra vibrating bug and when he saw it he had a 'Wow' moment. When you're eight years old one extra vibrating bug is BIG! It was over and above what he was expecting and he was excited!

So today God is encouraging us to stop wishing and start believing for Him to do over and above all we ask or think or imagine.  He wants us to move some things over from the 'Wish List' to our 'Believing List'. He wants us to believe for some Wow moments too!😊

GOD WANTS TO BE INVOLVED

Proverbs 3:5-6  Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.

Are you ever tempted to think 'God's not interested in that part of my life',  or 'I wont bother God with this problem He's got far more important things and other people with more traumatic troubles to deal with',  or 'I can handle this myself', or 'I don't want to take up His time'? If you have ever thought like that may I respectfully say that those thoughts don't come from God.

God loves each one of us so much He wants to be intimately involved in every area of our lives no matter how big or how small or how embarrassing or how personal. He's the God of the infinite but also the God of the infinitesimal so be encouraged today to talk to God about everything and ask Him what He wants you to do about every detail.  He has time for you always.

I've heard people say 'Well God gave me a brain and common sense to deal with life' but our verse says not to depend on our own understanding! He also gave us His Holy Spirit to be our Helper, our Counsellor, our Advocate, our Standby, our Wisdom. Surely humility would be to say 'I need Your help Lord with all areas of my life'.

God never intended man to be independent of Him in any way, He intended us to be co-heirs, one spirit with Jesus, partners in life with Him deferring to Him in all things because we belong to Him.

So whatever is bothering us or whatever we have to do let's just stop and ask the Holy Spirit the best way to do it, when to do it and whether we need someone else to come along side to help us do it. He'll show us what to do and I'm so thankful for that. We don't have to do life on our own praise God.

BE BRAVE-YOU CAN DO IT

Joshua 1:9 This is my command - be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

Being strong and courageous doesn't always come naturally does it? Sometimes it means pulling up your big girl socks which is something I did yesterday!  I haven't driven properly for several years and have used lots of excuses as to why I don't drive anymore but have felt very challenged lately to get out there again.  The other night I dreamed about driving successfully so yesterday I took the bull by the horns and actually went out for a drive and I kept reminding myself I'm an Overcomer, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, thank You Lord with Your help I can drive this car!

By the time I came back I was so chuffed that I'd overcome some of my fears about it and am believing the Lord to get me back to normal driving again.You're probably thinking what's the big deal but for me it was big! How about you? Are there some things that you'd love to overcome, things you keep finding excuses for not doing; things that maybe intimidate you? 

If so, let me encourage you today to be strong and courageous, to not be afraid or discouraged because the Lord your God really is with you wherever you go and He wants you to believe Him when He says He's made you an Overcomer.

I heard Joyce Meyer say once that it's ok to do it afraid. If we wait until the fear goes we'll probably wait a long time but when we confront the problem and do it in faith with His help He really does help us overcome. So I hope my testimony today encourages someone to be an Overcomer and a doer of the Word and put it into practice, not just be hearers only. Be brave - you can do it too! 😊

LET'S DO GOOD TO OTHERS

Philippians 2:4 Don't look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.

Leading up to Christmas, it can get a bit hectic buying presents, wracking our brains what to give, planning family gatherings and maybe we become a bit blinkered and forget  to look out for the interests of others. They too may be under some pressure.

Hebrews 13:16 But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.

Doing good to others can come in all shapes and sizes. It may even be as simple as giving someone an encouraging smile as you go about your day to lift their spirits as you pass them by. It may be thinking of a way to help lighten a colleague's load if they're struggling a bit, or be a listening ear, or letting the person behind you go in front in a queue when they only have a couple of items. I know I so appreciate that when someone does it for me!

Is there perhaps a friend or relative you haven't phoned in quite a while, someone you keep meaning to visit but never quite get around to it? Maybe you've been thinking about taking a little gift to somebody just to say you love them whether it's their birthday or not.  Whatever it is, any prompting to do good is coming from the Lord, and He wants us to look out for each other, to find ways to show some love and kindness and thoughtfulness. 

