Self Hatred to Self Acceptance

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.”

‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭5:6‬ ‭NIV‬

We made a commitment to each other around Christmas time to let every prayer we pray be drenched with radical honesty.  We've recognized that it's easy to go day to day in the same vein and prayer without much thought to "the more" God could be , probably is calling us to. 

We must crucify our self indulgent ways and surrender all to Jesus if we are to live in peace with Him.

 Obedience = Peace 

It's easy to hate on ourselves in the midst of this troubled world, but there is no growth without pain and no integrity without self denial and honest neither one  is attractive without the personal love of a Jesus !!

So, be radically honest with where you are right now, stop hating on yourself and be loved. In that love find a place to be free and at peace by obeying God and accepting who you are in Him.  He's in love with you, you can trust Him. 

 

His Praise will Ever be on my Lips!! - Gina 🎶

Psalm 89 " I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever. With my mouth will I make known your faithfulness to all generations."

We talked about His faithfulness in our lives this morning and how we can look back and see how he protected us, provided for us , healed us and delivered us.  Sometimes though when you are IN it , it is hard to see the light.  Right? 

It's then that we HAVE to recall His promises that He will never leave us , that He goes before us, that He doesn't stop loving us when we fail!  Instead He renews us and works in us to shine a light in the darkness.   He turns our faith into sight and allows us to rejoice in our heart for what WILL come to pass. 

Cast your heavy burdens on Him today and recall who provides your strength and that in Him there is NO weariness!!!

That's why we sing ... "His praise will Ever be on my lips..." 🎶

 

 

It was Ugly, but it was Beautiful...

“It was just before the Passover Festival. Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.”

‭‭John‬ ‭13:1‬ ‭NIV‬

Liv read to us some insight from Brennan Manning about the suffering of Jesus on the cross.  The agony no man has ever dreamed, bloodied, despised, disfigured....could it be that the  crucifixion was beautiful?

Externally - He was naked and nailed, blood streaming everywhere - it had to be a horrible sight.  Brutal and inhuman.  

But there is more to His death on the cross. There is the interior beauty of His soul infused with obedience to God the Father.  His soul was so full of love for you and for me that it was the most beautiful act of love from a human soul. Ever. 

Consider that thing you thought would destroy you, but it didn't. Therefore as ugly as it was, it's beautiful because you have been stretched and transformed and you are stronger for it. Yes, maybe you have a limp or a scar, but it is there to remind you that His grace is enough  and that He works all things for your good. Consider the beauty on the cross. PAUSE.  

So, don't lose heart .... stand tall and brave!  Move on and embrace the beauty in the ugly.  

 

 

We have it all!!!!

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6:33‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Devin decided to read a little from Tozer this morning:

The message was simple but soooo good!  When we have Him - we have everything.  It is much better to have God first and have God Himself even if we have no money than to have all the riches and all the influence in this world and not have God with it. 

This scripture is our scripture for the year 2017!!!   Love how He keeps reminding us to seek Him FIRST. It sort of resounds with our message from yesterday that the self sufficient man can be in worse  danger and more use to the enemy than a prostitite or a drug dealer in jail because the "need" is not present for a savior or help.   Scary.  Let us see the light today Lord and seek you first.   

May we go on today and know Him and love Him more dearly not for His gifts and benefits, but for the pure joy of being aware of His presence.  

 

Don't get trapped!!

Do Not Love the World 

15 vDo not love the world or the things in the world. wIf anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—xthe desires of the flesh and ythe desires of the eyes and pride of life3—is not from the Father but is from the world. 17 And zthe world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

Larry Crabb states " Satan's masterpiece is not the prostitute or the skid-row bum. It's the SELF-SUFFICIENT PERSON  who has made life comfortable, who is adjusting well to the world and who longs only to be a little better - and a little better off - than he already is."  

