TIME TO CHANGE OUR SHOES!

Philipppians 3:12-14 NIV  … but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Do you ever feel like you’ve got glue under your shoes? You just feel stuck! You want to move forward but for some reason it seems like you’re standing still or going backwards? If we feel like that then it’s time to change our shoes! By that I mean we have to change how we think and how we do things. 

As a person thinks in his heart, so is he.(Proverbs 23:7) If we think and say we’re stuck, we shall remain stuck, but if we ‘see’ ourselves as God sees us moving forward, growing in faith, then we shall.😊

God wants us all to advance, to go forward in every area of our lives. Romans 12:2 says to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. If we don’t change our minds about some things, to come into agreement with what God says in His word, then we shall stay stuck. What are we willing to change to go forward?

What we say about ourselves will determine the path ahead. When we speak God’s words into our future we are sowing great seeds to bring the harvest we want. But when we speak negative words we will just have more of the same stuckness!

Mark 11:23 NKJV For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.(Italics and underlining mine) This says we can have what we say, so what are we saying, what are we speaking into our tomorrows? If we want to advance inwardly, outwardly and upwardly, then we need to be speaking God’s word over our lives because the way we release our faith is by our words, followed by our actions.

When we speak Deuteronomy 28:12 we are speaking out an open heaven, that the Lord will bless all the work of our hands. We are changing our inward vision and it will show up outwardly, because we are saying what God says.😊 

When we also declare we are righteous in God’s eyes, that we are surrounded by His favour like a shield, that we have authority over all the works of the enemy, and so on, we are advancing into what God’s vision is for us.

God’s heart is to see us all advance, to walk in all Jesus died for us to have. So if we want to not be stuck anymore, let’s change our shoes by changing what we’re thinking and saying, and declare God is moving us forward till we receive the upward call. Amen.😊

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GODFIDENCE!

Ephesians 3:12 NLT Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence.

Have you ever gone into a situation and not felt very confident because you weren’t sure of your welcome, or of the outcome? Maybe when we’ve gone for job interviews and felt inadequate? Or we have to deal with a situation, but feel wobbly like this pile of stones? Life is full of challenges and confidence is needed to help us deal with them. 

God first of all wants us to know without a shadow of a doubt today, that He wants us to come with confidence into His presence and know He will welcome us because we’re His child, to know we will find His loving mercy is waiting for us, to know His help is available around the clock. What a wonderful invitation He gives us!😊

He wants us to remember who we are in Christ so we then have confidence to go out into any situation with our head held high, not because of who we are in ourselves, but because we have the Greater One living in us to strengthen us. We are united with Christ Himself, and He has made us the head and not the tail, above only and not beneath. (Deuteronomy 28:13)

We could call it Godfidence because it is God who has given it to us.😊 God who has said we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. God who has declared us to be His masterpiece, His treasure and told us we’re precious in His sight. God who has declared us to be righteous in His sight because we’re trusting in Jesus’ shed blood for forgiveness of all our sins. It’s God who has said Jesus has taken away all our guilt and shame so we don’t need to hang our heads down anymore. God has said He accepts and has approved us.

Hebrews 4:15-16 NIV For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

As we go into our new week God is reminding us we are always welcome at His throne of grace so we can all come with confidence and talk to God today and receive whatever we need. It’s an open invitation, so let’s accept it with great joy and know God is giving us His confidence to go into our world, our situations, knowing we shall overcome through Jesus, because He’s helping us, strengthening us and upholding us. In Jesus name. Amen.

HIDDEN TREASURES

Isaiah 45:3 NLT And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness - secret riches. I will do this so you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, the one who calls you by name.

We all have things that lift our spirits, that bring a smile to our faces. For me it’s when I look at this little bunny with three buds that broke off a posy of flowers and would have been thrown away, but here they sit making me smile every time I look at them.😊 For you it will be something entirely different because we’re all unique and that’s the way God intended it.