So as we go into yet another new week let's be on the lookout to see how we can do someone some good and be a blessing, which will please our Heavenly Father at the same time and make Him smile too.

GRACE TO HANDLE IT

Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

I was asked recently to make a cushion from a jumper which had belonged to a lady's deceased father as a 'memory' cushion. I've never done one before and was aware it was a very precious jumper so didn't want to make a mistake! I prayed about it a lot and asked the Holy Spirit for how to do it as she wanted the collar and arms left intact which made it more complicated. I'm pleased to say I did successfully finish it last night. Thank You Lord.

Before I began I used this verse which is similar to the one we looked at recently about not being able to do anything without God and here Paul is saying 'but we can do everything through Christ'.

So what is it that makes that statement possible? It's the grace of God that enables and empowers us to do what we have to do. 

2 Corinthians 12:9 And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness."

Take heart if you have weaknesses because God says His grace is bigger and stronger than any of your weak areas. In fact He's saying they won't hinder you because it just gives His grace a place to show up and be shown off for His glory and to let us rest on Him so we can stop struggling so much.

So whatever challenge we have to deal with or difficult situation we face let's remember we're not dealing with it on our own but we have the grace of God to call on 24/7 to help us. Remember He calls us to His throne all the time to receive mercy and to find grace in time of need, but we have to go to God to get it. (Hebrews 4:16)

Whatever we have to do today just stop for a minute, let's relax and ask God for His help, His favour and His empowering grace and He'll make sure we''ll overcome and we'll be just fine, just like me and the cushion.😊

Have a blessed weekend everyone. x

WONDERFUL RESULTS

James 5:16 ...The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.

When we hear of anyone who's been studying hard for an exam and they achieve a wonderful result we're glad for them and say well done. It's like when we get involved in a project, maybe like decorating, and the result is wonderful, we feel so chuffed with our efforts don't we?

God is reminding us that if we'll make the effort to be involved and pray for people or situations we can achieve wonderful results in prayer as well, because we are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.

There are times when we don't feel or even look righteous but God has declared that we are, so we are! That fact then qualifies us to earnestly pray because He declares our prayers will be powerful in the spirit realm and will get wonderful results. He reminds us about Elijah who was just as human as we are but he got amazing results. Imagine praying for the weather to be just what you said it would be and it was! Now that's something we could all do with practising!😊

God wants us to get a vision for our prayers being answered above and beyond what we've been thinking or expecting and to pray more in faith believing we'll actually see what we pray for come to pass. Don't let's be discouraged by any disappointments of the past. God wants us to remember nothing is impossible with Him because the only thing that will limit Him is our own unbelief.

Let's believe when we pray that we're going to get a wonderful result, let's be praying in faith and we'll see what we prayed for. (Mark 11:22-24)

FAITH WINS OUR BATTLES

Ephesians 6:16  above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.

Yesterday we were reminded of some of the things Faith can and will do for us. Here are a few more and it may help to read the words underlined over ourselves as a means of helping us stand our ground against any depressing thoughts or fiery darts we may have to deal with!

Faith has redeemed me from the curse of the law. (Galations 3:13) If we read Deuteronomy 28:15-68, we discover all the terrible curse of the law, but the wonderful news is Jesus has redeemed us from it all and our faith is in Him. So if you find anything in that list which you are suffering from, then know Jesus has redeemed you from it and declare your freedom by faith.

Faith pleases God, and God rewards my faith (Hebrews 11:6) God gets so pleased with us when we believe what Jesus has accomplished for us, so much so He rewards us for our faith. God is so good.

Faith fights and wins! (1 Timothy 6:12) It's worth making a stand and fighting when we know we win especially when we remember the battle is the Lord's.

Faith in Christ Jesus has made me God's child. (Galations 3:26/29) Thank God we belong in God's family now and He has made us His heirs. That's huge!

Faith has brought The Blessing of Abraham and The Spirit of Promise upon me. (Galations 3:14)  What more could we possibly want or need?

