PRECIOUS PROMISES!!

These words of Jesus really touched me this week-end: Matthew 10:29-31 (NCV)
²⁹ Two sparrows cost only a penny, but not even one of them can die without your Father’s knowing it.   ³⁰ God even knows how many hairs are on your head. ³¹ So don’t be afraid. You are worth much more than many sparrows.

Christ is pointing out five powerful yet precious facts:

1)     GOD’S PROVIDENCE IS PRESENT: Our God is omnipresent! God sees, knows, cares, and oversees all the events and happenings on earth—just as He knows all about the little sparrow that is so common and forgotten , He knows everything that is happening everywhere AND WHAT IS NEEDED!

2) GOD’S KNOWS EVERYTHING: Our Heavenly Father is omniscient; He knows every little happening to the minutest detail. He knows when a single sparrow falls to the ground…and He knows when we trip, stumble, or fall.   Jesus assures us that nothing in our lives is a surprise or is unimportant to Our God.  He knows our hair….the color, the style, and yes, even the number of hairs we have on our heads (we don’t even know that about ourselves or about those we love dearly!).

3)  GOD’S POWER IS SUPERNATURAL: Our God is omnipotent!   He is able to control all circumstances and events that happen to both the believer and nonbeliever… no matter how detailed and minute. What touches me the most is for His children - He controls our life’s events and works them out for good to such an extent that there is no need for any believer to fear.

4)  GOD’S LOVE AND CARE IS PRACTICAL: God cares about every hurt, every sorrow, every joy that is a part of our lives.  As believers we can confidently put our trust in His love and place our lives in His care

5)  GOD’S PERFECT LOVE HAS A PURPOSE:  God is able to take every aspect of my l life and work it out for His perfect will  – that I become more and more like Jesus!  I am loved and my life has an eternal purpose!  (Romans 8: 28-30)

Thank you Jesus for that illustration. I know I AM LOVED BY MY HEAVENLY FATHER!  There is no better love than His!  This is my love message for you today and it isn’t even Valentine’s Day!
Joyfully,
Yvonne

NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR GOD!!

No problem has been so great that God in His power has not overcome it.  What He has done in the past, He will do again today....REMEMBER HIS WORKS:

•    Joseph ws in the dungeon, but God released him
•    The Hebrews were in slavery, but God delivered them.
•    David was overwhelmed by the guilt of his sin, but God forgave him.
•   Daniel was in the lion's den, but God preserved him.
•     Jonah was in the belly of that really big fish, but God retrieved him.
•    JESUS was in the tomb, but God raised Him!

Through God's power, we can live our lives wit power, assurance, and certainty!
   

LET GO!

I read this wonderful quote from the godly missionary, Jim Elliot, this morning: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”

Those words made me think about what I am hanging on to that might hinder me from growing spiritually, serving sacrificially, and cause me to worry senselessly!  Some lessons that Jesus taught come to my mind as I ponder letting go of things.

Matthew 6:19-21 (NLT)
¹⁹ “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal.
²⁰ Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal.
²¹ Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

Lesson to remember: My earthly treasures are uncertain and tentative…you never know when your car will be totaled; your house will be robbed; the stock market will plummet downward…. 

Lesson to remember:  My heavenly treasures are secured in God Himself – no chance of losing them… these are the investments I make that have eternal spiritual value :

§         A gift to someone in need…. These gifts can include gifts of time, work, and prayer as well as of money and physical goods.

§         Any selfless deed of kindness, consideration, and thoughtfulness for another person.

§         My own practices of spiritual disciplines…time spent in prayer, meditation, Bible study, and worship.

§         Simplifying my own lifestyle and my own needs.  I cannot possibly give more to God, to fellow Christians, and to the needy without self-denial and self-sacrifice.

Lesson to remember: My earthly treasures are subject to putting first things first..

Jesus is not telling us to never save money for the future or to have no assets and “treasures” in our homes that we value.  He is telling us that money and possessions cannot be more important than the kingdom of God!

Lesson to remember: What I hold most dear is what controls me

My mind, my emotions, and my actions are controlled by what I treasure the most. I must honestly ask myself is anything more important to me than my relationship with the Lord?

Lesson to remember:  I store treasures in heaven by focusing on things that have eternal value…  three things come to mind:

1) Tithing my money

2)  Sharing Jesus with others

3)  Obeying God

The rewards of letting go of things are many but joy and contentment rank high among them!

Joyfully,

Yvonne

HIS PLANS

One of my favorite verses is Jeremiah 29:11 - "For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord.  "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope."

What I have learned is to READ ON...verses 12 and 13 hold the key to knowing and understanding God's plans for my life...STAYING CONNECTED TO THE ONE WHO KNOWS AND IS IN CHARGE!

Jeremiah 29: 12-13, "In those days when you pray, I will listen.  If you look for me in earnest,you will find me, when you seek me."

His plans are not chance happenings that float around and if we are lucky we catch one.  GOD'S PLANS ARE SPECIFIC...we must talk to Him about them.

Ask, "What do YOU have planned for me today as we journey together?"