We are all susceptible to this same fate except for the grace of God in our lives.  Posessions and Position go hand in hand like the pride of life and lust of the eyes.  

Position, or the pride of life says "I must be seen and respected."

There have been many CEOs and leaders who have traded their integrity in order to protect their pride of life.  Willing to engage even in criminal activity in order to maintain power and control.  You may come to that cross road one day and may God give you the strength and the courage to walk away.  

The lust of the eyes says "whatever I see, I want." 

It is the ultimate consumer lifestyle.  Satan does not seem to want us to hate a God, only to forget Him. Ugh....probably worse. In church yesterday we were reminded to let "the Jones's" win when it comes to keeping up with their lifestyle and to live our life in generosity no matter how much or how little we have.  Let it be Lord in all of our lives that we would see this snare for what it is and be free from it.

Fight the traps of position and possessions with true humility.  "The humble he teaches HIs ways.."Psalm 25 "The Lord lifts up the humble ..".Psalm 147.

 

The Scarlet Cord

“Now the men had said to her, “This oath you made us swear will not be binding on us”.  Joshua‬ ‭2:17‬ ‭NIV‬

So we don't do this very often, but once in a while Kadin will call out a scripture with no knowledge of what it will say ... we look it up and sometimes we laugh because it doesn't even exist, then a few times it's lead us into quite a conversation.  Like this morning...

"Joshua 2:17!" He says!

So I look it up.  Ends up in the middle of the story of Rahab and the spies' conversation about how her family will be pardoned and saved from harm if she will place a .....scarlet cord in the window.  As we absorbed  those words the room got quiet.... the scarlet (red) cord ....similar to the blood on the door during Passover to save the firstborn.......similar to - Christ atonement for us on the cross.  

Silence.  For us. 

That gets close to the heart. 

As we churn the truth of this scripture into our lives today - we are reminded that God works all things for good for those who love Him and sometimes when the storms of life are upon us it's easy to give up and lose hope ...It is then  we must trust that God will provide a way - truth - He already has.  

With fresh perspective, with some new perseverance and with some driven persistence right now in HIS NAME  - be encouraged to look around you for His hand of provision and covering. Whatever might be going on in your life -  Look  for the Scarlet Cord, it's always there and never loses its power. 

 

He Sees Us!!

“But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.””

‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭16:7‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Livia reminded us this morning that God does not look at us on the outside, but rather the inside.  The gentleness of Jesus is so beautiful.  The way He can read our hearts and dissect our souls with such care flows with such goodness and sincerity. 

Unfortunately people are hurt by other people.  We have among us those literally not loved or wanted and those who have ceased to grow because someone stopped believing in them. Jesus' compassion for us awakens us to lift our eyes from the empty words and selfish hand of others to see ourselves as HE sees us. 

He knows you , He sees you and He loves you. Take heart.  

 

He brings Victory!!!

“But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭15:57‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Sometimes in life we are called to dig deep and to be overcomers  even though everything in front of us is screaming it's over, you've failed, it's too much, it's too hard and there is no way!!!  Dig deep in faith that God is bigger NO MATTER what is in front of you. HE IS BIGGER.  

Our faith brings Him on the scene and He changes everything.  Darkness to light , grief to joy, sickness to health, poverty to His sufficiency , doubt to faith and anxiety to trust!!!!

Ask for the victory today!  Be an overcoming , dig deep and behold the miracles He will bring into your life!!!!

 

The Way of Tenderness

Ephesians 4:32 " Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. "

Anger, defensiveness, a pressing need to change others, criticism, frustration at others' blindness, a sense of spiritual superiority, a gnawing hunger of vindication...... yuck - right?  And yet... if you are honest do you see some of these very things in yourself from day today?  I know I do.   

In allowing these things to dictate my life INSTEAD of tenderness and compassion I am alienating myself from my true self as a child of God. 

Lord, we pray this morning for eyes to see, ears to hear and souls moved toward your way of tenderness....always !