Faith in God is my key to believing, receiving and having all God has promised. (Mark 11:22-25)

Jesus told us to believe we've received something when we ask for it before we see it. That's our faith in action. 

I'm so thankful for my shield of faith, aren't you? We just need to remember to use it! I believe as we stand on God's word and confess it over our lives our faith will grow more and more. Amen.

FAITH TRUTHS

Have you ever wondered why Faith is so important and why we need it so much? Well recently we received a card which had a list of Faith Truths on it which I thought might help us all. The comments are my own though and we'll take the first five today. Hope you have the time to look up the verses.

Faith is our gift from God! (Ephesians 2:8) What a relief to know we don't have to earn it but just receive it.

Faith comes to us by hearing God's Word (Romans 10:17) If you've ever said 'I wish I had more faith' then be encouraged because it doesn't come by asking, it comes by hearing and the more we hear, and keep hearing about Jesus, the more our faith will grow and grow. 

Faith speaks what it hears (Romans 10:8) When we believe something we'll speak about it whether it's positive or negative so let's speak out the positive truths of God's Word over our lives and into our futures.

Faith believes God's promise of salvation by His grace! (Ephesians 2:8-9) God gives us His grace and faith to receive His salvation and all that comes with it. It's all from Him not from us.

Faith brings the unseen into the seen realm (Hebrews 11:1) When we're believing for something in faith we're actually calling for things that already exist in the spiritual realm for them to manifest in our physical realm, like healing for example. We're not trying to convince God to heal us, because it's already provided for in the new covenant by Jesus' sacrifice on the cross so we can receive it by faith.

Faith is wonderful and God has given it to all of us to use and grow in, so no-one is left out. 😊 Thank You Lord.

THAT'S THE TRUTH

John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, ....full of grace and truth.

John 8:32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

John 8:36 Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.

Everyone wants to be free, but free from what? If you live under an oppressed regime then you want to be free from it and Satan's regime is extremely oppressive which is why we want to be free from everything tied to him and free from sin and judgement.

Maybe we want to be free from sickness and disease, free from financial lack, from worry and care, free from fear and depressing mindsets. If so I have good news!

Jesus said 'I am the Way, the Truth and the Life.'  Our verses above remind us that we shall know the truth, in other words we shall know Jesus and He (Truth) shall make us free because He paid the price for our freedom from the kingdom of darkness and everything in it by being nailed to the cross.

Colossians 1:13 For He has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins

That's good news, Jesus is the Way to freedom and deliverance and that's the truth. Jesus is the One who can give us abundant life and that's the truth. There is no other name given under Heaven by which we must be saved. No-one else can do it and that's the truth too. Revealed truth is what sets us free. Let's believe what God has said and remind ourselves and satan that he has no hold on us any more, we've been set free!

Thank You Lord for revealing Jesus and His offer of freedom from everything in the kingdom of darkness and for bringing us into your wonderful Kingdom of life and light and for the peace and joy that brings. Amen.

GOD'S UNSTOPPABLE BLESSINGS

Psalm 23:6 Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life...

I heard someone say yesterday that God's blessings don't know how to stop. What an encouraging, lovely thought! It made me think of the above verse which I've heard described as being like a fighter plane in hot pursuit of it's target it's so intent on reaching the mark. God's goodness and unfailing love, His blessings are like that chasing us down till they overtake us.Thank You Jesus!

So what are some of these blessings that are chasing us? Psalm 112 (Nlt and Nkjv)say 'the person who fears the Lord who delights greatly in His commandments will be blessed and have descendants who will be successful everywhere; an entire generation of godly people will be blessed; they themselves will be wealthy and their good deeds will last forever. They will have light in the darkness, they will be generous, compassionate and righteous. They will not be overcome by evil and will be long remembered.'

It goes on... 'They will not fear bad news, they confidently trust the Lord to care for them. They are confident and fearless and can face their foes triumphantly. They share freely and give generously to those in need. Their good deeds will be remembered forever.'

Those words are God's words to us not mine, so as we start this week let's remember we are blessed of God because of Jesus and the above blessings and many more are chasing us down all day every day. I hope that helps you go out with a smile. Have a blessed week.😊

TUCKED IN

Psalm 91:4 He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.