God is never boring and when He designed you and me He imagined good things for each one of us. He has placed hidden treasures in us we may not even know about yet! He gives one person an appreciation for the everyday things, and in another the ability to reach for the stars but they all can bring us joy and make us smile.😊

They might be treasures of being able to create lovely things, or to be known for your kindness. It might be how to clean a house so it shines for Jesus. It might be your smile is your greatest treasure because it lifts other people’s spirits. 

Maybe your treasure is to encourage others or to share a verse that may change the course of their day, to have a word of knowledge or wisdom, a prophetic word that speaks into someone’s life when they most need it. Maybe your treasure is to just love people, to see the best in them and draw it out. What a lovely treasure that is!😊

God wants us to be uplifted to know that the treasure He gives us or He has placed in us is for our enjoyment and to benefit others. Just appreciating going for a walk among the trees can be a memory to treasure. Going for a coffee with friends can give us the boost we need, but whatever it is, let’s enjoy each treasured moment and not miss it because we’re too busy thinking about the ‘next’ thing.

So today let’s live and enjoy our moments, whether it’s eating a hot sausage roll, a broken off flower in a vase or time with the family. Whatever it is for you, remember Jesus is present with you in that moment and share it with Him, like you would a friend, and fill up on His enjoyment with you. 

And those treasures we have inside us - let’s share them with others so they can be uplifted and bring a smile to them today too. Amen.

Have a blessed weekend.x😊

THE VICTORY OF OUR FAITH

1 John 5:4-5 NLT For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.

Do you find there are some people you talk to, who only want to tell you how awful things are in the world? They’ve watched the media till all the bad reports pour out of their hearts, but all that does is give glory to the devil and undermine our faith. It encourages doubt and fears to enter in!

God told us that man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God, but if we’re listening to the world more than the Word it’s easy to fall into the trap of believing the wrong thing without realising it!😊

We all want victory in our lives, so something has to shift. Our focus has to be more on what God says than on what anyone else says. Some of the things we hear and see are undeniably facts, but the truth of God’s word can change the facts! Glory to God!

We are not helpless, or hopeless. We have all been given the measure of faith and the more we use it the stronger it will become. Even if we have faith as small as a mustard seed God says we can move mountains with it! 

Sometimes it’s good to stop and ask ourselves, “Who am I believing - my own reasoning, my own excuses, what the world says, or am I believing the Word of the Living God?” 

When we remember God has given us His name, His word, and the blood of Jesus to overcome the world, why do we listen to the lies of the enemy? It’s probably because we focus on the wrong thing, on what we see and feel, on past experience, instead of on what God has done through Jesus and what He has said in His Word.

Lack of faith is not our problem, but maybe unbelief is!😊

God says we can all have victory, so this is just to encourage us to use the faith He has given us, tell unbelief to shut up, and do some overcoming in the name of Jesus (and I’m speaking very much to myself first!) 😊 Amen.  

A TOUCH OF HEAVEN

Ephesians 5:30 KJV For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones.

I wonder if we’ve done any flying like an eagle lately, or do we feel like we’re still stuck in the chicken coup? Just recently I wrote about the eagle who suddenly realised who he really was and he began to soar on the thermals far above the chicken coup he’d had been raised in. In the same way God wants us to realise more and more who we really are in Christ.

Our verse says we are one with Jesus as He is now, seated with all authority and all power at the right hand of God’s throne, and everything has to bow to His name. Because He is in us, His anointing is also inside us, able to flow through us to others, but we need to believe it, for us to be able to fly like an eagle!😊

 In order to believe it we have to agree with God’s word and speak it out because our faith is released through words. “I am one with Jesus and I carry His anointing to do the things He tells me to do. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”    

1 Corinthians 6:17 AMP But the one who is united and joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him. 

I was reading how that means we are permanently and deeply connected in our innermost being with Jesus and that is how God wants us to see ourselves. Our spirit is just like Jesus because His Spirit is joined with our spirit, we are one with Him!😊

When Jesus healed the sick or washed His disciples feet He knew who He was, the Son of God Most High. He was totally secure and so He was able to do the miraculous but also the mundane to serve others, knowing His Father loved Him and He carried His anointing. Wherever He went He brought something of Heaven with Him and often said the Kingdom of Heaven is near.

