WE HAVE A GOOD SHEPHERD

John 10:10-11 .....My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep.

Thank God we have a Good Shepherd who went beyond the call of duty, He answered the call of love for us and the pull of His great love led Him to sacrifice His life for us. Amazing Love.

Part of His purpose in giving up His life was so we can know and experience the abundant life He has provided for us and we can only enter into it when we allow Him to be our Shepherd. When we're willing to follow His lead He'll lead us beside peaceful streams and let us rest in green meadows.(Psalm 23 Nlt)

Is God trying to lead you somewhere today but you're holding back, afraid to step out in faith to go where He knows you'll find rest for your soul? Let your Good Shepherd do what He does well, put your hand in His and let Him show you where the green pastures are, where the waters of rest are.

Matthew 9:36 Jesus knows our hearts, how we feel, what we're thinking, and we see Jesus in this verse filled with compassion because He knew the people were distressed and dejected like sheep without a shepherd. But when we know the Good Shepherd we don't need to be distressed, dispirited or dejected, weary or worn out. How do I know?

Isaiah 40:11 He will feed his flock like a shepherd. He will carry the lambs in his arms, holding them close to his heart. He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young.

Do you see the picture of each lamb held in His arms? He is concerned for us as individuals. When Jesus is our Good Shepherd He will care for us, protect us and provide for us. He will hold us close to His heart. 

Just take a minute and let Him reassure your heart and know you too have a Good Shepherd and let Him lift you up today and allow Him to gently lead you to where He wants you to be. He only wants what is best for you.😊

WE WERE DESIGNED TO FLY

Isaiah 40:31 But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint.

I was sitting watching a magpie out my bedroom window as he effortlessly dotted about on the rooftop opposite, then he flew off into the sky without a second thought. He did what God designed him to do!😊 We would no more expect the magpie to drag his feathers around than we would expect a lion not to roar. 

In the same way God designed you and me to be able to live the abundant life Jesus died for us to have too. He designed us to be able to rise above life's problems with eagles wings when we're tuned in to Him.

We weren't designed to drag through life but to tap into all God has given us in His precious promises. (2 Peter 1:3-4) He wants us to partake of His divine nature, to continue seeing ourselves as Jesus is. God didn't design us to mooch about like a chicken in the coop. He wants to remind us today who we really are in Christ and learn to fly like an eagle.😊 Don't let anyone or anything keep you in the hen coop when you have wings to rise up out of there!

God sees you as an eagle today, rising higher above the troubles below, tapping into His ability and power, as you realise who He has made you to be in Jesus. He has equipped you, anointed you with the Holy Spirit and power, enabled to do all things through Christ who strengthens you. He designed you to be above and not beneath, to be the head and not the tail, to be blessed going out and blessed coming in. (Deuteronomy 28:3-13)

You are fearfully and wonderfully made in the image and likeness of God, sons and daughters of the most High God, greatly blessed, highly favoured and deeply loved. 

Lord, as we begin another week help us to see ourselves as You see us and learn more and more how to fly like an eagle, learning to rise above the circumstances, tapping into Your wisdom and Your promises in Jesus Name. Amen.😊

RIDE THE WINGS OF THE MORNING

Psalm 139:9

If I ride the wings of the morning, 

if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, 

and your strength will support me.

'Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised.' That phrase was running through my head in the small hours of the night and I realised how true this whole psalm is because no matter how far we go or how high we climb, or whether we go as low as the grave the Psalmist reminds us that God will be there for us in order to guide us through the maze called life with all it's ups and downs.

He tells us all through scripture we don't need to be anxious about anything because He says He's giving us His own supernatural strength and ability for those days when we come to the end of ourselves which is actually a good place to be, even though it may not feel like it, because God will always be there waiting to help us. It's where we can say "Over to you Lord, I can't do it any more but You can."

So we can rest and lean into Him afresh today, knowing He cares about us, and He's going ahead of us as the year unfolds. God told Moses He is the 'I AM' because He wanted His people to know He's all we'll ever need in life. He's saying 'I AM not only all powerful, but merciful and compassionate and with Me all things are possible.'

We know praise defeats the enemy so let's lift a song of praise to our wonderful God today. He's the One who loves us unconditionally, who has all the answers to all our problems and who makes a way when we think there is none. 

So whether we're riding the wings of the morning or we've come to the end of ourselves, we can still offer a sacrifice of praise and lift the Name of Jesus high to give Him all the glory as we remember afresh how truly blessed in Him we are. Amen.😊

GOD REWARDS PERSEVERANCE

Hebrews 10:36 Patient endurance is what you need now so that you will continue to do God's will. Then you will receive all that he has promised.

My friend asked me to make a rag doll for her to give to her friend which I was pleased to do. Everything was going well till it came to making the dress. I caught a piece of cloth in the seam and had to undo it all then resew it. Still not right and had to do it again! Then I sewed the sleeve wrong way round and cut off a piece I should have left on! Things were going wrong but I persevered, tried again, and now it's done and all is well. You can see her now but not realise it involved a lot of struggle!😊

In the same way we sometimes look at other people and think what a perfect life they have, nothing seems to go wrong, lovely home, great kids, etc. but what we haven't seen are the times it went wrong for them too and they had to try again. We weren't there when the mistakes were made, when they cut things off when they should have left them in! We didn't see the heartache or struggle and we forget they had to persevere when they felt like giving up just like all of us.