FRAZZLE FREE LIVING

Do you understand when I tell you that I had a frazzled day yesterday?  FRAZZLED…meaning  this is not the way I planned today!  FRAZZLED…meaning I am mentally in a bit of a whirlwind.  But, the extraordinary news is that my frazzled state did not last.  Let me share with you why my fretting, fuzzy-thinking, frustrating day did not stay that way. 

I stopped and gave the day to the Lord; He is the best at turning a whirlwind day into a wonderful, full-of-grace day! 

Psalm 40:2-3a (MSG) He lifted me out of the ditch, pulled me from deep mud. He stood me up on a solid rock to make sure I wouldn't slip.³ He taught me how to sing the latest God-song, a praise-song to our God…

Stopping and praying was such a good investment of my time; it saved a lot of wasted time and energy.  God truly took action in my life. He turned tears into laughter and relief.

He:

Lifted me up (and that’s no small feat!)-  I could see the situation from God’s viewpoint and His perspective calmed me.

Pulled me out  - I discovered ways to alleviate the situation and believe me that clear thinking instead of panic was a gift of God’s grace to me.

Stood me up – The solid rock that God placed me on was the shoulders of two godly women who were not daunted by the tumultuous situation we were in.  Side by side we handled the situation together…and with smiles on our faces! All three of us chose to lean on the Lord.

Taught me a song – At the end of the day, I was able to sing God’s praises to all who would listen…a song of dependence and trust; of comfort and calm; of provision and answers. God gave me a song of joy!

How good it is to be able to live with the Lord in a secure, safe environment….knowing that He is always in control.  Circumstances do not dictate my day; they do not determine my responses to the unexpected; nor do they turn my world upside down!

Psalm 91:2 (MSG)  Say this: "GOD, you're my refuge. I trust in you and I'm safe!"

My frazzled day brought me closer to the Lord God Almighty and for that reason I am so glad I experienced a “hiccup” in my carefully laid out plans! 

Psalm 92:4 (NLT)  You thrill me, LORD, with all you have done for me! I sing for joy because of what you have done.

Joyfully,

Yvonne

Bring A Smile To God's Face

The way we live our lives is what gladdens the heart of God. The New Testament describes several features of the worthy walk. 

-         We are to walk in humility (Eph. 4:1-3);

-         in purity (Rom. 13:13, kjv);

-         in contentedness (1 Cor. 7:17);

-         by faith (2 Cor. 5:7);

-         in good works (Eph. 2:10);

-         different from the world (Eph. 4:17-32);

-         in love (Eph. 5:2);

-         in light (Eph. 5:8);

-         in wisdom (Eph. 5:15);

-         and in truth (3 John 3-4).

Such a walk will please Him in all respects.

A Scary World

 The world can seem to be a scary place.  Whether or not you participate in the Halloween holiday - the spooks, the skeletons, and the spiders are all around (Plus candy corn and bite size Hershey candies which are evil in their own right :) ;certain cities (New Orleans comes to mind) celebrate Halloween in macabre ways; and then there is the evening news…in whatever city you find yourself living, the news always includes murder, molestation, and mayhem!  A scary place for those who do not belong to the Lord God Almighty!  How blessed we are.  Two assuring Scriptures come to mind.

Romans 8:15-16 (NLT)
¹⁵ So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” ¹⁶ For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.

We are members of the royal family and we know that Our Father is Sovereign and all-powerful. We do not have to be afraid of this world we live in.  We see the world around us filled with sin and rebellion against God and this world is paying the price for that rebellion. 

Here’s what is important: we don’t have to be afraid and pessimistic because we know our future glory; we know that God has promised us a new heaven and a new earth….a world that will be free from sin and evil.

In the meantime, with walk with Our Father in this world, not alone but full of His Spirit.

 2 Timothy 1:7 (NLT)
⁷ For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.

As believers we are filled with the Holy Spirit and He enables us to face this world we live in with strength and courage NOT with fear, cowardice, and alarm.  How does the Holy Spirit help us today in our sinful, scary, hostile world?  He gives us three gifts:
  The Gift of Power: God gives strength of character and confidence which enables us to face opposition any time we stand firm in God’s truth.  This is not natural but SUPERNATURAL – God takes away our timidity and replaces it with a boldness to speak God’s truth. 
  The Gift of Love: The Holy Spirit fills us with love for those who hear our words…believers and nonbelievers.  We are different from the world around us and what makes us different is our love for others.  Jesus promised, By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another (John 13:35 nkjv).  True Christian love is not selfish, instead the Holy Spirit enables us to sacrifice for others and not be afraid.
  The Gift of Self-Control: The Holy Spirit gives us a sound mind, the ability to think clearly and to be sensible. This kind of thinking is hard for the world to ignore or deny.
God is the giver of such good gifts – they are all we need to live in this world. The choice is ours; we must choose to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit each day and as we do that these gifts are more fully developed in us. 
When we feel afraid, let’s choose to go directly to Scripture:

Joshua 10:25 (ESV) ^And Joshua said to them, “Do not be afraid or dismayed; be strong and courageous. For thus the Lord will do to all your enemies against whom you fight.”

2 Corinthians 5:6-7 (NLT) So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. ⁷ For we live by believing and not by seeing.

John 16:33 (NCV)
³³ “I told you these things so that you can have peace in me. In this world you will have trouble, but be brave! I have defeated the world. “

Joyfully,
Yvonne