When I was little I used to love being 'tucked in' at night,  that feeling of being safe as the sheets and blankets were snuggled in tight around me was lovely.

God wants us to have exactly the same feeling now as he reminds us we are 'tucked in' under His protective wings. 

There's a true story of a mother hen who had a brood of chicks which she quickly tucked in under her wings, hiding them away to safety as a fire raged around her. When the fire died down they found her scorched body but as they lifted her wings there underneath were her chicks alive, safe and well. She died in the fire giving life to her chicks and that's what Jesus did for us. He died under the fire of God's judgement for our sin on the cross so we could now be safe and hidden under God's protective wings for all eternity.

Every now and again, throughout your day, just stop and feel God's wings of love and protection around you and tuck in closer with a thankful heart.

How amazing is the Father's love for us, how wonderful the sacrifice Jesus made for us, so we can be safe and tucked in, in Him, today.  Thank You Jesus.

GOD'S BROCHURE

What have we come to? Have you ever gone on holiday, arrived at your accommodation and asked that question? It's sometimes not very nice or it's so good it's over and above what you expected from the brochure and we've maybe all experienced both scenarios.

The writer of Hebrews though tells us very clearly what we have come to now. Let's take a look...

Hebrews 12:22 No, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to countless thousands of angels in a joyful gathering.  Wow, sounds really good so far, but he continues...

v.23 You have come to the assembly of God's firstborn children, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God himself, who is the judge over all things. You have come to the spirits of the righteous ones in heaven who have now been made perfect. It just gets better and better and then he says this...

v.24 You have come to Jesus, the one who mediates the new covenant between God and people, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks of forgiveness instead of crying out for vengeance, like the blood of Abel.

Mount Zion represents God's Grace whereas Mount Sinai represented The Law. We need to make sure we're not stuck in the Old Covenant under Mt. Sinai but come to Mt. Zion, the mountain of grace.

So if you have come into God's kingdom and you wonder what you have come to, the Holy Spirit spelled it out for us in this chapter of Hebrews and I love the way He saved the best bit till last...You have come to Jesus; you have come to Grace and Truth Himself. I hope that makes your heart sing as you see Him with His arms of love open wide to receive you today.  

Thank you Heavenly Father for Jesus who made it all possible.

DON'T GET ROBBED!

2 Corinthians 1:20 For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.

Many years ago I worked in a high class jewellers and all employees were told to never tackle burglars if ever we suffered a raid. All the expensive stock was not worth someone's life or being hurt.  

Fast forward then to 2018 when we were asleep in the house (bear in mind we're past retirement age) and were woken up by two hooded burglars who were prowling round stealing what they could find including our car, my handbag, purse etc. The old training kicked in not to tackle them, but my husband did chase them from the house. 

What's my point? There are two thieves who try to break into your house every single day and for some reason we don't chase them away as soon as we see them. Instead we let them get away with it. Who are they? They're called Doubt and Unbelief and they'll rob us blind if we'll let them and it's God's Word they're after. 

Has God promised you something? Have you heard or read something in His Word and known what it said was for you? Has He told you to do something, go somewhere? Now, next question, have you believed it and received it or have you let Doubt and Unbelief creep in to steal those things from you? If so, kick them out of your house, don't give them one more inch, serve an eviction notice on them. Resist them, tell them to go and they'll flee just like our burglars!

ALL God's promises are Yes and Amen in Jesus. Now I have to ask myself what part of that am I still doubting or not believing? Hmmmm.......! What about you?

John 10:10 The thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.

Thank You Lord.

ALL IS WELL!

Isaiah 3:10 Tell the godly that all will be well for them.  

2 Kings 4:26 And she answered, "All is well."

I woke far too early yesterday morning so listened to Joel Osteen on my MP3 player to try to go back to sleep but he kept saying 'All is Well' over and over again. As I got ready for the day I heard that phrase running through my mind all the time. 'All is well'. Then throughout the day I kept saying out loud 'All is well.'