God is reminding us we are one with Jesus Christ, that we are anointed and equipped with His anointing to go out each day and bring a touch of Heaven to those around us whether we’re standing at the kitchen sink, doing the shopping , going to work or going out for coffee with friends. It’s so His will can be done on earth as it is in heaven. God wants us to ‘see’ ourselves doing the things Jesus did. What did Jesus do? He says we are one with Him and can do the same.

What an amazing, mind boggling thought!😊

Lord give us deeper revelation and understanding of who we really are in Jesus and what You tell us we can do. Amen.

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GOD’S GOODNESS AND MERCY

Psalm 136:1 NKJV Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.

When everything is going well it’s easy to praise God, but even when they’re not we still have many reasons why we can. Here are just two reasons  - because He is good and because His mercy endures forever. When we lose sight of either of those two truths we may struggle.😊

When we keep going over the traumas and looking at the troubles, and we question God’s ways or the truth of His Word, we’re in danger of exalting our own thoughts and our own reasoning over our Creator, which is not good!

I expect we have all had times when we’ve questioned God and asked why He had allowed a situation, why are things the way they are, but when we do that we are leaning on human reasoning instead of leaning on God Himself. We are questioning His integrity, His wisdom and it’s a slippery slope from there to confusion and upset.

In the Garden of Eden, Eve fell into that trap and we all know the result! Instead, let’s declare the goodness of God and remember how patient and full of loving kindness He is towards us. Remember He has promised us a future and a hope, to work things out for our good despite our circumstances or our failures. Remember He has never failed to uphold us and help us, to be always present in our troubles.

Let’s remember His mercy endures forever, that even when we fail He is full of mercy. He remembers we are dust, that the blood of Jesus has washed away all our sins. Never let us forget that without Jesus we would be lost and heading for judgement, but with Jesus we are headed for a glorious eternity with our Maker, the One who loves us.😊

No matter how many pressures and troubles there are in our lives, let’s refocus and put our eyes back on Jesus, our Saviour, our Redeemer and praise Him because He is worthy of all our praise. He was tortured, He was beaten, He was whipped and crucified for our sake. He accepted the punishment for every one of our sins at the Cross, so lets bow the knee to the only One who loves us with the kind of love we may never fully understand, but stand lost in wonder at it.

Even on our down days when we’ve allowed ourselves to look at our circumstances instead of our Saviour, our God is good and His mercy endures forever. May we ever declare it and never forget it, and give Him all the praise and thanks He deserves. In Jesus name. Amen.

WHAT ARE YOU CARRYING?

Matthew 11:28-30 NIV “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

I wonder if you’re like me and try to figure everything out before hand? We add up the figures, we imagine how it could be done, we rerun conversations in our heads and try to think how to make things work out. Then we second guess ourselves and go round in circles! Anyone identify or is it just me?😊 

Or maybe you’re still carrying a burden of shame or guilt about something and forget Jesus has already carried it for you and it’s time to let it go.

Jesus knows us all so very well and He’s always miles ahead of us but He told us what to do when we feel worn down with our problems or situations. He invites us to come to Him, to cast all those cares over on to Him because He has all the answers and He knows the big picture. God’s purposes will come to pass when we believe His promises!

So often we can only see a small bit of the path ahead and things can seem impossible, so unlikely, and life may appear so unpredictable, but not with God. When we feel harassed or anxious we need to come back to that place of rest, of knowing we’re in the palm of God’s hand and He is in control of our lives when we put our trust in Him.

If our heart is to follow Him, to please Him, then He will make our crooked paths straight, He will go ahead of us and surround us with His favour so that we meet the people we should meet, and be in the right place at the right time, so that His plans can come to pass in our lives. Closed doors are just as much a blessing as open ones sometimes!

If we’re feeling weary or weighed down with our burdens, or the burdens of others, then we’re carrying burdens we weren’t meant to carry! We’re meant to pass them over to God  in prayer so He can take care of them.😊

God is reminding us it’s time to come back to Matthew 11:28-30 and sit there for a while with Him, and do what it says; give it all to Him, and let God do what only He can do in His own time. Amen.

