Laugh
1 When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,
we were like those who dreamed.
2 Our mouths were filled with laughter,
our tongues with songs of joy.
Then it was said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”
3 The Lord has done great things for us,
and we are filled with joy. Psalm 126:1-3
How much do you laugh in your life? Do you think God laughs? Two very revealing questions about yourself and God. Laughter is the medicine of life, like the old Reader's Digest section which called laughter the best medicine, this is one of the many tools God has given us to help heal our body emotionally, and in my mind, physically. How many of us can let things wear us down and we physically pained because the negative circumstances in our life? We tend to forget that we are all created in God's image, so if we are in His image He must have Joy and Laughter and gave it to us as a special gift to heal our hearts when we need to most. This week I laughed with a good friend and my wonderful wife, and what a difference it makes when I am able to do this. So take a moment to laugh and heal, for without laughter in our world there would just be...
Have a great weekend.
Friday, April 17, 2015
Friday, April 10, 2015
Fantastic Friday #466- Afflicted
Afflicted
75 I know, Lord, that your laws are righteous,
and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me.
76 May your unfailing love be my comfort,
according to your promise to your servant.
77 Let your compassion come to me that I may live,
for your law is my delight. Psalm 119:75-77
Do you have those days when everything you seem to do fights against where you know you should be? We all have times when the enemy beats on our conscious and tells us that we can't live how God wants us to live, or we can't reach any level of righteous living. This is really easy for the enemy to do when we are weak, so where do we turn? We turn to the Lord because He can comfort like no one else. He can guide and show where we can improve and place before us His plan to live a righteous life. We don't have to live an afflicted life, but one that is full of comfort and love from the Lord. Live within His compassion and the enemy won't have as easy a time attempting to afflict you.
Have a great weekend.
75 I know, Lord, that your laws are righteous,
and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me.
76 May your unfailing love be my comfort,
according to your promise to your servant.
77 Let your compassion come to me that I may live,
for your law is my delight. Psalm 119:75-77
Do you have those days when everything you seem to do fights against where you know you should be? We all have times when the enemy beats on our conscious and tells us that we can't live how God wants us to live, or we can't reach any level of righteous living. This is really easy for the enemy to do when we are weak, so where do we turn? We turn to the Lord because He can comfort like no one else. He can guide and show where we can improve and place before us His plan to live a righteous life. We don't have to live an afflicted life, but one that is full of comfort and love from the Lord. Live within His compassion and the enemy won't have as easy a time attempting to afflict you.
Have a great weekend.
Friday, April 3, 2015
Fantastic Friday #465 - Waiting
Waiting
24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. Romans 8:24-26
Eight months. That seems like a long time in our earthly world to wait on the Lord, but in reality it is not that long. Eight months ago I began a journey with a group of men and women that at the time had nothing but a hope and the Lord to guide us. The steps included doors shut and doors open only to have them slam in our face. God would continue to reveal the next path to take only to lead to what seemed like a dead end. Through all these open doors and shut doors we all knew that God was our guide and our only hope in what we desired and prayed for. Just when we thought God was providing something, the enemy would sneak in to try and steal the joy we felt, but we continued to persevere. We prayed, we worked, we hoped and in the end we came to a road that diverged into two different directions where there seemed to be no hope due to circumstances beyond our control, but God is faithful. He guides the righteous and led us back to a door that was shut previously and it was opened again for us to walk through in faith and have peace. Our prayer, faith and hope have led us to the next step as we waited for God to provide while actively working to see where we needed to be. There is a huge difference between just waiting on something we want and waiting on something with a faith and hope in the Lord. These two types of waiting are worlds apart. Only God can provide that comfort and guidance while we wait for His plan. I also love that this scripture shows us how in our weakness and our hope, the Spirit can intercede for us. What a wonderful picture of having the Spirit help us wait on the Lord. We waited and He has provided. You can wait and He can provide for you as well, just be patient.