We had to phone the fridge freezer manufacturer about our new appliance and even though I could hardly understand a word because the phone connection was bad, I did hear 'All is well' in my head! Then we had to go to Mansfield to the supplier to try to sort it out and didn't get much further but I just kept saying out loud 'All is well' in faith even though it didn't look like it at all.

Then last night we rang the manufacturer again and this time we got the answer we needed and praise God 'All is well!!'  

You may smile but actually I learned quite a lesson yesterday. When we agree with God's word, regardless of how things look or feel, and declare by faith that all is well, somehow He turns it all round so that it is. Normally I would have been getting really stressed out and muttering a whole lot of negative comments about how things weren't going well, how it wasn't good, etc. but instead the Lord made sure I started the day hearing the faith declaration 'All is well' over and over again as Joel preached. 

So can I encourage whoever reads this today to know and believe that even when things don't look good, 'All is well' because Almighty God is on our side, He really is for us and not against us and He can make the impossible possible. It may take time to turn things round but our story isn't over yet is it? We're only part way through and He's still working things out for us so we can say in faith "All is well".

If you want to listen to Joel's podcast the link is below.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/all-is-well-joel-osteen/id137254859?i=1000537584920

WE CAN HAVE REST AND PEACE

Hebrews 4:3 For only we who believe can enter his rest...  

Have you ever felt like you're being pulled in all directions, that there's so much to do and so many demands on your time? We've probably all experienced it at some point but what do we do about it?

God tells us to ask Him for wisdom and to turn to the Holy Spirit for help so that's the best place to start. Maybe we're doing things off our own backs that God never asked us to do. So it makes sense to check on our 'To Do' list because we may need to say no to some of them.

Our own mind set has a lot to do with it as well. If we're thinking "I have so many responsibilities, I have to fix this or that, I can't cope with it all", we've fallen into the 'I' trap.

But be encouraged because God tells us we're one spirit with Jesus now, that His Spirit actually lives in us, so we're no longer just I, but now it's we. Instead we can know, 'the Holy Spirit and I will do things together, we're now a team. Together we can do whatever God has put on my To Do list.' When we know it's not all up to us anymore it brings a peace and a rest into our spirit.

Whatever God wants us to do Jesus has already gone ahead and prepared the way. He's also equipped and qualified us.  God has already chosen the people to be in our lives and if we rest in that knowledge we wont get frustrated and upset. He's already prepared the job or the house or whatever which is right for us so we can rest knowing it's a good one which will be a blessing.

It all comes down to Jesus, all He bought and paid for on the cross for us and our trust in Him. When we know and remember He only wants what is good for us we can rest in Him and have peace about it. 

GOD HAS SET OUR BAROMETER

Hebrews 12:2 looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Jesus didn't go to the cross so we could be grumpy and miserable. He died so we could be delivered from the kingdom of darkness and all that goes with it. 

He wants us to know we can live this life with a sweet attitude not a bad one and with His grace we can face each day's challenges and come out on top when we trust Him.

When we remember we're loved by our Heavenly Father, that He is for us and not against us, that He is the One holding us up, He is the One who has ordained a future and a hope for us, we'll find our attitude lifting.

The more we dwell on what Jesus has done for us, what God has given us, how He sees us as righteous in His eyes, the more we'll be able to face life's challenges knowing we're not alone to deal with them.

So whatever we face this week know this, God is going before us, He has already equipped and qualified us in Jesus to be victorious and more than a conqueror. We have the divine nature inside us so we can have a sweet attitude even when we don't always feel like it because we can trust God to turn it all round for our good in the end.

We can start the week with confidence in our God, with a good attitude, knowing He has already set our barometer to 'highly favoured and greatly blessed' and that whatever we set our hand to is blessed because of Jesus. Hallelujah, thank You Lord Jesus. 

RIGHTEOUSNESS IS THE ANSWER

2 Corinthians 5:21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

If you read yesterday's blog I hope you'll be shouting hallelujah because we were reminded we've been forgiven and we have Jesus to intercede for us when we get off track.

