Psalm 145:18-19 “The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.”
Don’t believe the lies of the enemy. God’s does listen to us and He hears us. Remember the psalmists words today and know that God hears your cries. Approach Him with reverence and speak to Him from your heart. He will listen and respond.
Blessings today,
Linda
What is joy and why would God want that state of mind and being for me? What makes me happy or what causes me to have an optimistic outlook on life? Scripture speaks of joy of the soul that is not dependent upon any outward circumstances or a happy attitude. Here are a few examples:
Psalm 5:11 “But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you.” Being cared for and loved by God brings soulful joy.
Isaiah 51:11 speaks about our state in heaven, “The ransomed of the LORD will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.” When we are in heaven, it will be a place of eternal joy in the presence of God.
John 15:11 speaks the words of Jesus when he says, “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.” Jesus wants us to have complete joy in Him.
Acts 14:17 Paul speaks of proof, “Yet he has not left himself without testimony: he has shown kindness by giving rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.” We are so fortunate that we can see and experience a portion of God’s joy for us here on earth.
Scripture tells us that Biblical joy is from the Lord. It is not dependent upon my circumstances and is a state of mind and being that God desires for his redeemed. Faith in Jesus gives me access to this unlimited joy. Claim it today and spend your day with a joyfilled attitude and heart that will bless you and those around you.
Blessings,
Linda
2 Corinthians 12:9
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
Ever feel like these mountain goats, stuck in a desolate place? When you feel abandoned, alone or are overwhelmed by life’s situations, think about the total sufficiency of Christ and how He longs to sustain you. Where I am weak He is strong.
Be encouraged today by the total sufficiency of the Lord Jesus.
Blessings,
Linda
God desires that I live a life of holiness but as I interact with the world where He has placed me, He wants me to have a love for others. Why is that? I was pondering this question and decided that my first love is for God, and then I need to love myself and others as God loves us. Matthew 19:19…”You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” John 15:12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” Galatians 5:14 “For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'” Jesus and then the apostles were very insistent that the way we show others our love for God is by loving ourselves and those around us. Why is that so hard? It sounds easy on the surface but in a world driven by selfish desires it is often easy to get sidetracked by our own wants and needs. God tells us to avoid hatred, envy, malice, bitterness and hostility towards our fellow man. Paul speaks of this in Ephesians 4:31-32 “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” It is too easy to let our own desires step in front of our desire to follow Christ and treat one another with love and compassion. It is a challenge that needs to be met with prayer and thanksgiving. Let your week be filled with goodness towards others as Christ would desire for you.
Prayer: Lord, thank you for Jesus and His sacrificial love that shows me how to love and treat my family, friends, neighbors, and enemies. Give me a genuine love for those around me and help me to see their needs. Give me compassion for them that I would desire to pray for them and speak words of love over their problems and concerns. Help me to grow more and more like Jesus. Amen.
Blessings as you strive to live like Jesus this week and love one another.
Linda
Today I thought I’d try something new. Here is a pretty picture and a verse of scripture. I have been meditating on this verse for the last week or so….
Psalm 37:3 “Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.”
Are you living a life based on trust in the Lord? Are you doing good where you live? What does it mean to you to befriend faithfulness?
Have a blessed day. More tomorrow on Loving Others.
Linda
Earlier this week I blogged about Holiness, a characteristic God desires of all His children. Let’s look at the opposite of holiness which is evil and indifference towards God. 1Thessalonians 5:22 “Avoid every kind of evil.” Romans 12:9 says “Hate what is evil and cling to what is good.” We know that evil takes many forms – in our thoughts, deeds and actions toward ourselves, our fellowman and towards God. If we pursue worldly thoughts and passions, they can overcome and consume us. We must “resist the devil, he will flee from you, and draw near to God and He will draw near to you” as James tells us in James 4:7-8.
Evil also takes the form of indifference towards God. 1 Thessalonians 4:8 tells us the result of rejecting the call to holiness and a godly life. “Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Sprit.” Also John 3:36 “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”
So what about you? Are you pursuing godly holiness or are you letting the world consume your thoughts and actions? Are you resisting or even turning away from God? What motives you each day? I constantly remind myself that I am a work in progress. God is not finished with me yet, thank goodness! It is easy to be sucked into the ungodly, worldly pursuits of the world in which we live. We all have goals and objectives we want to accomplish in our lives. However, seeing them though God’s perspective and His goal for our life which is HOLINESS is a constant challenge. We are promised in James 4:10 “Humble yourselves before God and He will exalt you.” Jesus said the greatest commandment is to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and will all your soul and with all your mind.” Matthew 22:37 Does this describe the desire of your heart? Are you endeavoring to seek God’s holiness, resist evil and exalt God in your life? Isaiah put it this way, “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, “This is the way, walk in it”. (Isaiah 30:21) Listen for God’s Holy Spirit to speak to you though His word and in prayer so you can walk with God and exalt Him in your life each day.
Blessings as you walk and listen for God’s voice,
Linda
I have missed writing this past month. The new book was out, Promises for Dynamic Living, and my life became overwhelming. Isn’t that Satan’s way? He gets into our lives and causes disruption and leads us to lose our focus. I was not lost, but became consumed with all the turmoil in my life and was not able to focus on writing and speaking out for God. I have been in prayer this last week that God would give me something new and different to restart my writing. I pray that what He has given me will be a blessing to you- I know it has been to me.