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THE POSITIVE GAME

Mark 11:23-24 NKJV For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

I wonder if you remember the story of a little girl called Pollyanna who played the “Glad Game’, where she had to think of something to be glad about, even when things had gone wrong? As we were out walking yesterday, the thought popped in my head to make it the ‘Positive Game’, where we have to think of something positive that God has said or promised, and declare it over our lives. I realised I was needing to inject some lightheartedness into things and as I started speaking positively I began to feel brighter!😊

When circumstances look negative, or when things are not working out the way we thought, we have to start taking our faith out and polishing it up! On purpose we need to declare things over our lives that will lift our spirits, believing we can have what we say based on God’s word, just like Jesus said.

For instance we can say, ‘I declare that my future is bright because God promised not to harm me but to give me a future and a hope to bless me. I declare that my faith is going to make a difference to my decisions this week and expect the best not the worst case scenario! I declare that all things are going to work out for our good according to God’s promise. I declare God’s goodness and mercy are overtaking me, so it will be a good day. I declare I’m surrounded by the amazing favour of God wherever I go this week.”

I hope you’re entering into this.😊 Try bouncing off somebody with it. Challenge them to think of something positive to counteract the doom and glooms, to lift the atmosphere in order to deliberately put some lightness into it, so hope rises up again instead of defeat.😊

Jesus told us to cheer up because He has overcome the world and what is it that overcomes the world? - our faith, which is fired up by positive God inspired thoughts and words. Woohoo! Come on, stir it up!

As you begin this new week, I challenge you to think of something positive that makes you feel better, based on a promise of God, write it down, pin it up on the fridge if it helps, but speak it out to somebody, or text it! Go on - whether you’re by yourself or with someone - be a faith person! Don’t say anything negative for quarter of an hour (or longer if you can) but keep coming back to saying something positive, agree with God and see what happens!😊Amen.

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IT SHALL BE WELL WITH THEM

Isaiah 3:10 NIV Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds.

If you’ve ever played the card game of ‘Patience’ (also known as Solitaire in America) you will know it sometimes works out well and sometimes it doesn’t! It tries our patience!😊

God is not like that because when He says things will work out well He’s looking at the long term picture, the end result and we’ve not to judge things by where we’re at just at this moment because He hasn’t finished unfolding our story.😊

So often we look at our circumstances and think, “This isn’t going well and it looks like it will get worse.” Those are the times we have to stand on God’s promises and trust His word because it will not fail us. We have to declare by faith, “All will be well for the righteous, and God has declared I am righteous in Christ so all is going to be well for me.” We’re not saying it through gritted teeth, we’re saying it because we know who holds our future, because He is faithful to His promises and we trust Him.

In Psalm 23 David wrote about going from green pastures to the valley of the shadow of death but ended up with his cup overflowing and eating from the Lord’s table even in his enemies’ presence! He didn’t go by where he was at the moment. He was sure God’s goodness and mercy would hunt him down and overtake him every day!

We can be the same way if we’ll focus on all Jesus has done for us and tell the doubts and fears to shut up! Hebrews 12:2 NKJV looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith…

Where are we looking? If we’re looking at situations that seem hopeless may I encourage us to look at God’s promises and know that as we speak them out we are declaring life over those things, and not death, we are releasing the goodness and favour of God into them. We are releasing the ‘All is well” into our circumstances.😊

Thank You Lord. Amen.

Have a blessed weekend.x😊

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TIME TO GET YOUR BUCKET!

Isaiah 12:2-3 NIV Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.” With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.

As I was reading this verse I imagined lowering a bucket down into a deep well and then hauling it back up to appreciate the joy of tasting the sweet cool water. It occurred to me we wouldn’t go with a teaspoon or a mug to the well, we’d need a big bucket to draw out as much water as we could and on a hot day we’d want to pour some over our heads to cool down.