Wouldn't it be glorious though if we could go off track less often, stop falling for the lies of the enemy and ending up in a dark hole? It happened to me this week and it was caused by being tempted to have a pity party and feeling very sorry for myself. I should have nipped it in the bud the moment it started, but I didn't!

No excuses on my part. God doesn't want excuses as they don't solve anything! He wants us to go to Him for mercy and grace. When we do that He'll welcome us with loving arms and remind us of the truth that we are still the righteousness of God in Christ even when we get it wrong because God made us righteous in our spirit and that's how He sees us.

God made us righteous when He made Jesus sin on the cross and we put our faith in His sacrifice. He gave us the divine exchange and it's dependant on what Jesus did, not what we do or don't do.

Yes we repent but feeling guilty doesn't actually change anything, but knowing we are still righteous in God's eyes does! The more we remind ourselves and tell the enemy that we have been made righteous the more we break free from Satan's hold, and free from our weaknesses. Knowing we're righteous will cause us to want to resist the temptations the enemy brings, because we'll remember who we are in Christ, that we belong to Him.

So the next time we fall in a dark hole, don't let's bring our excuses to God, let's bring the finished work of Jesus. Let's go to Jesus our High Priest and ask Him to intercede for us with the Father, knowing He has already cleansed us by His blood, given us His grace, given us His righteousness. 

You know what - we wont want to sin any more, we'll be so grateful as He reminds us we are still righteous in His eyes. We have such an amazing, merciful God.

JESUS UNDERSTANDS OUR WEAKNESSES

Hebrews 4:14-16  So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.

One of the tricks the enemy tries to con us with is to make us think no one has ever been through what we've been through, or suffered the temptations we've suffered but these verses remind us that Jesus experienced all the feelings, the temptations, the emotional bombardments that we will ever experience but without sinning.

Not only that but on the cross He had every single one of our sins, no matter how horrendous, put on Him along with every sickness and disease man will ever know. Even people who have committed terrible atrocities against their fellow men can know God's forgiveness through Jesus. Jesus bore it all even our guilt and shame. (Isaiah 53:3-9)

Jesus experienced it all, carried it all in His own body for us because of His great love for us, and because of that, God our Father made Jesus to be our High Priest, the One we can come to, to intercede for us with our Father because Jesus understands our weaknesses.

So whoever is reading this whether now or at some point in the future please know that the punishment for our sins has already been paid for by Jesus, God has forgiven you already but our part is to repent and receive His forgiveness and make Him the Lord of our lives.

We can come 24/7 to His throne of grace and receive His mercy and help whenever we need it and it's all because of Jesus because He truly understands our weaknesses. 

DOING IT WITH JESUS

2 Corinthians 3:5 It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification comes from God. (Nlt)

Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency comes from God (Nkjv)

I was asked to rethread a necklet for an elderly lady who had broken it while trying to put it over her head as she couldn't do the clasp herself. It was a gift from her daughter so it was important.  Now I haven't done any rethreading since before Co-vid so was out of practice but as I started to do it I asked the Lord for His skill and help to repair it as it was complicated to do and I'm pleased to say, with His help, it turned out really well.

We often breeze into doing things in our own strength and ability but God wants us to learn to include Him in everything we do, to be aware of His Holy Spirit's help and advice all the time. Some people say 'God helps those who help themselves', but I read in scripture that God helps those who go to Him for help!

We may not all be called to minister in church but wherever our daily walk takes us is our ministry with Jesus. Jesus Himself said in John 15:5 I am the vine, you are the branches, He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.

I wonder sometimes if I've been doing a lot of 'nothing' because I was doing it in my own strength and without Jesus. When we acknowledge the Holy Spirit through the day and are calling on His help and ability with everything, we will bear the fruit He wants us to without even being aware of it. He'll give us the fruit of patience to deal with people, the joy of knowing He's working alongside us to do a good job, the kindness to stop and help someone else.

