Thankful for today

Everyone has been posting reasons they have to be thankful. Being thankful is very easy when we have money in the bank, food on the table, and friends and family. Do we choose to sing praises when everything falls apart? I read this morning the story of Paul and Silas being beaten and thrown in prison. They were in severe pain and chained to the floor. They chose to sing praises to God! Do we do the same? We can either worry and fret about next week or we can praise and worship today! We can use our time to ask God to remove our pain or we can do as Paul and Silas and praise Him in the middle of the chaos. Ask Him to give you the faith, strength, or courage to count it all joy when we face trials. True wisdom comes from experiences.

We are Redeemed!

The story of Ruth and Boaz is a simple but very complex story. I am completely overwhelmed with God's grace, mercy, tenderness, faithfulness, gentleness, and His love! God chose Ruth even though she was an idol worshiper. He showered her with love! He saw her as she could be, not as she was. He did not allow her to have children with Mahlon so Boaz could redeem her. The word redeem is one of the most beautiful words in our language. Redeem means: to free from captivity by payment of a ransom to change for the better, to atone for Thank God we are redeemed! God paid our ransom, made atonement for, and changed us for the better through the blood of His son, Jesus! God has redeemed us through Jesus just as Ruth was redeemed through Boaz. Ruth is part of the lineage of Christ, but we are part of the family of Christ! No matter what you have done, you can be redeemed!

Swimming Effortlessly

Fish of all shapes, sizes, and colors move with ease and grace through the water. They also seem to truly enjoy swimming. However, that same beautiful fish will flop and twist and turn uncontrollably out of the water. There is nothing graceful or beautiful about a fish out of water. In fact, it is painful to watch a fish out of water because we know it will eventually die because the life breath has been taken away. Oh, how we are like fish! When we are immersed in God's Word, we move with His grace and radiate His glory. We do not worry or fret over anything because we receive our direction from Him. We are able to forgive and love others because we are covered with His Word. But, when we do not seek Him or spend time in His Word we are just like the pitiful fish out of water. We let worry control us and fear and temptation over come us. Eventually our spiritual life will be like the dead fish, not bearing any fruit. We pull away from God for many reasons, but none are valid. The Bible has much to say about this. Here is a very short list of verses about seeking God and His Word: our adequacy is from God 2Corinthians 3:5 the Spirit gives life 2Corinthians 3:6 the Word of God is living and active Hebrews 4:12 pray without ceasing 1Thessalonians 5:17 rejoice always 1Thessalonians 5:16 be doers of the Word James 1:22 Why wouldn't we want to grasp hold of God's Word and never stop seeking more and more? My prayer is for God to consume us like a fire and fill us with His Holy Spirit! May a day never go by that we do not seek His face, lest we become a fish out of water.

Bible Study

Bible study: What does that mean to you? A class on. Sunday mornings? A class you had on school? It means time spent alone truly studying God's word to me. The verse Psalm 145:13 says, " The Lord is faithful to all His promises." We can't claim this verse without knowing what the promises are. We must study His word to fully open the river of living water He freely gives. Studying and seeking God do not stop after you accept Christ, it just begins! We can't serve Him without knowing His word. Have you put the time into studying the Bible that you did studying for an exam in school? We should all have a great desire to know God's word. The Bible can be intimidating, but tell God and He will make it clear to you.

God is Calling

What is God calling you to do? Is he calling you into a ministry at church or is He calling you to minister to a neighbor? Could it be He is calling you to change careers? What have you done to try and hear what God is calling you to do? Have you felt unhappy in your current situation, but haven’t taken the time to be still and listen to God? I am asking all of the questions to get us all to focus on the real purpose for us being here on earth – not to make money, not to work, not to even raise kids – to serve our wonderful God! The people in the Bible from Adam to the disciples all faced struggles and temptations. Often times they had witnessed God’s awesome power first hand, but chose to ignore His callings and went the complete opposite direction (that got Jonah swallowed)! It is hard to listen to what God is telling us because most of the time it goes against what the world says is the right thing to do. Do you think the people in Bible days thought it was normal for Noah to build that huge boat – of course not! I am sure they teased him relentlessly until they were drowning! I want to encourage you to act on whatever it is that God is calling you to do no matter what anyone else says! Remember God is going to require a lot of faith for us to follow His lead, but when we listen He will make our paths very clear!

“Trust in the Lord with all of your heart; lean not on your own understanding, but in all your ways follow Him and He will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6

God is Enough

God is enough is a short, but powerful statement that I have failed to live by the last month. I have slacked off on quiet time and have held my fears and worries on the inside. I have a true want/need to serve God through my home, but have not invited anyone to my house. I know God is in control of everything and He can use anyone for His purpose, but I haven’t been living like that. Instead of asking God to help me rest at night, I stopped doing my quiet time in the mornings because I couldn’t wake up. Instead of asking God for balance with work and home I stopped cleaning all together! I felt I had to have a clean house to invite people over. God started working on me this week and made me realize how wrong I have been! The following sentence is from Proverbs 31 Ministry’s website, “She was filled with such incredible joy not because life was perfect but simply because she had decided to make laughter, peace, and true happiness the hallmark of her life.” I am adopting this as my motto! I am going to praise God in all areas of my life and I will serve Him with all of me – imperfections and all! I am also going to open my home to people no matter how clean it is (neighbors beware)! If you are reading this and are stressed, tired, and confused with crying children and a dirty house, stop what you are doing and sing your favorite praise song. It will ease your mind and get your focus back on what really matters – our Wonderful, Loving, Awesome God!!! God wants us to spend time with Him daily and let Him make all of the pieces of our lives fall into place. Our God is a God of order (saying from a wonderful woman Adrienne Foster) and he will put your life back in order if you let Him! Praise God!

Love,
Carrie

Got questions, ask God

We had Vacation Bible School at our church this week. The motto of the week was "Got questions, ask God". How simple and awesome is this statement? So many times we worry and try to figure everything out on our own instead of praying about it. One of the skits was about someone flipping a coin to decide what they were going to be when they grow up. We may not flip a coin, but have you ever said, "If this happens, it was ment to be?" Instead if saying things like that or relying on fate, pray and put it in the hands of our very real, living God! We also learned the simple truths that God made us, God loves us, and God has a plan for us. Again, simple but very powerful statements. Jeremiah 29:11 says, "For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope." If He already knows the plans He has for us, doesn't it make more sense to ask Him to show us?



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