So can I encourage us all today not to compare ourselves with anyone else because we're all at different stages in our walk of life anyway, but to persevere. Let's lighten up and not be so hard on ourselves or others come to that. 

Let's just keep our eyes on Jesus and walk hand in hand with Him knowing He's in control and He's helping us to be the best we possibly can be because we're His masterpiece. We're accountable only to Him and as we persevere remember we're still a work in progress and He loves us no matter where we're at and He'll reward us as He promised.  Thank You Lord!😊

Have a lovely weekend everyone.x

PEACE IS A PERSON

John 16:33 (Amp) I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have (perfect) peace. In the world you have tribulation and distress and suffering, but be courageous (be confident, be undaunted, be filled with joy); I have overcome the world." (My conquest is accomplished, My victory abiding.)

Jesus is reminding us that in Him we may have peace and because we're in Him He will enable us to overcome whatever is troubling us. That is good news!😊

Peace is not a place or set of circumstances, peace is a Person. Scripture says Jesus is the Prince of Peace and when we are in Him then His peace is in us and available to us to draw on. We don't have to wait till everything calms down before we can have peace. Ephesians 6:15 says we can put on peace shoes and walk in His peace! I like that idea don't you?😊

Peace in that verse is the Greek word 'eirene' which means peace, prosperity, quietness, rest and to set at one again, or you could say with nothing missing, nothing broken. We can call on Jesus' peace to bring His calm and wholeness, or if there is lack for His peace to bring prosperity, if there is turmoil for His peace to bring quietness into the situation.

So when we're disturbed we can turn to Jesus and say "I'm dealing with stuff that's really upsetting but I'm drawing on Your peace Lord. I need some of Your quietness right now. I ask You to step in and bring healing and wholeness back into this situation and I receive it by faith. Thank You Lord."

Jesus finished by saying "Cheer up!" and He's saying the same thing to you and me. God has placed us in Him and He's given us His peace so let's take it by faith today and cheer up because the Prince of Peace is working things out for our good, bringing His peace and prosperity and making things whole. His abiding victory is ours. Amen.😊

 

BE A SUGAR PUFF SPREADER

Proverbs 16:24 (Nkjv) Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, Sweetness to the soul and health to the bones.

I slept in yesterday by mistake and so was in a bit of a tizzy rushing round making breakfast. I decided to have Golden Sugar Puffs as a treat but caught my dressing gown sleeve in the bowl of dry puffs and they went right up inside the sleeve.  I thought I'd removed them but as I walked round the house I was dropping and spreading little pods of sweet Sugar Puffs wherever I went! 

It occurred to me how good it would be if I could drop sweetness in a similar way wherever I went, by the things I say and do. Some people we meet seem to leave anything but sweetness behind them and they leave us feeling disgruntled but we can be sweetness spreaders if we make the effort!😊

Our verse tells us that pleasant and sweet words not only bless others but they bless us too, even bringing health to our bones. How good is that! We can speak pleasant words over our own bodies and build our souls up too because pleasant words are healing words.

Now I know it sounds silly but may I encourage us to go out and be Sugar Puff Spreaders today? May we leave people feeling like they've been glad they met us, that the things we've said have been pleasant and have built them up or even brought healing in some way and leave some sweetness behind us wherever we go. 😊

AS JESUS IS SO ARE WE

Ephesians 4:23-24 Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God - truly righteous and holy.

Our verse today tells us to let the Spirit do something. He wants to renew our thoughts and attitudes no matter how long we've had them and we can either resist or co-operate. When we were born again God put us 'in Christ' and He sees us like He sees Jesus but we have to renew our thinking to see ourselves that way because in the natural we may find it hard to believe sometimes.

So I ask myself 'Does God accept Jesus? Yes He does, so He accepts me because He sees me the same way. Is God's favour on Jesus? Absolutely! So His favour is all over me too. Does God see Jesus as totally righteous? Yes He does so He seems me totally righteous too!" We could ask many more similar questions and have the same encouraging answer.

I heard of a lady who read 1 John 4:17 (Nkjv)...because as He (Jesus) is, so are we in this world. She had breast cancer at the time and when she asked herself if Jesus had breast cancer the answer was obviously 'no', so she said to herself "well as Jesus is, so am I. He doesn't have it so I'm not having it either." Over the course of time, taking communion every day, seeing Jesus taking away that cancer on the cross, and exchanging it for health and wholeness, she went back for tests and was found totally cancer free. She 'saw' herself the way Jesus is, healthy and whole. She renewed her thinking. 

That verse says we're the same as Jesus in this world, not in the sweet by and by but we have to renew our thinking. Is Jesus blessed? - so are we. Whatever Jesus is - so are we. I hope that encourages us today and helps us want to co-operate with the Holy Spirit to renew our thinking where needed (mine included!)😊

ENJOY THE MOMENT

Psalm 118:24 This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.

Someone mentioned to me that as they were sitting looking out the window they just stopped and thanked the Lord for that moment in time. They weren't obsessing about the past, or worrying about the future, just enjoying that moment. The sun was shining after incessant rain, the frost was beautiful as it lay over the whole garden and he was filled with gratefulness for what he had.