I know someone who is trying to write a story at the minute so I said 'Ask the Holy Spirit to help you put it into words'. You see God wants us to go to Him with everything not just the Christian stuff so whatever you are doing today ask the Holy Spirit to help and advise you the best way to do it because without Jesus we can do nothing.😊

JESUS LOVES YOU

John 15:9 I have loved you, even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love.

Jesus was speaking to his twelve disciples just before He went to the cross. He already knew Judas would betray Him, that Peter would deny Him and that they would all desert Him when the rubber hit the road and yet He says He loves them in the same way His own Father loved Him!

Then He says'remain' in my love'. Have we ever felt like we've let the Lord down, maybe denied Him by keeping quiet when we should have spoken up, gone wandering off back sliding for a while? If so can I share Jesus's own words with you again? Jesus loves you and He loves me regardless of our mistakes or shortcomings or failures, despite our imperfect performance, despite the times when we feel rubbish because we let Him down again - He still loves you and He still loves me.

He knew how important it was for us to 'remain in His love' because if we don't we'll be condemned and feel guilty all the time, but His blood shed for us paid the price for all of it. His blood cleanses us of all iniquity, every sin, and He has declared us to be righteous in Him because He paid for our sins Himself.

God wants us to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He loves us unconditionally - that's the meaning of grace - we don't deserve it but He gives it to us as a gift to receive.

So if you need His grace (and we all do) then let's receive His love afresh from Him today and declare with the old songwriter 'Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so. Yes Jesus loves me, Yes Jesus loves me, Yes Jesus loves me, the Bible tells me so.

No matter what happens - remain in His love, keep reminding yourself of it and it will bring you peace. I think I'll just go round muttering under my breath all day 'Jesus loves me'. How about you?

IF YOU ONLY KNEW!

John 4:10 Jesus replied, "If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water."

Have you ever said that to anyone? "If you only knew!" meaning that if they did know they would understand why things are the way they are, or they'd understand you better because they'd know the whole story instead of only a part.

Jesus walked miles out of His way to speak to this lady to meet her where she was at. He knew all about her, but she didn't know who He was and how He'd come to give her a gift that would change her life for ever.  When He offered her living water she could only think inside the box "But you don't have a rope and a bucket" she said. She kept offering up excuses as to why it wouldn't work for her.

How often do we come to Jesus and He offers us this living water too? If we only knew He offers us the gift of the Holy Spirit; He offers us supernatural ability to walk through life's problems with His perspective and power instead of with our rope and bucket.  

When this lady heard what Jesus was saying to her, even before she fully understood what He was offering but she saw the love and compassion in His eyes, she said "Please sir, give me this water!"

Jesus offers us His life giving water right now to each one of us, He says it becomes a fresh bubbling spring within us giving us eternal life. (v.13). We don't need a rope and a bucket we only need to ask for it and Jesus promised He would give it to us. 

You probably 'knew' all this already but sometimes we need a gentle reminder. So if you're feeling 'dry on the inside', and now you've been reminded, let's accept His offer and ask Him for His fresh bubbling spring of life giving water to bubble up in us today and ever day. Amen.

LET'S GIVE GOD GLORY

Psalm 44:8 O God, we give glory to you all day long and constantly praise your name.

It's very easy when talking to people to join in with all the doom and gloom and go over all the 'wrong' things going on in the world. But our Psalmist has a different approach because he wants to give God glory all day long, and I thought what a wise man!

He wants to recount all the things God has done and will do for us. v.5 Only by your power can we push back our enemies, only in your name can we trample our foes. v.6 I do not trust in my bow; I do not count on my sword to save me. v.7 You are the one who gives us victory over our enemies; you disgrace those who hate us.

This man had learned the importance of putting all his hopes and focus on God Himself,  and he'd learned a thing or two about praise too.

v.8 O God, we ...constantly praise your name. We know praise defeats the enemy at every turn  and there is power in constantly praising the name of our Wonderful Saviour, our Great Deliverer. It moves our focus from our problems to our Problem Solver.

So rather than us all going on about what's 'wrong' let's try and remember to turn it round and constantly praise our God for what's good and what's lovely, because only He has the power to change the unlovely and He deserves all the glory.

Have a blessed week.