Category Archives: Hope

Grace, Grace

     100_7312Grace, grace – what amazing grace, you, Lord, extend to me. I am so thankful for such great grace. So undeserved yet freely and abundantly given to me.

     I deserved punishment, yet you blessed me instead. I deserved to be put out and cut off, but you welcomed me in as a beloved child. I deserved nothing from You, but You gave your all for me. Grace, grace – what amazing grace; thank you gracious Lord.

     I deserved death, yet You gave me life. I deserved to carry the weight of my sin, instead You carried it for me. I deserved not a thing You have done for me, but you did it all anyway. Grace, grace – what amazing grace, you, Lord, extended to me.

Power, Glory, and Righteousness

    pathway- online The power of God, His glory and righteousness, do they really benefit us today? Where would we be without His power, glory or righteousness? Oh how barren our souls would be, a desolate desert, void of life; a place – a world, with no hope, bleak and dismal, a no man’s land.                                   The power of God is what changes lives and brings hope. Changes despair to gladness, sorrow into joy, and hopelessness into hope. It brings redemption, salvation and restoration. It confounds the wise and gives wisdom to the simple. It changes the atmosphere and gives life.                                                                                              Righteousness is a part of Who He is, One who knew no sin. One who rightly discerns and judges the hearts and motives, yet extends to us mercy and grace.                                                        The glory of God rests upon His followers. It shines in the dark and the darkness flees. The weight of His presence immobilizes yet at the same time gives freedom. His glory is a beautiful thing evident in a variety of ways and not fully explainable.                                                                       The power, glory and righteousness of God, are they needed today? Yes, more than ever. We would be a people without hope, we need them and the fullness of all God’s attributes.

Listening

Pink OrchaidAre you listening? I hear your questions and I am answering them; yet you do not seem to hear Me. Take a breath and be still for a moment; turn off the static noise of you anxious heart and tune your ears to the sound of My voice. When you let your heart become anxious and worried – with all your focus on the situation, it is hard for you to hear Me. Trust Me, I love you, I am on your side and listening. 

Live Fully

lg-oak-tree-onlineCome to Me and I will give you rest. I know the world wears you down and you become weary. As you sit with Me I will give you rest, I will refresh you and revive your spirit. Let me carry the burdens you were not meant to carry, let Me fill you with My peace and still your anxious heart. I want you to live fully – in freedom, not weighed down with unnecessary cares, trust Me to guide you through the troubled waters. As you trust in Me more fully, you will be able to enjoy life in a greater measure.

Flow with Me

oil-lamp-onlineHear the wind blowing in the leaves? They are completely surrendered to where the wind takes them; be also willing to go without resistance where the My Holy Spirit leads you. A fresh wind is coming to take you where you have not gone before – if you are willing to let it take you, willing to flow with it. You do not need to fear what I am in. Protect the purity of My move. It is not for show or your self-glory, it is for mine. Let Me move unhindered showing My glory, releasing signs and miracles. The Acts Church was not just for yesterday, but for today. Are you hungry for it?

Prepared

meditation-falls-onlineCome in, I’ve been waiting for you. Glad you came to seek Me, to be in My presence as you begin your day. I have some things for you to know that you will face today, not to make you afraid or dishearten you, but to encourage you, to let you know I am here, you do not face this day alone. I have a plan for you that will cause all to work out for the good. Here, let’s talk about it before you go – so you are prepared.

Dwelling

meditation-falls-online     One second, two second, three… oops, there goes my wandering thoughts again. Sorry, Lord, once more I bring my thoughts back to focus on you. Lord, I don’t want my thoughts to wander, I want to think about you, to ponder your marvelous ways, to tune my ears to the sound of heaven, to hear your voice, help me in this area of my life. Once more I dwell you; one second, two second, three…
     How often do we, with good intentions, start to meditate on the Lord, earnestly desiring to enter into His presence, to hear His voice, then – only a few moments later find our thoughts filled with other things? I for one must admit it’s all too often for my liking. Taking every thought captive is not as easy as it might sound, we can take a clue from the 2 Corinthians 10:5 verse indicating it’s not going to be easy, the word “Captive”. To take something captive insinuates a battle in which something or someone is captured and bound so it no longer has freedom. The victory over our lawless thoughts is won with each scrimmage, with each wondering thought brought back onto topic. We are bombarded continuously from all angles with information demanding to be processed and problems dealt with, making it difficult for us to be still. Yet Psalm 46:10 tells us to be still and know that He is God. It too is a battle, we have an enemy who doesn’t want us to be still, for if he can keep us busy or distracted, even with doing good, we won’t be tuning into the sound of heaven, have time to clearly hear the Lord’s voice, or be His presence. If we are not still, refreshed or hearing the battle strategy, we are unable to fight effectively and decisively.
     As we recognize our thoughts have wandered we must fight the desire to follow them. We need to stop – then intentionally turn our thoughts back to the Lord. We should not get discouraged, feel ashamed, or let the enemy beat us up in this battle; but rejoice in each victorious scrimmage where we stopped and refocused. A key in any battle is to submit to God, tell him our struggles and ask for his help; in this case to help us focus and take every thought captive. In some situations we may even need to ask to him to help us want to take our thoughts captive. As we surrender to God and resist the enemy, not focusing on distractive thoughts, eventually he will flee. It doesn’t say he will flee instantly, he doesn’t want to give up where he has had free reign, but greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world. Victory is ours with God on our side.
     One second, two second, three second, four – I dwell on you, Lord.

Trust

baby-face-onlineI am there in the storm, in the middle of the night, at noon day so bright. You may not know or sense Me but I am there, just a whisper away. You can call on Me at any time and be assured I hear you. In my sovereignty I may not answer when and how you want, just hold on, keep your faith and hope, my ways and plans are perfect. You may not understand here and now why I did not seem to answer, yet one day you will see how my hand was in it, and the bigger plan. Faith, Hope and Love – never let them depart from you.

Overcomer

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAIn the day of trouble I am your refuge, your shield. Strengthen yourself in Me, my words are as honey, let them refresh you. Meditate upon them and let them be life to you. Faint not, I am for you, though you face adversities I am with you in the midst, focus on Me – not the storm. Know and understand that in Me, you are an overcomer, a victor.

Mournful Plea

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAA mournful cry broke the silence of the night. A cry of desperation longing to be heard, a plea saying I am here – hear me, open the door that I might come in out of the cold night to take refuge until the mornings’ light.

My heart cries out, like the cats mournful plea, to be let inside that I might enter the sanctuary of Your arms, where I am safe and secure from the dark that bites at my heals.

This world, Lord, would be a dark and hard place if it were not for the light, your light shining brightly causing all darkness to flee. You set the captives of the night free, the snare of the fowler broken by your truth and love.

In the light of Your love and holy presence divine, I am healed and made whole in all that I am; in You I find my rest. Let me stay awhile in Your embrace, entreat me not to leave, I am nothing apart from you, You are my very life. My next breath and heart beat are in your hands; right where I want to be.

Lord, you heard my mournful plea and welcomed me in.

In my distress I cried to the Lord, And He heard me. Psalm 120:1