We can all do that at any time by stopping and breathing in 'the moment'. Have you ever been with someone but not really been listening because our thoughts have gone somewhere else? Or eating but not even noticing what we're eating because we're thinking about the next thing to do?

God wants us to enjoy today, this moment and not miss it. He gave us each and every day as a gift from Him and we wont be able to get it back again, so let's find the joy and contentment in it. 

A grateful heart blesses God because He knows we're not wasting what He has given us. He says to be thankful in all circumstances which means there must be something to be thankful for, if we'll take the time to look for it.😊

Yesterday my friend shared a photo of the first snowdrops in her garden and she called it a 'treasure' she found. She knows how to enjoy the moment better than anyone I know.😊

 

Let's stop now and again, close our eyes, smell the lovely cooking smells knowing there's food on the table, listen to birdsong as we walk, music playing, or peace and quiet. Thankful we can see and hear, thankful for Jesus and His forgiveness.

The Lord has given us today and it's our choice what we do with it, but I know we'll be much happier if we're grateful for it and look for all the little things He blesses us with.😊 I hope you enjoy your day, and take time to notice and enjoy your 'moments' too.😊

WORDS ARE TRANSMITTERS

Proverbs 18:21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit.

I heard someone say that our words are transmitters and I thought how true that is. They will transmit faith or fear, either one. People's words either encourage us or they can make us feel depressed or even fearful. We only have to listen to the news for a while to know that's true!

So what are we hearing? If it's encouraging and uplifting then they're life giving words. If what we hear is making us feel down, worried or afraid then those words have no life in them and they're not from God because He doesn't give us a spirit of fear.

Sometimes it's good to check up what's coming out our own mouths too. Are they encouraging, thankful, faith filled words? Or have I slipped into a critical, sceptical, complaining, filled with fear and doubt mode, which brings negative reactions? 

God says death and life are in the power of the tongue, so which one are we promoting? It sounds like we need to pay attention to what we're saying! We don't want death, we want life!😊

Jesus said, "The words I speak to you are spirit and they are life" (John 6:63) so when we say what God says then we're speaking life giving words. When we speak doubt and unbelief then God calls them death words! I think it's because negative words can kill our joy and undermine our faith and without faith we can't receive anything from God.

This week lets speak some encouraging, life giving words and build ourselves up and those around us. We can spread some hope, joy and peace wherever we go as we agree with what God says.😊 

May I start us off? - You are wonderfully made in the image of God Himself, you are His special treasure, the apple of His eye. You are a 'can do' person in Jesus and God loves you enormously.😊😊

Have a great 'life filled' week.😊

GOD'S UNFAILING LOVE AND FAITHFULNESS

 Psalm 89:1-2 

I will sing of the Lord's unfailing love forever! 

Young and old will hear of your faithfulness. 

Your unfailing love will last forever. 

Your faithfulness is as enduring as the heavens.

How wonderful to know God's love will last forever. It will never fade away or be withdrawn from us. Likewise His faithfulness to us. Psalm 36:5 says His faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds.

By day or by night His creation is reminding us so when you're outside one evening spend a few minutes and look up at the starry heavens, or in the day when you're out and about look up beyond those high clouds and remember they speak to us of God's unfailing love and His enduring faithfulness to each one of us.

Take a deep breath and soak it in, rest in the truth of those words, and let Him bring peace to your soul. Whenever you feel disturbed about something just keep reminding yourself of how much God loves you and will not fail you because of Jesus. As someone reminded me yesterday "God is faithful."

Psalm 36:5 Your unfailing love, O Lord, is as vast as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds. 

WE'RE A GLORIOUS WORK IN PROGRESS

Philippians 1:6 being confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;

Back on the 14th November, you may remember me saying I was trying to design and sew two cushions for a friend who had requested 'bird' cushions. At the time I was unwell, had no inspiration, and had to leave it unfinished till later. Well thankfully I did finish them in time for Christmas.

She was delighted with the end result, even though they took me quite a while to complete and there were many days when they looked a bit of a mess!

In the same way we may look at our lives, or other people's lives, and see them as lacking somehow, or wonder if God can do anything to sort us out, but we are all on the potter's wheel and none of us is a finished work as yet. Take heart, God always finishes what He starts and He wants us to know He is working in our lives all the time and He will bring us to completion in His good time before Jesus returns.

He says we're going from glory to glory which speaks of a wonderful work in progress so let's just enjoy the glory we're in right now knowing whatever God makes, He makes well, and He'll make us glorious too. Thank You Lord You are making us glorious.😊

2 Corinthians 3:18 But we all....are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.

Have a 'glorious' weekend everyone.x

RECEIVING GOD'S WONDERFUL GIFTS

2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love and of a sound mind. (That word power means miracle working, dynamite type power, in the original)

These are wonderful gifts! Scripture tells us that whatever we receive from God we receive by faith just like we received the forgiveness or our sins by faith when we believed God put our sins on Jesus and forgave us. 

We read a verse which tells us what God has given us but He waits in the same way for our consent  to receive it by faith too. It's the way God has designed it, the way He works. He gives but we have to receive.

We may read a verse and give it mental assent, say Yes Amen, and just pass on, but Romans 10:8-10 teaches us that faith is voice activated, it's what we confess with our mouths that we receive, so we can say...