What does God desire for me? What doesn’t God want?
I was going over a list put out by Bible Study Fellowship for parents as they work with their children. Upon reflection I thought, I am a child of God and my heavenly Father wants these things for me too. I will be writing about these characterizes that God wants to see in our lives.
God desires Holiness. What is holiness? According to my online dictionary- holiness is a state or quality of being holy and being holy is godly, saintly, pious, devout, devoted to the service of God, set apart for God. Wow! How in the world can I be holy? The truth is “There is no one holy like the LORD, there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God.” 1 Samuel 2:2. Yet God commands us in Leviticus 11:44 “be holy because I am holy.” Scripture tell us that the only way we can become righteous or holy is through our faith in Jesus. “This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” Romans 3:22 It is through Jesus that we are cleansed and made righteous before God. ” If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”1 John 1:9
What kind of life is one that is set apart for God? Our actions and thoughts need to reflect godly thinking. Paul tells us in Philippians 4:8 to have these types of thoughts in our minds. “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.” 1 Thessalonians 5:22 tells us to “Avoid every kind of evil.” One can only do this through prayer, study and obedience to God’s word. Psalm 119:9 “How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word.” and 119:11 “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.”
So keep praying, studying and memorizing God’s word, seek to apply Biblical thinking to your life each day, praise God for His strength in your life and the indwelling of His Holy Spirit that makes this possible through Jesus. Remember, “For nothing is impossible with God.” Luke 1:37
Later this week, I will tackle the opposite of holiness or what God definitely does not want to see in our lives. Stay tuned and pass the word.
Blessings,
Linda
The Home-training sheet I mentioned from Bible Study Fellowship is available on their website: http://www.bsfinternational.org
God is indeed good. I put out my blog and various emails last week about the arrival of my new book, Promises for Dynamic Living. I got an immediate response from a Christian Radio station in New York. The host, Rick Tocquigny, of a program called Life Lessons had interviewed me in the past about Fearless Living and wanted to feature me on today’s program. Doing live radio is unnerving to say the least. There are no do overs or well, let me think about that answer and get back to you! Here is the link to my interview. I pray that God was and is glorified by my words and that I made sense. Boy! That 15 minutes went by in a flash!!
Thank you faithful prayer warriors for upholding me in your prayers. I surely felt them when I was in the midst of the interview.
Blessings,
Linda
2 Peter 1:3-4 “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you many participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.”
I am so excited that my new book is in print and ready to go!! I have enjoyed blogging about God’s promises this summer but am ready to launch this book! Please join me in praying that His very great and precious promises as written in Promises for Dynamic Living will: * help people to learn more about God (Psalm 9:10), * help point people to God’s transforming Word (Psalm 119:9,11, 105) and * accomplish the purpose God intended (Isaiah 55:11).
I have posted how to order my new book on the ordering page of this blog. It will directly link you to my publisher or Amazon.com. Share my joy and love for God’s word and pass this blog along to your friends.
It is such a privilege to be writing about God’s word and to be used by God to reach out to others.
Thank you for your support and prayers,
Linda
This summer I have faced great challenges that would or could have been sources of great stress and worry. In the face of this adversity, I took this verse from my new book, Promises for Dynamic Living, and worked on memorizing it. As I did, I claimed its promise before God not knowing how God would work out my difficult situation but trusting Him to act on my behalf. This week my situation has been resolved. God’s answer was not what I expected and not from a source I expected. Isn’t that just like God? He has unlimited resources and when I try to guess or conjecture how things will be worked out, I never get it right. His answer is always perfect and fits all of our needs. I pray that you can claim this verse too and see God act on your behalf as you trust in Him.
Blessings, Linda
Day 14 from Promises for Dynamic Living
Psalm 37:5-6 “Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.”
Promise: God promises to act on my behalf, bring out righteousness and justice for me if I will commit myself to Him and trust Him.
How are you at commitment? Do you start new things with great enthusiasm just to let them go in a day or a week? Learning to commit to the LORD is a lifetime process that increases as we study His Word, pray, and seek to follow Him. Truly committing to Him, in both faith and action, allows us to walk in God’s light and see His righteousness and justice more clearly. Will you persevere in God’s pathway, allowing Him to mold and shape you into the righteous person He desires you to be?
Lessons and Truths:
1.God is good and wants only good things for me. 2.Following God requires trust and commitment. 3.God has the power to mold and shape my character. 4.God is just and righteous.
Prayer: Lord, create in me a spirit of commitment to you that I may grow and see evidence of righteousness and justice in my life. I know that you are good and that you want only good things for me. Help me to trust you fully so that I can grow and become more like Jesus each day. Amen.
What is my response to God’s promise?
Am I fully trusting God and committing myself to following Him? What evidence is there in my life that this is happening?
Where do I see godly righteousness in my life?
Promise Confirmation: 1 Samuel 7:3-4, Pslam103:6, 145:17-20, Isaiah 30:18, Matthew 7:11, 2 Corinthians 5:20-21, 1 Peter 2:23-25
Fearless Living 