There are days when we need the cool refreshing water of the Word, of the Spirit of God Himself to pour into us and over us to refresh our weary souls. When life has knocked us about, when fears and doubts bother us, those are the times we need to go to our well of salvation and draw out whatever we have need of, to draw out His peace, His joy, His strength and let His love pour over us, to keep things in perspective.

It’s similar to the picture in Psalm 23 when David reminds us the Lord has spread a table before us and on that table is everything abundantly provided for our blessing and welfare. It’s the table where our cup is brimming over and overflowing with all God wants us to have, but we have to do something.😊

We need to come to the table by faith to receive God’s blessings, to take off the table the desires of our hearts, to experience the overflowing cup of blessing. We need to go to the well of our salvation and make the effort to let down our bucket so we can draw out from it all the good things wrapped up in our salvation through Jesus.

We may all need some refreshing today (I know I do), so let me encourage you to sit with the Lord for a little while and with joy know you can draw out some refreshing water, and don’t go with a teaspoon or a mug, go with a big bucket and let Him fill it up.😊 In Jesus name. Amen.

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WHAT ARE WE HOARDING?

John 1:1-4 NLT In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him. The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone.

I read a Snoopy quote the other day and it said this, “I’m not a hoarder, I’m a ‘This Might Be Useful Later’ Specialist.” That made me chuckle because I am a bit of a hoarder, and when I do finally throw something away, I soon discover I should have kept it after all because I need it! I wonder if that happens to you too?😊

There is something though which we should be hoarding in our hearts, and that is the word of God. When we store it inside us the Holy Spirit can then bring it back to our minds when we need it, when we’re maybe in a tricky situation, or we need to encourage someone else.

God says in His word that His words are Spirit and life, that they are health to all our flesh, and that they direct our paths. The Holy Spirit goes on to say, 2 Timothy 3:16 NLT All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.

Scripture also reminds us that death and life are in the power of the tongue and that what is in our hearts will come out of our mouths, so if we have hoarded God’s word in our hearts guess what will come out? It’s like when you squeeze an orange, the juice squirts out.😊 If somebody squeezes you and me I wonder what comes out? If I’m honest it’s not always the right thing!

So this is to encourage us all to remember how important it is to hoard and store up the right things, good memories, good thoughts, good attitudes, but most importantly the Word of God itself because Jesus is The Word and the more Word we have, the more of Jesus we have. I like that, don’t you?😊 Amen.

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I AM A CHILD OF GOD

1 John 3:1 NIV See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

I read this yesterday…

I am loved

I am known

I am precious

I am His

Sometimes it’s good to just stop and take a breath, to remember how much we are loved by God, that we are known by God and that we are so precious to God and all because we belong to Him. We are His child if Jesus is our Saviour. If we do that we will gain a different perspective on everything else because those statements are not only true but the enemy has no way of changing them!😊 

When the enemy maybe whispers that no one cares about you or loves you, you can tell Him God loved you to the Cross and back and His love will never fail you. 

On those days when you feel like you’re a nobody, that you’re invisible and the enemy tries to make you feel less than, just remind him that the Creator of the Universe, the Almighty God knows you by name and your name is engraved on the palm of His hand, and you can go to His throne for an audience at any moment!

The next time you feel a bit rubbish and the enemy tries to tell you you’re not worth bothering with, that you’re not worthy of anything good happening, or that you’ve made too many mistakes so you don’t deserve anything, just remind him you are God’s special treasure, that you are His masterpiece and that He says you are precious in His sight.

2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

You see what we believe about ourselves changes how we view the world, and God wants us to see ourselves as new creations in Christ, made in His image, made righteous and accepted in Christ, being transformed daily by His Holy Spirit to become more and more like Jesus Himself, because that’s how God sees us.

Put on your ‘Child of God’ spectacles today and view the world through them from now on and don’t ever take them off because you are who God says you are, you can have what He says you can have, and you can do all that He says you can do and all for the glory of God. Hallelujah!😊 Amen.

HOW IS YOUR HEART?

Proverbs 15:13 NLT A glad heart makes a happy face …

Proverbs 15:15 NLT For the despondent, every day brings trouble; for the happy heart, life is a continual feast.