"Thank You Lord I receive Your miracle working power into my spirit, I receive Your love into my spirit and I receive Your gift of a sound mind. I refuse to receive the spirit of fear and I resist it because I now have Your love in my heart and Your perfect love is casting out any fear that was there (1 John 4:18)."

When we confess (or say) we receive the spirit of power, love and sound mind, what are we doing? We're agreeing with what God has said He's given us. We're activating our faith.

Let the redeemed of the Lord SAY so.(Psalm 107:2) It's the same principle throughout the Bible.

As we continue to say what God says He's given us, our faith will grow, because faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17) and we will have and experience what He says we can have, and do what He says we can do which is good news.😊 

All through the day, every day, we can be building up our faith and activating it by saying "I've received God's spirit of power and love and a sound mind. I'm not fearful or forgetful but full of God's love and power. Thank You Lord."

JESUS IS HOLDING US TOGETHER

Hebrews 1:3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.

I love this verse because it says Jesus is upholding all things, not some things or a few important things, but all things by the word of His power. Colossians 1:17 He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together.  Wow! That's powerful!

Knowing Jesus is that powerful then gives us great confidence for the next bit because God has gone even further and made it personal for us in Isaiah 41:10 Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you. I will uphold you with My righteous right hand. When God is in our lives, Jesus Himself is upholding every part of us. He has placed His own Holy Spirit within us to do that.

Even when things look like they may be falling apart we can go to Jesus and know He is not only holding us together but He's maintaining and sustaining us; we are not going to fall apart regardless of what else looks like it might. He says He's made us strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Glory to God, we take that by faith.😊

 

So if we have a time when we might feel like we're coming apart at the seams we can say by faith "I'm not going to be upset or fearful because Jesus, the One who holds all things together, is also holding me together and holding me up above the circumstances. He's making me strong and helping me no matter what. I'm going to be more than ok because He has a tight hold of my hand and He's not letting me go. Thank You Lord. Amen."

JESUS THE FIRST AND LAST WORD

Revelation 1:8 "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, says the Lord, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."

Jesus tells us He is the First and Last, the Beginning and the End.

I wonder who has the first and last word in our lives? Is it the doctor's report, the bank statement, the boss, or maybe the government or even social media? If there's one thing we've seen over the last couple of years, it's that things can change and what people say one minute can be changed overnight!

God is reminding us here that Jesus is the Beginning and the End of everything and if Jesus is the Lord of our lives then He will have the first and last word in our lives too. 

What His word says will be final authority in our lives because Jesus is the Word and the Word is Jesus. John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 

So if the report we've received says something other than what God has said in His word then we don't need to worry because Jesus' word supersedes every other report or opinion. It has greater authority than every other voice, is more powerful and can change the things we see if we'll trust what He has said. That is good news and we don't need to despair if we've had a bad report. 

Thank You Lord Jesus You have the first and last word in every situation. You say we shall live and not die, (Psalm 118:17) that you will satisfy us with long life (Psalm91) and provide all our needs according to your riches in glory and that You are caring for us. You say that no weapon formed against us shall prosper and that because God is for us no one can successfully be against us.  Hallelujah.😊

THE LORD IS WAITING FOR US

Isaiah 30:18 But the Lord still waits for you to come to him so he can show his love and compassion. For the Lord is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for him to help them.

What a wonderful thought that the God of the universe is waiting for us to come to Him so He can bless us and show us His great love and compassion. He's not waiting so He can tell us off or punish us!

Have you ever sat and waited for someone to arrive? If it's someone you love then you really looking forward to their arrival and you probably have the mugs out and some cake all ready or a meal prepared!

I think God is the same way with us. He loves us so much that He has all kinds of good things lined up for us but He can't give them to us until we arrive on His doorstep and come to sit down and spend some time with Him.  We need to draw close to Him in order to receive from Him with a right heart and attitude. 

If our loved one just breezed in for five minutes and said "I need this or that. Can I have it now?" and then breezed straight out again we'd not only be hurt but we'd know they don't care much about us. There would be no give and take in the relationship, only take.

God is waiting for us to come to Him willingly with a heart that would like to know Him better and spend some time with Him just for who He is. Even if we've done something wrong His arms of love are still open wide and wants to show us His love and mercy. 

So may I encourage each one of us with the good news that God is waiting for us to come to Him any time of day or night and His heart is to bless us. His door is always open to us.😊

WHO IS THIS MAN?

Matthew 8:26-27 Jesus responded, "Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!" Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm. The disciples were amazed, "Who is this man?" they asked. "Even the winds and waves obey him!"

Jesus had instructed the disciples to go to the other side of the lake so they'd all piled into the boat and Jesus went for a nap. Suddenly a fierce storm hit the boat which seemed to come out of nowhere and they feared for their lives as they tried to stay afloat.

Sometimes we're doing what God told us to do and suddenly we find ourselves in the middle of a storm which tosses us up in the air. It might be financial, a health problem, family issues but we didn't see it coming and it caught us off guard. We often think "Why is this happening?" It would be better to say "Show me how to deal with this Lord."

Storms of life come to us all and at least the disciples had the sense to go to Jesus to ask for His help. Even though their faith was at a low ebb He immediately deals with the problem and the storm is stopped! The disciples response is one of wonder and awe "Who is this man?"