Have a great weekend.
24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. Romans 8:24-26
Eight months. That seems like a long time in our earthly world to wait on the Lord, but in reality it is not that long. Eight months ago I began a journey with a group of men and women that at the time had nothing but a hope and the Lord to guide us. The steps included doors shut and doors open only to have them slam in our face. God would continue to reveal the next path to take only to lead to what seemed like a dead end. Through all these open doors and shut doors we all knew that God was our guide and our only hope in what we desired and prayed for. Just when we thought God was providing something, the enemy would sneak in to try and steal the joy we felt, but we continued to persevere. We prayed, we worked, we hoped and in the end we came to a road that diverged into two different directions where there seemed to be no hope due to circumstances beyond our control, but God is faithful. He guides the righteous and led us back to a door that was shut previously and it was opened again for us to walk through in faith and have peace. Our prayer, faith and hope have led us to the next step as we waited for God to provide while actively working to see where we needed to be. There is a huge difference between just waiting on something we want and waiting on something with a faith and hope in the Lord. These two types of waiting are worlds apart. Only God can provide that comfort and guidance while we wait for His plan. I also love that this scripture shows us how in our weakness and our hope, the Spirit can intercede for us. What a wonderful picture of having the Spirit help us wait on the Lord. We waited and He has provided. You can wait and He can provide for you as well, just be patient.
Have a great weekend.
Friday, March 27, 2015
Fantastic Friday #464 - Broken
Broken
12 Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes 4:12
In little league baseball there are three coaches on a team. At no time can there be a dugout without a coach in it, which is a rule that must be followed. There is a reason for this rule about the number of coaches and always having a coach in the dugout, and that reason is for safety and supervision. Think about a situation on a baseball field and how many different things are going on. One coach can't watch it all and can be very easily distracted. The same thing can be said for our spiritual walk when we are walking alone. We can become very easily distracted and pulled in different directions, however when you surround yourself with one or more people walking the same walk, you are very strong and the enemy can be quite weak. Think of this scripture and the three strands of cord and how they are not easily broken. Don't be easily broken, stay strong with those coaches who are on the same field with you.
Have a great weekend.
12 Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes 4:12
In little league baseball there are three coaches on a team. At no time can there be a dugout without a coach in it, which is a rule that must be followed. There is a reason for this rule about the number of coaches and always having a coach in the dugout, and that reason is for safety and supervision. Think about a situation on a baseball field and how many different things are going on. One coach can't watch it all and can be very easily distracted. The same thing can be said for our spiritual walk when we are walking alone. We can become very easily distracted and pulled in different directions, however when you surround yourself with one or more people walking the same walk, you are very strong and the enemy can be quite weak. Think of this scripture and the three strands of cord and how they are not easily broken. Don't be easily broken, stay strong with those coaches who are on the same field with you.
Have a great weekend.
Friday, March 20, 2015
Fantastic Friday #463 - Blocked
Blocked
19 The way of the sluggard is blocked with thorns,
but the path of the upright is a highway. Proverbs 15:19
So, during our baseball practice this week we saw an interesting situation where a car driving by practice had its hood fly open and cover the windshield of the car which blocked the vision of the driver completely. There is more to the car story but I want to focus on what blocks our vision daily. If you are finding yourself like a sluggard being blocked at every turn by the enemy, maybe it is because you have focused on the wrong path. It is important that we daily focus on walking in an upright manner and we will see where we are going down our highway of life. The two verses on each side of this proverb focus on very interesting topics, verse 18 talks about being hot-tempered and verse 20 talks about not being foolish. I think there is a message in here, be calm, be upright and be wise and we can live a fulfilling life.
Have a great weekend.
