Love

You are dearly loved by our God.

For we know, brothers and sisters, loved by God, that He has chosen you. 1 Thessalonians 1:4

     He has called you by name:

He calls His own sheep by name and leads them out. John 10;3

He surrounds you:

You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me. Psalm 139:3

His love is perfect:

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is made perfect in love. 1 John 4:18

He is always with you:

So do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10

He loves you with an everlasting love:

The Lord appeared to us in the past saying, “I have loved you with an everlasting love. I have drawn you with unfailing kindness”. Jeremiah 31:3

And nothing, not ever, can separate you from His love.

Neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God, that is in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Romans 8:39

Dear Heavenly Father,

Your perfect love surrounds us. You presence hems us in. We are Your dearly loved children. Nothing, not ever, can separate us from Your everlasting love. You shared that love with us through Jesus, our Lord.

Amen

 

Rest

I have suffered and continue to deal with insomnia. Anxiety and sleeplessness began when I was a teenager. My dad died suddenly in his sleep when I was just fourteen and I felt my world slip out of control. It is easy to become fearful and overwhelmed in the middle of the night as the clock slowly ticks away the hours. Our bodies and our souls need rest.

     When you are frustrated and tired, list some of God’s promises to us and feel His presence and His peace.

The darkness has no power over our God:

Even the darkness will not be dark to You. The night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to You. Psalm 139:12

He cares for me:

Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7

He is always present:

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. James 4:8

He promises rest:

In peace I will both lie down and sleep, for You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety. Psalm 4:8

When you lie down, you will not be afraid. When you lie down, your sleep will be sweet. Proverbs3:24

“Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28

You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast because they trust in You. Isaiah 26:3

     Have some verses ready to battle your way through Satan’s attacks, through the fear, the doubt, the sleepless nights. His promises are real.

Lord,

You watch over us. Darkness is as light to You. You are present with us with your everlasting love. Keep us in perfect peace.

In Jesus name,

Amen

 

Belief

 

     God knows the end from the beginning. He knows the words that we will speak before one word leaves our mouth. (Psalm 139) He knows the steps we will take, and He walks ahead of us, making a way. As fallen humans in a fallen world, it is easy to become discouraged when we are facing a trial. Grief is real. Fear is real. Anxiety is real. But God…

     Joseph doubted. But God…(Genesis 41:16) Israel was doomed. But God…(Genesis 45:7) Others can set out to harm us. But God…(Genesis 50:20)  We doubt when we don’t get an answer. But God…(1 Samuel 14:37) We feel guilt. But God…(Romans 5:8) When we feel we haven’t done enough. But God…(1 Corinthians 3:6)

     Believe in the deepest recesses of your soul that God is working. He will overcome all of our weaknesses with His mighty strength. Our constant, steadfast faith pleases Him.

And without faith, it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him. Hebrews 11:6

Immediately, the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe. Help me overcome my unbelief.” Mark 9:24

Father,

We ask You to help us with our unbelief. We long to trust You in every situation, knowing You are ahead of us making a way. Our faith pleases You. We do believe!

In Jesus name,

Amen

Prayer

     None of us are able to understand what is going on deep within the hearts of others. Our outer facades may include putting on our “happy go-to-church” faces, with the typical, “How are you,” followed by the response, “fine,” or “good,” “And, how are you?”  In Minnesota we call it, “Minnesota nice.”

     Nice is well and good, but heading to church with our fellow believers should give us a safe place to share our hurt, to reach out for help, to forget about people-pleasing or acting in a certain way. How do we reach out to others in need? Or ask for help ourselves?

     What a gift it is to pray for those in need, to offer support and the love of Christ. Are you willing to open up to your fellow believers? I sure have over the years. The power of prayer has lifted me up and give me strength time and time again. Knowing others are praying is powerful and God will move!

     It is a true gift to know others are praying for us. The power of prayer is real and God moves mountains for us. He loves to hear our petitions, our needs and our gratefulness. He understands our deepest needs, the needs that are difficult to share.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions, with all kinds of prayers and requests. With that in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Ephesians 3:18

Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. James 5:13-14

     Prayer can meet our deepest needs. Pray continually. Pray for others in need. Pray with praise and thankfulness. Make your requests known to our Father in heaven, through Jesus Christ, our Lord and wait expectantly for His answer.

Amen

 

The Potter

 

     The trail behind us may be covered with shattered dreams, with broken pieces, with regret. God, through Jesus, can redeem all of it. He takes the broken pieces and makes them into beautiful clay pots. The cracks left in those pots allow the light to shine through our brokenness.  This healing light brings something new and bright and beautiful.

But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands, so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Jeremiah 18:4

     The great potter will mold you into something precious and treasured, unique and beautiful in His sight. You belong to Him.

You turn things upside down, as if the potter were thought to be like the clay! Shall what is formed say to the One who formed it, “You did not make me?” Can the pot say to the potter, “You know nothing?” Isaiah 29:16

     God formed you and He loves you and He will continue to work things out in your life. Ready to begin again? Ready for a new thing? Listen to these beautiful verses made just for you and for me today as we begin again.

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. Isaiah 43:19

     Let Him show you the way, broken pieces and all.

Father,

It can be hard to look ahead and trust You to transform all that is behind. But You know us inside and out and You will redeem it; all of it. Show us the new things You are doing. Show us the way.

In Jesus name,

Amen

Longing For Home

 

     My Uncle Paul died several years ago at the age of 92. He was an inspiration to me over my entire life. When Paul came to town, we were as excited as if we were about to meet a celebrity. He walked on his hands, dove off of cliffs, told joke after joke, and loved nothing more than to make others happy.

     His life was stamped and ingrained with the love of Jesus. He, and my Grandma Pella, were great role models and were filled with the light and love of Jesus. I noticed with both my grandma and uncle and with others in my family and in my church family, that as they aged, they began to long for home.

     They long to see our Savior face-to-face. Our true home is getting closer.

Instead, they were longing for a better country-a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them. Hebrews 11;16

Father,

There are days we long to be with You forever. Thank You for preparing a place for each one of us. This will be our true country, our true home, our blessed assurance of the life to come.

In Jesus name,

Amen

Forever Hope

     Looking ahead to heaven is a worthy way to spend our time.  Our true home awaits us. The number of our years will be just a passing glance in lieu of eternity. Our eternal hope gives us a new reality in our lives. Our most pressing purpose becomes serving the One who offers us our eternal home.

     Living in light of eternity leaves us with hope. On our deathbed there is true hope. Stay in the moment-to-moment events of life with the promise of heaven etched in your heart. Jesus has you this very minute. Trust Him with the next minute and all of the moments to follow.

     Look ahead with hope and with no fear. Let the worries slip away. Worries place the burdens of tomorrow on the blessings of today. Focus on hope. Minute by minute, step by step, there is Jesus. And then there is heaven.

But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ. Philippians 3:20

But in keeping with His promise, we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth where righteousness dwells. 2 Peter 3:13

Jesus,

You bring hope. Always hope. We eagerly await Your coming. We are looking forward to the new heaven and the new earth. For now, we love and we serve and we trust and we hope.

Amen