This morning after I woke up and got around I slipped on my headphones to go on a walk. A thought had crossed my mind however and decided to explore it further. Usually I would listen to a compilation of Christian songs as I walk and pray. This is a great way to start the day, listening to songs that encourage and inspire you in your walk with God. Instead I put on a compilation of alternative rock from my jr. and high school years. As I listened to these tracks it dawned on me what most of these songs were. They had connected with me in everything that I went through at that time. I was horribly depressed and lonely and these songs fueled that fire by relating to me in a harsh tone and beat. It was like I was feeding my depression with other people’s depression! When God touched my heart and I had asked to follow Him, He did something unexpected. Flipping through the radio one day it landed on a Christian radio station but I’m not sure that I realized it till the end of the song. The song that was playing was very slow but with a positive punch. After the song it had a challenge for all of its listeners. The challenge was to listen to that Christian station and see how it affects your driving and your life. I accepted that challenge and it has changed my life in so many positive ways! My thought process had started slowing down while I was in the vehicle as if I was taking a moment to relax in God’s arms while listening to these beautiful songs. The cool part was that God was using these songs to speak to me helping me to solve problems that I was having throughout my day or week. it was almost like God sitting down having a conversation with me. I found myself looking things up in the Bible that I had heard in these songs and didn’t understand helping me to get a better knowledge of our heavenly father. After the 30 days had passed I got into the car with my wife one day. We don’t often Ride in her vehicle as I am a big guy and she has a smaller car. She started the car and was backing out of the driveway when it dawned on me that she was listening to the same station that I listened to. After asking when she started listening to it she told me about that 30-day challenge the same one that I had taken. God had us starting on this radio station around the same time! I’m not saying that listening to this radio station will make your life 100% better, but it helps out immensely with the way that we feel and the way that we perceive God and how to further our walk with him. The more positivity that we put into our minds the more we end up giving back to others and feeling better ourselves. “Romans 12:2 do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is his good, pleasing and perfect will.” If you were wanting God to renew your mind today and show you what is good and pleasing then please join me in prayer.” Dear heavenly father thank you for yet another beautiful day. please forgive us for any of our sins and trespasses known and unknown. Help us today to be more positive and think positive by placing certain things in our life. Help us to see the goodness that you have in your heart and how we can utilize it in our own. Thank you for being with us, and us, and around us. In Jesus precious name amen.
Just a smidge of faith!
There are so many stories in the Bible that inspire me that it’s hard to pick a favorite. If I had to pick a favorite however it would have to be the story of Peter and Jesus out on the water. Matthew 14: 25-33 Shortly before Dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them:” Take courage! It is I, Don’t be afraid.” ” Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” ” Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out,” Lord save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in The boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” There are so many ways that you can take this story and all of them are valid. One being that Jesus is all-powerful and walked on water and having power over the wind. Number two would be how weak we truly are when it comes to things in this world and how easily we can become distracted. My favorite however is number three. If we keep our eyes on Jesus instead of this world and have even the smallest amount of faith we can be stronger in this life than we can even imagine. Jesus even tells us so in Matthew 17: 20-21 He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Now if that doesn’t inspire you I don’t know what would. Just imagine having the smallest amount of faith. A mustard seed is one of the smallest seeds out there in Jesus is telling us that if we just had that little speck of faith we could move a mountain. I do not believe that that is a figure of speech. Exodus 14: 21-22 then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong East wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. This text is telling us just that, all we have to do is have faith in our Almighty heavenly father that has the power to do these things. If any of you out there or wanting to increase your faith in Jesus Christ our Lord today and please join me in prayer. Dear heavenly father thank you so much for yet another beautiful day. Heavenly Father helps us to increase our faith in you today. Lead us and guide us in whatever you’d like us to do. please forgive us for any of our sins and trespasses known and unknown. thank you for always being with us in us and around us, always wrapping your arms around us when we’re sad or just when we need a moment. Lord, we pray for all those people who are out there who were lost and broken and need you in their lives. In Jesus’ name amen!