19 The way of the sluggard is blocked with thorns,
but the path of the upright is a highway. Proverbs 15:19
So, during our baseball practice this week we saw an interesting situation where a car driving by practice had its hood fly open and cover the windshield of the car which blocked the vision of the driver completely. There is more to the car story but I want to focus on what blocks our vision daily. If you are finding yourself like a sluggard being blocked at every turn by the enemy, maybe it is because you have focused on the wrong path. It is important that we daily focus on walking in an upright manner and we will see where we are going down our highway of life. The two verses on each side of this proverb focus on very interesting topics, verse 18 talks about being hot-tempered and verse 20 talks about not being foolish. I think there is a message in here, be calm, be upright and be wise and we can live a fulfilling life.
Have a great weekend.
Friday, March 13, 2015
Fantastic Friday #462 - Portion
Portion
57 You are my portion, Lord;
I have promised to obey your words.
58 I have sought your face with all my heart;
be gracious to me according to your promise.
59 I have considered my ways
and have turned my steps to your statutes.
60 I will hasten and not delay
to obey your commands. Psalm 119:57-60
When you eat or drink, do you think of portion size? You know the portion size you consume has a direct relationship to your physical appearance. The more you eat and drink, the more your exterior appearance can suffer. Now, one thing experts say when you are trying to be healthy is to watch your portion size. However, how many of you reduce your healthy portions but increase your unhealthy portions. This is not something that is easy control, because typically the unhealthy portions taste so much better. The enemy kind of works this way because his portions tend to look much better to us than our portions from God. This scripture however says He is our portion and since He is as big as he is, his portion is enough for us. We don't need the unhealthy portions in our life we just need Him as our balanced portion. Seek his face, consider your ways, and obey our Father and you will be filled with a healthy portion of all you need.
Have a great weekend.
57 You are my portion, Lord;
I have promised to obey your words.
58 I have sought your face with all my heart;
be gracious to me according to your promise.
59 I have considered my ways
and have turned my steps to your statutes.
60 I will hasten and not delay
to obey your commands. Psalm 119:57-60
When you eat or drink, do you think of portion size? You know the portion size you consume has a direct relationship to your physical appearance. The more you eat and drink, the more your exterior appearance can suffer. Now, one thing experts say when you are trying to be healthy is to watch your portion size. However, how many of you reduce your healthy portions but increase your unhealthy portions. This is not something that is easy control, because typically the unhealthy portions taste so much better. The enemy kind of works this way because his portions tend to look much better to us than our portions from God. This scripture however says He is our portion and since He is as big as he is, his portion is enough for us. We don't need the unhealthy portions in our life we just need Him as our balanced portion. Seek his face, consider your ways, and obey our Father and you will be filled with a healthy portion of all you need.
Have a great weekend.
Friday, March 6, 2015
Fantastic Friday #461 - Commend
Commend
12 We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves.When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise...18 For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends. 2 Corinthians 10:12,18
To whom or what do spend your time presenting? Do spend time focusing on presenting others with the gospel, or do focus on what you yourself are doing when you are presenting the Gospel. The funny thing is a lot of times we spend too much time thinking about how and what we are going to present to others rather than just letting the Holy Spirit guide us. I think a lot of times we are looking for just the right time and just the right place to present to others why Jesus died for us. That is because we tend to think too much about how we are going to look to others instead of focusing how we look to our Lord. Let the Lord guide us in commending others to the Gospel instead of commending ourselves for sharing the Gospel.
Have a great weekend.
12 We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves.When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise...18 For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends. 2 Corinthians 10:12,18
To whom or what do spend your time presenting? Do spend time focusing on presenting others with the gospel, or do focus on what you yourself are doing when you are presenting the Gospel. The funny thing is a lot of times we spend too much time thinking about how and what we are going to present to others rather than just letting the Holy Spirit guide us. I think a lot of times we are looking for just the right time and just the right place to present to others why Jesus died for us. That is because we tend to think too much about how we are going to look to others instead of focusing how we look to our Lord. Let the Lord guide us in commending others to the Gospel instead of commending ourselves for sharing the Gospel.
Have a great weekend.
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