When storms hit us I wonder if we forget just who Jesus is to us, how powerful He is, how willing He is to come to our aid in the storms of life? Have we forgotten He has already defeated every foe for us at the cross, that at the mention of His name everything has to bow down so we don't need to fear. 

As we begin a new week let's remind ourselves constantly who Jesus is. The King of Kings, Our Redeemer, Saviour and Healer.  He's not some distant figure in history. He is our Deliverer right now in every situation, the One who understands us because although He is God, He is still a man, seated at the right hand of the Father interceding for us night and day. Thank You Lord.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE CONSIDER JESUS

Hebrews 3:1 ( Amp) 

Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, 

(thoughtfully and attentively) consider the Apostle and High Priest whom we confessed 

(as ours when we accepted Him as Savior), 

namely, Jesus;

In all the midst of every day routines, the business of our schedules, work demands, family situations and anything else that presses in on us, God says to stop and thoughtfully consider His Son our Saviour, Jesus.

When we do we'll remember we have a High Priest who is appealing to our Heavenly Father on our behalf all the time. We'll remember we still have the one who flung the stars into space and who knows when the sparrow falls, that He knows all the intimate details of our lives and we and our futures are safe in His hands.

He tells us to consider Jesus for a reason. It's because it will help us keep in balance, and keep everything in perspective, because we'll know we have a wonderful Saviour, Redeemer, and Deliverer who loved us so much He was willing to go to the cross for us so we could be reconciled to His Father. What a wonderful Saviour. Thank You Lord Jesus.

So in everything we have to thoughtfully consider this week, let's remember more than anything to thoughtfully and attentively consider Jesus.😊

(Suggested reading: Colossians 1:9-23)

JESUS RE-MOVED OUR DISEASES

Matthew 8:17 This fulfilled the word of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah, who said, "He took our sicknesses and removed our diseases."

As I read this chapter the other day I had a bit of a revelation which may help someone else if you're not well or dealing with a weakness of some kind, or a disease.

The Living Translation uses the word 'removed' in this verse and I suddenly saw it as 're-moved' as in when the Removal Men come to pack up your house and move boxes out. In other words the enemy moved that sickness or disease into our bodies some how but on the cross Jesus moved it out again. He re-moved it on to Himself and with His life blood He paid for our freedom from it. He bought and paid for our redemption from everything in the kingdom of darkness that day which includes sin, sickness, disease, addiction and every other foul thing.

Now when the enemy tells me I still have a certain disease I tell him "No I haven't, because Jesus has re-moved it out of me and He took it to the cross. He has responsibility for it now and in it's place He has given me His health, His wholeness and peace in every area." Just as I take my forgiveness of my sins by faith I take my healing in exactly the same way because it all happened at exactly the same moment in time. (1 Peter 2:24) He set us free from it all and delivered us from the kingdom of darkness and everything associated with it. 

I hope that helps someone take a hold of their healing by faith today, just like we do our forgiveness, to see it re-moved out of our bodies into Jesus' body on the cross.

I pray the Lord helps us meditate on these things and helps us all have greater revelation. I know I need it.😊

Have a blessed weekend everyone.x

GOD OF EXCEEDINGLY ABUNDANTLY

Ephesians 3:20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us.

Yesterday we looked at God answering us even before we call and sometimes I have to check what I'm calling out to God! Maybe you’re like me when I'm under pressure, I feel like calling out the problem, as though He didn't know all about it, but He keeps reminding us to call out to Him what He says we have in His word. Big difference!

God is encouraging us again today to remember nothing is impossible with Him and to call out and call for His promises, to call by faith for those things we can't even see yet with our physical eyes. (Hebrews 11:1 faith is...the evidence of things not seen)

With thankful hearts we can call in healing and health instead of saying how sick we feel, call in strength when we feel weak. Call in His amazing favour wherever we go. Call for our breakthroughs to manifest, call out our wisdom in Jesus to know what to do each day, call out His grace and mercy for each new day. Get the idea?

All those things and many more are ours already as part of our covenant with God through the precious blood of Jesus and we have to call them ours so we remember what we have in Christ to shut the mouth of the enemy who tries to deceive us! We're actually calling them from the spiritual realm where they already exist, into the physical realm, by faith.

As we take the time to do that we'll have our focus on Jesus who is the Author and Finisher of our faith, who will take us to new levels in faith to believe Him for far more than we ever thought possible.

God  says He is able to do far more than we ask or think which implies we should be asking big! So what are we asking for and thinking? Whatever it is, as long as we have His promise to back it up we know it's ours already so let's call for it because it is ours. Hallelujah! Thank you Lord.😊

GOD ANSWERS BEFORE WE CALL

Isaiah 65:24 It shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer; And while they are still speaking, I will hear.

This verse is such an inspiration to us all and hopefully encourages us to call and speak to the Lord about anything and everything believing He not only hears us but He's on our case making it happen sooner than we might think. It nudges us to expect things to happen and have an air of expectancy!

Isaiah 55:22 It is the same with my word. I send it out and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to and it will prosper wherever I send it.