So often the heart is depicted in the media as romantic emotion, or the medical profession major on keeping our hearts healthy by exercise etc. They’re all different aspects of thinking about the heart but scripture talks about our heart as being our inner selves, our inner spirit.

It reminds us that when our hearts are cheerful then it will show up on our faces. Have you ever caught your reflection in a shop window and realised you looked a bit glum, that your smile has disappeared? Scripture says that if we have a merry heart, a happy heart, life is a continual feast! We might not feel like that all the time but a heart resting in God can be that way because it’s feasting on all He has given us in Jesus.😊

Does the heart affect the way we speak? Proverbs 15:28 NLT The heart of the godly thinks carefully before speaking; ... Jesus said whatever is in our hearts will come out of our mouths, so we need to give our hearts a check up and see what’s in there so we can remove it if we don’t want it to come out at inappropriate moments!😊

What about the things we read or watch? Proverbs 15:14 NIV The discerning heart seeks knowledge, but the mouth of a fool feeds on folly. Another version says the fool feeds on trash! What is our heart feeding on, is it seeking knowledge or is it feeding on trash? 

Scripture says there’s a lot the heart tells us about ourselves and God wants our hearts to be seeking after Him. He wants our hearts to be full of His love and kindness so that what pops out of our mouths builds people up and doesn’t tear them down; to be full of His joy and peace so we can smile and not look miserable as we go about our day. In fact, just knowing God loves us does our hearts good, so we can smile!😊 Amen.

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TIME FOR AN UPLIFT

Philippians 4:8 NLT And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

On the days when you look in the mirror and think you could do with a face lift why not turn your thoughts to something that gives you peace, that makes you smile and you’ll have an instant facelift.😊

I love positive input, those words and thoughts that lift our spirits and help us see things from a better perspective. It’s always good to counteract the things that pull us down with God’s thoughts because God is never depressed or scratching His head wondering how it will all turn out. We serve a God who knows the end from the beginning, who promises us a future and a hope when our trust is in Jesus.

So I thought I’d pass on some encouraging, uplifting thoughts:

It’s good to take it one day at a time. Jesus said not to worry about tomorrow because God knows what you need and promised to provide it.

You’re doing better than you think. God loves you. He says you are His masterpiece, so you are amazing.

Better days are coming because God knows the plans He has for you which are to prosper you and not to harm you.

Every small step forward brings you closer to all God has for you.You have come further than you realise.

You’ve survived 100% of your bad days with God’s help and He will make all things work together for good to those who love Him.

It’s ok to be yourself because God made you and He says you are His special treasure, you’re precious in His sight and you matter.

You are stronger than you think so keep going and God promises to hold you up and help you as He takes you into the next season because His heart is to bless you.

You are who God says you are, you can have all God says you can have, and you can do all God says you can do.

As we go into our new week I hope something in those God thoughts will lift us up to help us remember we are a wonderful work in progress and even on hard days we can still know the inner joy of God being with us no matter what comes, and that our faith in Jesus and all He’s done overcomes the world each day. Amen. 😊

DANCING STRAWBERRIES!

Isaiah 30:18 AMPC And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you… Blessed…are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]!

While choosing which strawberries to buy the other day, as I turned the punnet upside down to check there were no bad ones underneath, suddenly the unexpected happened and the strawberries all started to fall out and dance across the supermarket floor! I hadn’t realised the cellophane lid wasn’t sealed properly and we had strawberry chaos on our hands! It was like a sketch from a comedy show as we dashed to capture them before they disappeared below the cabinets. Honestly, the things that happen!🤣

Things do happen unexpectedly though and they may be funny but embarrassing, like my strawberries, or they may be one of God’s blessed interventions when He steps in to surprise us in a lovely way. 

