Fantastic Friday #255- Sustain

Sustain

²² Cast your cares on the LORD
and he will sustain you;
he will never let
the righteous be shaken.
²³ But you, God, will bring down the wicked
into the pit of decay;
the bloodthirsty and deceitful
will not live out half their days.

But as for me, I trust in you. Psalm 55:21-23

What do you use to get you through the day? Is it that first cup of Starbucks in the morning, a diet soda, a good lunch, that afternoon super energy drink, or a protein shake to keep your body moving. That might take care of the physical jump start or longer needs, but what about the need to mentally sustain you throughout the hectic days we live in? You might think that some of that Starbucks might jump start your mind, but the mind needs more than a jolt of caffeine. In this world of unending, crazy busyness that is full of worldly focuses and pressure and stress to succeed, there is nothing physical that can jump start our mind and sustain it. But, there is God and He is always there to sustain us as long as we focus on what He has for our lives and not what the world tells us to have for our lives. Jump start your day by visiting with God by praising Him and thanking Him for all He has provided you physically and mentally and then ask for His sustaining power to get you through your day.

Have a great weekend.

Fantastic Friday #254- Bad Day

Bad Day

¹⁶ I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, Sovereign LORD;
I will proclaim your righteous deeds, yours alone.
¹⁷ Since my youth, God, you have taught me,
and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds.
¹⁸ Even when I am old and gray,
do not forsake me, my God,
till I declare your power to the next generation,
your mighty acts to all who are to come. Psalm 71:16-18

I think I have heard this phrase from each of my children in the past week, and maybe from myself. "Today was a bad day." Now, if I would follow the advice of one of my friends who once said to me, "how can today be a bad day if the Lord made it" I would be pretty well off. However, it is very easy to forget this. Very wise words from a wise woman, but even wiser words can be seen from David here in this verse. If we sit and tell ourselves today is a good day because we are still alive, we have hope, we have grace, and there are so many other things to be thankful for, then maybe our bad day we think we had wouldn't look so bad. We need to remember to praise God for the good things He has given us and then look at what we think is "bad" and how God can make that good by teaching us something from that bad/good thing. God is always good and all comes from God, so how can anything in this life be bad.

Have a great day.

Fantastic Friday #253-Children

Children

¹⁴ For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. ¹⁵ The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” ¹⁶ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. ¹⁷ Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. Romans 8:14-17

I looked at my children this week and observed a number of things. Most were good, a few rough moments, but the thing I noticed most is how much I love each and every one of them, and how unconditional that love is that I have for them. There were times when they cried out to me from across the house for one thing or another, and sometimes it sounded more like a kid yelling. I know there are some out there that don't have children or who have children that are grown, but you all are Children as well. Do you find yourself crying out to God asking for help? During our sufferings and times of need we cry out to God for this help and we can feel quite like a small child. One thing we can be secure of is that you are a child of God and if you have received Christ in your life you have the Spirit to guide you these moments of need. Remember, even the oldest child needs help and God is always there to help His children.

Have a great weekend.

Fantastic Friday #252- Reflect

Reflect

¹⁹ As water reflects the face,
so one’s life reflects the heart. Proverbs 27:19

Looking in the mirror, how would you describe yourself? Would you utilize any of these words: Righteous, forgiven, chosen, justified, accepted, blessed or reconciled? Or are you hard on yourself and use other words that would completely be the opposite of the words listed above? Or are you living a life that doesn't quite come close to reflecting these words. There are times in our life when I am sure we can question whether we are forgiven or blessed due to our perceived circumstances, but if you look carefully at your reflection after you have accepted Christ all these words above and more are a part of you. You just need to look deep in your heart and let your heart reflect what Christ has given you through His sacrifice. If you haven't truly accepted Christ, then look at what is missing from your life. Now it is up to you to reflect Christ in your life, and show others how blessed and forgiven you truly are because of Him.

Have a great weekend.

Fantastic Friday #251- Stand

Stand

⁸ Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. ⁹ Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

¹⁰ And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. ¹¹ To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen. 1 Peter 5:8-11

I had a friend come up to me and show me a balance band that he was wearing and showed me how it worked. This balance band supposedly provides you balance to withstand the force someone is trying to use to tip you over into an unbalanced state. Now, I cannot confirm nor deny whether this band worked on me, but what I can tell you is that with only two legs, when someone pulls down on one side of your body you are going to tip over. That is where balance comes into play for us, or another way to look at is that a bike has a kickstand to help keep it propped up. Balance is our kickstand, and what happens when our life gets out of balance. Typically it is when the enemy attacks and pulls down on us, and what do we have to rely on. Certainly we don't have a kickstand, physically anyway. Well, I know that my true kickstand that keeps me balanced and standing against the devil's schemes is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Let Him prop you up when you feel like you are falling over, He is strong and mighty to save.

Have a great weekend.

Fantastic Friday #250- In His Time

In His Time

¹ After this, the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision:

“Do not be afraid, Abram.
I am your shield,
your very great reward"

² But Abram said, “Sovereign LORD, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” ³ And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.”

⁴ Then the word of the LORD came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” Genesis 15:1-4

Do you have the natural feeling or ability to help others? What about searching out for help from others, and maybe never receiving the help you are looking for that might get you to where you think you need to be. I imagine most of us can realize there are certain times that we need to turn for God for our help, because we know some things we can't handle on our own. In Abram's situation, he was looking for help from the Lord, but in the following chapter in Genesis you can see where maybe he was tired of waiting and tried to help God fulfill His promise by getting Hagar pregnant when his wife could not have a child. Maybe we need to think about Abram the next time we aren't getting the help we think we need from God. God fulfills His plans in His own time and He really doesn't need Our Help to make them happen. Don't try and Help the Lord, but let the Lord Help you fulfill what He has in store for you, In His Time.

Have a great weekend.

Fantastic Friday #249- Broken

Broken

¹⁷ If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root, ¹⁸ do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches. If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you. You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I could be grafted in.” ²⁰ Granted. But they were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but tremble. ²¹ For if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either. Romans 11:17-21

Do you feel broken sometimes? Does it feel like your walls of protection are falling down around you, allowing you to be crushed in spirit? If we have accepted Christ in our life, that doesn't mean we won't see challenges where we feel like we are broken. We need to remember that during those times where we feel broken, we are actually being supported by the strongest root there is in our life, and that is our Lord Jesus Christ. He is a loving God who wants His children to love him and grow strong in their faith. That is why he provides a nourishing sap to keep up us from being broken. Listen to what the Holy Spirit guides you to do and don't focus on the brokenness your enemy wants you to feel, but see how the faithful root holds us firmly in our position as followers of Christ.

Have a great weekend.