When we speak God's promises in our prayers, believing Him to fulfil them, He says His word will produce fruit, it will accomplish what it's supposed to do. It has a purpose that He'll bring about. His angels are sent out to perform the word of God coming out of our mouths in faith. (Psalm 103:20)

Jeremiah 1:12 (Amp) I am alert and active watching over My word to perform it.

I think the Lord is just reminding us today to bring His promises, His word to Him in our prayers by faith, to bring the answers which His promises give us, so He can perform them in our lives and make them happen. 

Thank You Lord You've promised to bring Your word to pass in our lives when we believe it and declare it. You say it will happen at the right time and it may be sooner than we think. We believe it and we receive it in Jesus' Name. Amen.

SURROUNDED BY GOD'S FAVOUR

Ruth 2:3 Then she (Ruth) left, and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech.

Ruth didn't know she was going to the field which was owned by the richest land owner in the area, she was led there by the Holy Spirit. She 'happened' to come to that part of the field and the Holy Spirit gave her favour with Boaz. He fell in love with her and she went from being one of the poorest, to the wife of the richest, and only God could have orchestrated that for her.

In the same way when we ask the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us He will place us where it 'happens' to be to our advantage, where we shall find the favour of God on our lives too.

Psalm 5:12 For You O Lord will bless the righteous; With favor You will surround him as with a shield.

Ruth had made a declaration in Ruth 1:16 where she said to Naomi "Your God shall be my God". From then on she was going to totally depend on Naomi's God for her future and when God saw that, His favour was all over her.

I hope that encourages us all today to look to our God who loves us so, to trust Him to do as He says and surround us with His wonderful favour as this year begins to unfold; to continue believing the Holy Spirit is guiding all our steps into those right places and right times for us as well, to have a spirit of expectation of the goodness of God in our lives.😊 Thank You Lord.

RIGHT PLACE, RIGHT TIME

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

We may be tempted to think 'if I just pray more, or read my bible more, then God will make something happen' almost like we're bargaining. But the Lord reminds us in today's verse that it's the Spirit of the Lord who orchestrates, leads, guides, and makes things happen for us. Yes those other things are important and will help us hear Him but at the end of the day the Holy Spirit will bring things together for us when it's the right time and we can rest in that truth.

In Ecclesiastes 9 Solomon realised that the fastest runner doesn't always win the race, the strongest warrior doesn't always win the battle, the skillful are not necessarily wealthy and the educated don't always lead successful lives. 

He noticed that being in the right place at the right time is what is necessary and only the Spirit of God Himself can lead us to those opportune moments. Our part is to be listening and to be obedient to His promptings when to do, and when not to do something.

Take a moment and listen before you go somewhere maybe the Lord wants you to go a different route. Listen inside before you sign that document, before you start that friendship, check for the inner peace and if it's not there then just wait.😊

If we'll keep a close ear to Him He'll make sure we'll be in that right place at the right time, to meet the right people who will help us enter into the favour God has planned for each one of us.

Thank You Lord You have good things lined up for us. Help us to be at the right place at the right time in the coming year so we don't miss any opportunity and all the good You have planned for us. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

OUR HIDING PLACE

Psalm 91:1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

I was reminded yesterday that you have to be close to something to be in it's shadow. In the same way in order for us to be under the shadow of the Almighty we have to be dwelling close to Him. 

The good news is God our Father has placed and hidden us 'in Christ' in Him so we know we are close to Him and the more we see ourselves to be in Christ we shall be aware of dwelling under the shadow of the Almighty.

We can say with confidence 'He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in Him I will trust.' (v.2)

God's wants us to know we're safe in Christ, in Him. It's the safest place in the world to be, no matter what's happening around us. He goes on in Psalm 91 to give us assurance after assurance, whether it's noonday, darkest night, terrorist attacks, plagues, any form of evil. He says when we're in Christ He will cover us with His wings, and give His angels charge over us.

We are not vulnerable, we are not exposed, we are hidden in Christ. Colossians 3:3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

As we begin a new week, we can say  "Thank You Lord I am in Christ. You Lord are my refuge and my fortress, You are my God and in You I will trust everyday of my coming week. I commit it all to You knowing You are going before me, looking after me and protecting me."

Psalm 32:7 You are my hiding place; You shall preserve me from trouble; You shall surround me with songs of deliverance.

WHAT TO DO WHEN IN DISTRESS

Psalm 59:16-17 

But as for me, I will sing about your power. 

Each morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love.

 For you have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress. 

O my Strength, to you I sing praises, for you, O God, are my refuge,

 

the God who shows me unfailing love.

David wrote this psalm when Saul had sent soldiers to watch his house in order to kill him. David was going through some serious stuff but he says something amazing. He says, 'as for me I will sing...' And what is he going to sing about? God's power! 

He reminds himself that God is his refuge, his place of safety when he's distressed. He reminds himself that it's his God who will show him unfailing love no matter what trials he has to go through, that he has a place of refuge to run to in the direst of circumstances, no matter how bombarded he feels.

Now we may not have soldiers outside our house wanting to kill us but we can be encouraged by David to know we have the exact same God he did and He loves us just as unfailingly. We have the same refuge David did, the same place of safety when we're distressed.

So let's do as David did and sing God's praises, sing about His awesome, delivering power and each morning sing with joy about God's love for us and we'll see God deliver us too.😊

FEELINGS!