Our verse describes how God lifts Himself off His throne in order to bless us. He has surprises lined up for us we know nothing about. Those times when He puts us in the way of a big discount on a bill which happened to us last week, very unexpectedly! Or when we suddenly feel much better and we can’t explain why, or He connects us with someone who will be a blessing to us. They are unexpected wonderful God blessings and surprises.😊

It says God is expecting to do those good things for us, not because we deserve them, but just because that is His nature and He loves us. It’s like when someone gives you a surprise present. It shows they care, that they’ve been thinking about you, that they want to bless you.😊

Psalm 23:6 NET Surely your goodness and faithfulness will pursue me all my days,… 

God wants us to believe for that because it’s God’s heart for us today and every day, so be expectant - not for the strawberries to do a dance on the floor, but to be able to see the funny side of things, to expect people to be good to you because the favour of God surrounds you like a shield. 

It has nothing to do with whether we deserve it or not, it’s all to do with the wonderful grace of God who is lifting Himself up today to do unexpected lovely things in your life too. In Jesus name. Amen.😊

Have a blessed weekend.x😊

Photo by Hal Gatewood on Unsplash

KINDNESS IS FREE

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

We all know kindness is a fruit of the Spirit and as I was reading a whole lot of sayings about kindness I thought I’d pass them on to remind us how lovely and important kindness can be whether we’re receiving it, or giving it to others.😊

Ephesians 4:32 NLT Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

“Kindness: (noun) Loaning someone your strength instead of reminding them of their weakness.”

“Kindness doesn’t cost a thing, but its impact echoes forever. One smile, one gentle word, one moment of kindness can turn someone’s whole day around - including our own.”

“Kindness is more than deeds. It is an attitude, an expression, a look, a touch. It is anything that lifts another person.” (Plato)

“Every act of kindness is a piece of love we leave behind.” (Paul Williams).

“Your unassuming act of kindness might become someone’s memory of a lifetime.”

“No act of kindness is too small.”

“Everywhere you go leave a glitter trail of kindness behind you. Someone who needs it may just pick it up.”

“Little mouse asked Big Bear, “Why should we be kind?” Big Bear replied, “Because kindness is the one gift everyone can afford to give.”

I just thought they were some lovely thoughts about being kind to others that we can take into our day.😊

In the words of the Apostle Paul: Ephesians 4:29 NLT … Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.

Lord, we thank You for Your loving kindness and that You are reproducing it in us so we can pass it on to others wherever we go. Amen.

OUT OF THE FISH

Jonah 1:17 NLT Now the Lord had arranged for a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was inside the fish for three days and three nights.

We all know fish can be very smelly and when we cook them the smell permeates the whole house!😊 

Jonah was thrown into the sea and ended up in a big fish, but we can be so focused on the big ‘fish’ we pass over the fact that what he was actually in, was rebellion! That fish’s insides stank, he would have been swilling around with all kinds of mush, and rebellion is the same for us. It takes us lower and deeper than we want to go. It stinks in God’s nostrils and it makes us smell bad too!

When we don’t understand or when we don’t want to understand, when we think we know better, when we don’t trust God and question His integrity, then we can slip into rebellion without even realising it. But Jonah was outright, deliberately rebelling and he chose to run away.

He ended up nearly destroying the lives of those around him and that is what rebellion does. It’s a prideful attitude that wants to do what it wants to do regardless of how many lives might be messed up along the way. 1 Samuel 15:23 NLT Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft, and stubbornness as bad as worshiping idols… That is a strong statement and I know I’ve been rebellious and stubborn sometimes!

When we rebel we’re just not realising God wants the best for us and for others. He has a plan He wants us to be part of, so we can be a blessing and be blessed and He knows the best way to go about it.

Jonah didn’t think the wicked people of Nineveh deserved forgiveness. He thought he knew better than God. Ever felt like that? Rebellion doesn’t bless God it upsets Him. Faith in Him is what pleases Him, when we trust He knows best because He knows the end from the beginning.

Are you rebelling about anything? Have you been inside the fish for a while, because we’ve probably all been there at some point?!😊 Has God asked you to do something, to go somewhere but you’ve stubbornly dug your heels in and for whatever reason you’ve found excuses, or said outright no, or you’re running away? 

