Learning To Forgive

"Be kind and tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you" Ephesians 4:32

Has someone done something to you said something to you or hurt you by the actions or lack of action? If you are honest you probably say yes. So what to do? 

Hold a grudge til the bitter end? Not stop talking about it? Pay them back some way? 

The answer of course is to move on beyond whatever it was trying to forget it and don’t let resentment build a wall between this person. Be the bigger person and show love even if you were deeply hurt by what happened. 

PRAYER: I am choosing to forgive Lord so please give me supernatural strength to do so. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

Garbage In, Garbage Out

 "Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies."1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Our physical bodies and our mind and spirit kind of operate in a similar way. You feed your physical body a bunch of junk with fat and sugar and then find out you have health issues. You don’t feed your spirit many scriptures and are weak when you have to face a crisis in your life.

Your body is the temple of Jesus Christ and we are to take care of it. Not getting into judgmental area of tattoos as that has become real mainstream even with believers but your body is God’s temple so no matter what you do, think of that. 

Take care of your physical body and your mind. Fill your mind with good thoughts, good books, edifying movies, scripture and so forth. Fill your body with healthy food and get exercise too. Be committed to a healthy spiritual life and ask God to guide your life choices. 

PRAYER: Father guard my heart from ugliness or deceit or anything vulgar or profane. Help me have a loving spirit and be kind even to those I may disagree with. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

Unsubscribe From Sin And Distraction

 "Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out" Acts 3:19 

Are you subscribed to lots of email feeds or social media that at times overwhelm you? Maybe it is time to unsubscribe from all the distractions of this world and tune in to God. 

Why do you need a bunch of junk coming at you anyway. Try to get away from social media and put down your devices and truly seek God and pursue lasting peace. 

Maybe it is time  to unsubscribe from the things of this culture that could cause you to fall into sin. 

PRAYER: Father help me as I seek to keep my focus on you and not issues overwhelming my senses. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

Can You Really Truly Rest In God

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

That is a question I asked myself one night when listening to a Lectio 365 devotion. Can I rest no matter what and do I rest?Resting meaning letting go of burdens wearing you down. Do I do this? Can I do this? 

Is God truly the strength of your life? Then if He is and you believe it then let Him be that strength. I am talking to myself now too not just my readers. 

You can’t have true rest in your life if you say you have surrendered but keep picking up the burdens all over again. God wants to help you but you have to want to be helped. What are you mulling over in your mind and why is it so hard to let God have it so you can indeed trust He is working. Go be at peace. Trust God. 

PRAYER: I thank you Lord for your constant protection over me yet when I fail to let you be totally in control I am restless. Help me trust you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

GV2Bless

"Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again."Luke 6:38

I  am a huge fan of vanity tags particularly ones conveying a message of hope or comfort for people who see them. Today’s title is once again a vanity tag messaging to the reader ‘give to bless’ but I guess it could mean ‘give to be blessed’. Either is fine. 

You should not give in order to get but to be a blessing to someone. You never know what a person may be going through. Even those people we all see at intersections with their hand lettered cardboard signs, whether truthful or not, still need a touch from God. If you feel you are led to give the person is responsible to God for misrepresenting aka lying about any need they may have. If you did it out of love then you did the right thing. 

I often wonder about those who really need help. What do they do where do they go. One thing is when you give do t shout it from the rooftops but it should be between you and God. (See Matthew 10:27). Go find someone you can bless today. 

PRAYER: Today I need you Lord as I do daily. Stir the hearts of those who don’t pay attention to you anymore or never did. Bring children to the kingdom of God. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

Too Much Information

 "Indeed, none of you should suffer as a murderer or thief or wrongdoer, or even as a meddler."1 Peter 4:15

Sometimes do you find out something and you wished you didn’t know cause you may feel left out and then maybe you wish you had not stuck your nose where it didn’t belong? 

I guess the thing is mind your own business. I think this may be more of a lady issue than a man maybe hormonal or something but never-the-less rejection of any sort hurts but the good news is God has not rejected you. He loves you and you are never an after thought with Him. 

Try to mind your own business and give your hurts and pains to God. He is the one who will lift you up. Whatever type of rejection whether simple like not being invited to a party or big like being shut out of a friend or family members life. Keep leaning in to God for deliverance and healing. 

PRAYER: Father I thank you this day for your love for me and for your understanding my hurts and pains. Help me move on and move closer to you and let things go. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

Wash My Feet

 “So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him.”John‬ ‭13‬:‭4‬-‭5‬

The example in scripture of Jesus’ washing his disciples feet is an act of humility and a way to die to self.

Most people don’t like people messing with their feet. Feet take the beating of the entire body with cracks, corns, blisters, hammer toes and so forth and many are ashamed of their feet.

To allow feet washing is a sign of humility. I have heard of weddings where the bride and groom wash each other’s feet as a way to die to self and serve the other. What about you, could you allow someone to wash your feet? Not a pedicure but truly be humble and let someone serve you in that way. In the faith based movie ‘Redeeming Love’ the character Michael played by actor Tom Lewis washes his brides Angel (Abigail Cowen) feet after she had run away yet again on the dusty road leading back to the brothel. (Check it out on Netflix).
Humble yourself and in due time you will be exalted. It’s just feet. 

PRAYER: Father help me not be so uptight about serving in areas that seem dirty and ugly. In Jesus’ name. Amen.