1 John 4:15 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. 

Sometimes we wake up and we don't 'feel' very joyful or positive. We seem bombarded by attitudes that are so not of God and we wonder what's the matter. Ever been there?

Well the good news is our feelings change from hour to hour and it may only take one word or happening which entirely changes our viewpoint and makes us 'feel' happy, which proves our feelings are very unreliable and we don't need to take them too seriously although it doesn't 'feel' like that at the time!

We have to go back to what we know not what we feel and it may take effort but it is worth it. We go back to the truth that God loves us even when we feel like we're not doing too well. He loves us when we're up and when we're down. Jesus has gone through every temptation we do so He does understand where we're coming from and we know He is our great High Priest who is interceding on our behalf with the Father all the time.

We know we have the Holy Spirit of God living inside us and we know He is helping, strengthening, guiding and counselling us. We know we're not alone, that God is for us and not against us. We know we've been forgiven of all our sins and God accepts us with loving arms because of Jesus. We know God has good plans for our future and as we remind ourselves of all of those things, and many more you can think of, our attitude will shift because our thinking will be on the truth not on our feelings.

So if you've been feeling a bit down then can I encourage you to start remembering what you know and dwell on those things for a while until your feelings start to follow your knowing.😊

John 8:32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. (and that includes from negative feelings!)

Have a lovely weekend.x

REFOCUS - OUR ENEMIES ARE DEFEATED

Genesis 14: 20 And blessed be God Most High, who has defeated your enemies for you."

Sometimes we want to tell others how the enemy has done this or that, or stolen this or that from us and without realising it we're giving glory to the devil because it seems to fill our minds. Well today I'd like to encourage us to refocus our attention and remind us that God has defeated our enemies but we have to believe it by faith.

Although Abram was rich he was childless so he complained to the Lord in Genesis 15 and said it wasn't much use him being rich if he had no heir. He was focusing on the negative but God was very gracious and took him outside and said he would have heirs so many they'd be like the stars in the sky. God gave him a promise and thankfully Abram chose to believe it. Scripture says God counted him as righteous because of his faith, because He believed what God said.

Where does that fit in with us? God has given us promises and he's waiting on us to believe them too. If we don't believe them and only go by what we're experiencing right now, we wont have them and the enemy will try to walk all over us. It requires our faith to make a stand.

God wants us to walk by faith so when it may look like the enemy has been winning we turn round and say "No, you're a defeated foe. Jesus has already won the victory over you at the cross and given it to me. So I rise up in Him, I resist you satan and tell you to take your hands off my life, my family, my health and my belongings." We have to draw the line in the sand and enforce the victory that is ours by using the word of God, like Jesus did, and remind the enemy he's already defeated and disarmed. 

Let's give glory to the Lord today and declare the victory that is ours in Jesus. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so. Let's give praise and thanks to God for all the good in our lives and choose to ignore the negative knowing God is turning it round for our good. 

Let's refocus on Jesus and His victory today.😊

WE CAN BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS

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.

Obeying God's commands doesn't always come naturally especially when we're not 'feeling'  very strong or courageous. But God never said to be strong and courageous when we feel like it. He said to do it as an act of obedience to Him and that is where the rubber hits the road. Are we going to keep our eyes fixed firmly on Him and do as He says regardless of how we feel?

Joshua was having to take over from Moses which must have been daunting to say the least, and God knew how he was feeling, but He told Him not to worry about it because God Himself was going to go with him to do whatever He asked him to do. That's the key we need to remember - Almighty God is with us which makes all the difference.

When He told him to be strong and courageous He told him how to do it. He said meditate in My word day and night only then will you prosper and succeed. So often we want the prosper bit without the meditating in the Word bit! But God speaks to us through His word.

He's saying the same thing to us today - be strong and courageous, so it must be possible for us to be that way! 

If you're feeling discouraged or afraid today, will you join with me and grab them by the neck and tell them to be removed! We can remind ourselves that God is with us wherever we go and He's promised to go before us. He's in control of all our lives and He has things for us to do, so don't let's allow the enemy to discourage us. 

With God being with us and His word to instruct us we can not only be strong and courageous but we can prosper as well.😊

AGREEING WITH GOD BRINGS LIFE

Proverbs 18:21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue. And those who love it will eat its fruit.

Everyday we're given an opportunity to speak words over our own lives and the lives of others. The thing is what are we speaking?

Do we hear ourselves speaking doom and gloom, spreading the bad news we heard from the media or do we declare what God has said over us? On days when we're down do we say "I feel very down" instead of "I know God is lifting me up today, that all things are working out for my good because God loves me." God's ways are not our ways and He tells us what to say. For instance, "Let the weak say I am strong, let the poor say I am rich. (Joel 3:10)" He actually spells it out for us!

God ...who calls those things which be not as though they were. (Romans 4:17 Kjv) In other words God calls things that we can't 'see' with our physical eyes as though they're already here. As far as He's concerned they already exist. We tend to do the opposite and call things the way they are, how they look and feel. We say "I fell so unwell. I feel so tired." God says to 'call' those things He's promised as though they're already here because in the spirit realm they are real.

When we believe the promise and speak it out we're calling it forth from the spirit realm into our physical realm which is called using our faith. Faith is ..... the evidence of things we cannot 'see' (Hebrews 11:1), but are we using our faith?