God’s Excellent Plan For You!
Blessings — Susie Larson
— Read on www.susielarson.com/daily-blessing
This is such an encouraging devotional.
It reminds me of Psalms 23
“The Lord is my Shepherd [to feed, to guide and to shield me], I shall not want. He lets me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still and quiet waters. He refreshes and restores my soul (life); He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Even though I walk through the [sunless] valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod [to protect] and Your staff [to guide], they comfort and console me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You have anointed and refreshed my head with oil; My cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy and unfailing love shall follow me all the days of my life, And I shall dwell forever [throughout all my days] in the house and in the presence of the Lord.”
Psalms 23:1-6 AMP
My Covenant Of Blessing Will Never Be Broken!
bible.com/bible/116/isa.54.17.NLT
““Fear not; you will no longer live in shame. Don’t be afraid; there is no more disgrace for you. You will no longer remember the shame of your youth and the sorrows of widowhood. For your Creator will be your husband; the Lord of Heaven’s Armies is his name! He is your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, the God of all the earth. For the Lord has called you back from your grief— as though you were a young wife abandoned by her husband,” says your God. “For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with great compassion I will take you back. In a burst of anger I turned my face away for a little while. But with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,” says the Lord, your Redeemer. “Just as I swore in the time of Noah that I would never again let a flood cover the earth, so now I swear that I will never again be angry and punish you. For the mountains may move and the hills disappear, but even then my faithful love for you will remain. My covenant of blessing will never be broken,” says the Lord, who has mercy on you. But in that coming day no weapon turned against you will succeed. You will silence every voice raised up to accuse you. These benefits are enjoyed by the servants of the Lord; their vindication will come from me. I, the Lord, have spoken!”
Isaiah 54:4-10, 17 NLT
Blessings — Susie Larson
Blessings — Susie Larson
— Read on www.susielarson.com/daily-blessing
This morning, I was waiting at the crowded Lab to have blood work done. Just as I sat down I received the above text from a friend. What a blessing when we live by faith on earth, all will be seen throughout eternity.
“Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.”
Hebrews 11:1 NLT
God Gives Us Victory!
bible.com/bible/116/1co.15.56-57.NLT
“For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
1 Corinthians 15:56-57 NLT
Never Give Up!
bible.com/bible/116/2co.4.16-18.NLT
“That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.”
2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NLT
Old bodies, Refined spirit
Not that I hadn’t thought about it before but was reminded again last night as I was lying in a hospital bed. Our physical bodies do not last forever but thank God that He is building something new spiritually every day that we walk with Him. I had just left an appointment with my cardiologist and started heading out of town to visit family when I started getting heavy chest pains that ended up shooting through my back and down my arm! “Oh my goodness I’m having a heart attack!” I had my wife turn around and we headed straight to the E.R. I was sitting there thinking that I was 42 years old and could die. My body over the last couple of years has gone downhill and all these fears start setting in. after a couple of hours in the ER however and with multiple tests being done the result was that I did not have a heart attack. However, the pain is still there even after I woke up this morning. Then God placed this scripture in front of me which put a little comfort in my heart. 2 Corinthians 4:16 for which cause we faint not but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. Meaning that every day our bodies are getting older and will eventually fail us but spiritually God is making us stronger inside. We all want to live to be as old and healthy as possible but in reality, we were only meant to live for a limited time, but living in Christ Jesus is eternal. AMEN!!!
Share The Good News!
bible.com/bible/97/rom.1.16-17.MSG
“It’s news I’m most proud to proclaim, this extraordinary Message of God’s powerful plan to rescue everyone who trusts him, starting with Jews and then right on to everyone else! God’s way of putting people right shows up in the acts of faith, confirming what Scripture has said all along: “The person in right standing before God by trusting him really lives.””
Romans 1:16-17 MSG
Romans 1:16
Are U Up for the Challenge? 