If so, be encouraged because it’s time for you to get out of the fish where there is no future, where it stinks, and let God bring you into His glorious plan and purpose for your life. Turn around and call out to the Lord and He will rescue you, just like He did with Jonah, because He loves you.😊 Amen.

WALK, SIT, STAND

2 Corinthians 6:16 NIV …As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”

What a promise to take with us into each day! The God who raises the dead, who flung stars into space, the majestic King of Heaven, our Abba Father who loves us, He is walking with us wherever we go! He’s watching over us, keeping us on the straight and narrow, when our eyes are on Him. 

Sometimes when we go for a walk and the path narrows we follow the person in front and walk in their footsteps. In the same way God walks with us, but He also goes ahead of us, so we can follow where He leads. Isn’t that reassuring? He leads us in paths of righteousness, beside still waters and He lets us rest and feed in green pastures. Thank You Lord.😊

Ephesians 2:6 NLT For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus.

Then Paul reminds us we’re no longer earth bound but citizens of heaven, taken out of the kingdom of darkness and put in the kingdom of light of God’s dear Son. We are sitting with Jesus,  at the right hand of God. Our bodies may be experiencing earth, but our inner spirit is joined with Jesus so we can experience heaven as well. In one sense we are already there! Lord give us deeper revelation of being seated with Christ in heavenly places, seated in a place of victory.

2 Corinthians 1:24 NIV Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, because it is by faith you stand firm.

Now because God is walking with us, because He has sat us down beside His throne with Jesus in a place of all authority and power, we can stand by faith in all that God has done for us in Jesus. We can stand on His promises because not one of them has failed. We can stand in the victory Jesus has won for us, and having done all stand with our armour on knowing who we are and whose we are. Hallelujah. 

Just in case we forget, wherever we go and whatever we have to do today, God is reminding us we are walking, sitting and standing with God each day. What a thought!😊 Thank You Jesus. Amen.

JUST ENOUGH OR MORE THAN ENOUGH?

Ezekiel 34:26 NIV I will make them and the places surrounding my hill a blessing. I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing.

Can I ask you something? Is your concept of God one that He gives us ‘just enough’ to get by? When someone asks how much milk you want in your drink and you show them your thumb and finger close together to say a little bit, just enough? Are we the same with God? Just enough money to pay the bills Lord, just enough health to get through the day? Lord, if you could just ….?

Or is your image of God one where His arms are thrown wide open and you know He is the God of ‘more than enough’ and that His heart is to shower you with His blessings, not because we deserve them but because of His great love for us. Ephesians 1:8-9 NIV says God lavished His grace and favour on us. Lavish is an over the top word because our God is actually an over the top God!😊

Our perception of God will determine how much we can receive from Him and if we think He’s holding back on us then we maybe haven’t quite believed this verse…

Romans 8:32 NLT Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else?

The enemy always tries to make us doubt God’s promises, to make us think they were for a different time, or for someone else, but if we belong to God then all His promises, ALL of them, are yes and Amen in Jesus.

God is wanting us to take the limits off Him, to believe His word where He says His heart is to prosper us and not to harm us, to prosper everything we set our hands to, to walk in the abundant life Jesus died to give us. 

In order to do that we have to have a sense of bible expectation, of  hope based on His word, of faith that sees the unseen, to know God has given us the ability to call forth what we’re believing for by faith, because of His promises. If we can see it already in front of us then we don’t need faith, but we do need it for the things we can only see with our spiritual eyes.😊

Jesus turned 120 gallons of water into wine, He gave thanks and a few fish and rolls fed 5,000 people with 12 big baskets of left overs. God split the sea for Moses, fed 2-3 million people for 40 years in a desert! So is it just possible we’ve been insulting God by only asking Him for ‘just enough’ health, just enough strength, just enough money, etc., instead of believing our God is the God of ‘more than enough” and it blesses Him when we ask for more than enough of the ‘everything’ He wants us to have!😊

Lord, open our eyes so that truth sinks right down into our spirits to see You as You really are - our wonderful God of more than enough who wants to pours out Your blessings on us if we’ll receive them. Amen.

Photo by Daniel J. Schwarz on Unsplash