Next time we feel like calling things the way they are in our lives, let's just pause and think what has God said about it and start calling things the way He has said they are in His word. 

"Lord I may 'feel' tired but the truth is that I have Your strength and energy flowing through my body. I call myself strong not weak. The doctor's report says I'm sick but I call myself healed and whole.  I call myself prosperous in every area of my life. I call myself blessed, I call myself rich not poor. I call for those things You have said I can have in Your word by faith in Jesus' name. Amen.

As we agree with God, and submit to Him and His ways, I believe we shall see the breakthroughs we've been believing for. Let's begin this new year by being imitators of God and start saying what He says about us not how we feel or what we 'see' with our natural eyes, and use the power of life we have in our tongues.😊

GOD NEVER LEAVES US ALONE

Hebrews 13:5 (Amp) ...for He has said, "I will never (under any circumstances) desert you (nor give you up nor leave you without support, nor will I in any degree leave you helpless), nor will I forsake or let you down or relax my hold on you (assuredly not)!"

If ever we're tempted to think we've got to deal with something on our own, or that we are alone, it's good to get this verse out and read it over and over till it becomes part of us, that we're definitely not alone. Whatever this year brings the one thing we can be sure of is that God is with us every second of it. We are children of the Most High God and He has given us His Holy Spirit, His love, joy and peace and His own faith in order to overcome every obstacle and bring down every stronghold.

He's assured us we can do whatever He gives us to do through Christ who strengthens us, that we can have what His word says we can have, that His goodness and mercy are following us every day of our lives. He's promised to never abandon us or leave us without support but has declared He will be our strength and shield, our very present help in trouble if it comes. (Psalm 91:15)

In light of all of that Jesus tells us not to have a fit of the 'what ifs', because our Father knows we need all the things we're tempted to fret about and He's promised to provide them according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4:19)

Our part is to seek Him and His way of doing things first, and all these other things will be added to us without our striving, or worrying! (Matthew 6:33)

So when the world struggles we can remember we are already citizens of heaven and it's provision, and as we keep looking to our Heavenly Father we'll know His peace because in Him there is no darkness or lack and He'll never leave us alone. 😊 Thank You Lord. We're so grateful.

ALL THINGS TO ENJOY

1 Timothy 6:17 Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy.

I love the fact that God not only gives us things to enjoy but He gives us richly! God is not mean or stingy but His heart is always to bless us, to be generous to us so we, in turn, can be generous to others.

God treats each one of us as individuals and gives to us the things to enjoy that He knows we particularly like. He understands us and where we're coming from, when others might not understand. There's nothing we can do or say that He doesn't already know about us, so we need never be hesitant to share anything with Him. If we enjoy it, He'll come along side and enjoy it with us.

Have you ever tried explaining something you like to someone and they roll their eyes as if to say 'Really?' and somehow you felt less than? Well God is not like that. He made us all different for a reason and He placed inside us an appreciation for different things.

I think it blesses God's heart when we appreciate something He's given us, no matter how trivial or big, and thank Him for it, acknowledging it as coming from Him, and whether anybody else likes it or not doesn't really matter does it? It's not meant for them, it's given to you.

The bottom line is God wants us to enjoy the things He has given us with a clear conscience and a glad heart and not feel guilty about them. If He's blessed us then let's really enjoy the blessing whether it's a daisy in the grass, a beautiful sunset, a piece of music, new clothes or a new piece of equipment. 

Let's enjoy what He gives us, not just today, but throughout the coming year. 😊

COME TO ME ...IN 2023

2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear,

 but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

God wants us to start the new year off right because 2023 will have it's blessings but also it's challenges, and Paul reminds us that in the last days we shouldn't be surprised if we face some perilous times. 

The great thing is he also reminds us that we don't need to be anxious or afraid because God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power, love and a sound mind. In other words God is telling us not to get rattled by what we may see or hear in the coming year because He has gone ahead of us to protect us and provide for us and because He has already equipped us to deal with it with His power, love and sound mind. Thank You Lord.

Jesus also clearly told us to not let our hearts be troubled (John 14:27) because He has given us His very own peace to deal with life, which is His well being, wholeness in every area with nothing missing and nothing broken. You may well say "What's the secret to receiving His peace" and Jesus gives us the answer again. He says "Come to me......"

At the start of this new year Jesus says to each one of us "Come to Me! Come to Me when you feel worn out, when you need a rest, come to Me when you're sick and you need healing, come to Me when you don't know which way to turn and I’ll show you. But whatever you do come to Me, the source of all peace, to the One who loved you enough to bleed and die for you, to the One who holds the universe in His hands knowing I hold you safely in My hands too. Come to Me with your joys, your funny moments, your heartbreaks, your confusion, your disappointments. Share your life with Me and let Me share mine with you.

At the beginning of this new year Jesus invites us to come to Him first, and get it right. Let's commit the whole year over to Him for His wisdom and guidance through it, for His hand of blessing to be on it and He's promised to direct our paths and it wont come any better or safer than that.😊

Matthew 11:28 Then Jesus said, "Come to Me ... and you will find rest for your souls."

A VERY BLESSED NEW YEAR IN JESUS EVERYBODY.😊