Reflections

When you stand in front of the mirror what do you see? You see yourself standing there looking back don't you? A reflection of yourself that is. Well...do you ever stop...really stop...and think about the person you're looking at? No...not about how much you're starting to look like a family member...not about how much gray you have...or even how fat, or thin, you have become...but do you ever think about the person you have become on the inside? When it comes down to it, the inside of us is what really counts. God doesn't care what we look like on the outside...He cares about our heart.

1 Samuel 16:7

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

Just like most all of you, I generally am not thinking about that when I look in the mirror. However...today...right now in this moment...that's what I want to think about. How He sees me. More than anything I want to please Him. I want to look good on the inside. When I come before the Lord in praise...worship...prayer...I want Him to look at the inside of me and know that I'm growing in Him. And...for me to know that He is making me something good on the inside. That I am allowing Him to clean me up and change me from the inside out.

The other thing this brought to mind was...how do other people see me? Not just other Christians, but those that don't know Jesus. I guess the biggest question I always ask myself is this...Can others see Jesus in me? Everyday we need to spend time in the Word and praying.This will draw us closer to the Lord and help us to reflect His image. I want Jesus to be able to make Himself known to others by using me. 

Reflections...that's what it's about. How do we reflect Jesus? Do others notice something different about us? Do they know if they have a problem, or need, in their life that they can talk to us because we can pray for them? I'm not saying we always need to be perfect because that's not possible. And don't try to act like you are either, because people will see right through that. But...be real. Let them know where you stand with the Lord. Be a witness for Him. You don't even have to preach to them...because that will turn most of them off. Just let Jesus change you from the inside out so that you reflect His love.

Tonight I was at a "life group" and it was good. Really good in fact. I always feel like I have learned something when I am there. Of course when I get home I'm so jazzed up from it all I can't sleep. So...here I am writing! We are learning from Acts right now and I'm finding it quite an interesting book...one that I have never really read much before. I'm thinking that I will learn some things from this study because most of the others in the group seem to know a lot about this.

As I have been sitting here thinking on all of the events of the night this is what came to mind. I believe above all else the Lord wants us to worship and praise Him. If we do...when we do...everything else in our lives will just simply fall into place.

Tonight in praise and worship we come

To honor the Lord...the Holy One

With voices raised and hands held high

We thank You Lord the One Most High

You are the One we hold most dear

Thank You Lord for drawing us near

We praise You now and forever more

You are the King the One we adore

We praise You Jesus praise You now

On bended knee we humbly bow

You are our Savior and soon coming King

Our Lord and Master of everything

Thank You Jesus for bringing us peace

For making our storms...simply cease

For helping us conquer all of our fears

For standing with us through all of our tears

We praise and thank You for saving our souls

Thank You Jesus for making us whole

You died on the cross You set us free

You rose again for the world to see

So again we thank You and praise You Lord

You are the only One we want to live for

We hold our hands high and praise You again

Thank You Jesus for being our best friend

Psalm 145:1-3

¹ I will exalt you, my God and King,
    and praise your name forever and ever.
² I will praise you every day;
    yes, I will praise you forever.
³ Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise!
    No one can measure his greatness.

 

An Amazing Change

Psalm 118:24

This is the day the Lord has made.
    We will rejoice and be glad in it.

Tonight I was sitting and reflecting on my day and this verse just kind of popped into my thoughts. What an awesome reminder for us that no matter what our circumstances are this day was a gift from God. We always have the choice of how we are going to live our day. According to this verse we need to rejoice...be glad...take delight in...enjoy...revel...and yes, even Celebrate...because the Lord has made this day just for us!! Sometimes it may take some adjustment on our part to become joyful. It may even take some work just to put a smile on our face...that's up to us. It's those choices again. Today I had to make a choice...

Sometimes the things of life can get to us. They can send you on a downward spiral or you can choose to not let that happen. Today I choose to not go there. When I felt the...what I will call...dark thoughts start to take over, immediately I choose to stop them. I said a quick prayer and Psalm 23 came to mind. Even though I know it, I pulled it up on my iPad, and read it. Then I remembered being told before to insert my name in it and read it that way. This is what it looks like when you do that. (Insert your own name in place of mine.)

Psalm 23

The Lord is Chelles shepherd;
Chelle shall not want.

² He makes Chelle to lie down in green pastures;
He leads Chelle beside the still waters.

³ He restores Chelles soul;
He leads Chelle in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

⁴ Yea, though Chelle walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
Chelle will fear no evil;
For You are with Chelle;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort Chelle.

⁵ You prepare a table before Chelle in the presence of Chelles enemies;
You anoint Chelles head with oil;
Chelles cup runs over.

⁶ Surely goodness and mercy shall follow Chelle
All the days of Chelles life;
And Chelle will dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever.

When I read that I felt an instant change in myself. What ever it was that seemed to be tyring to work it's way in was instantly gone. The Lord took over and the Holy Spirit filled my soul with all the good things I needed. Isn't it just amazing how He works. If we will only open ourselves up to let Him work in us when we need Him too. The day turned out to be a great day!

Praise the LORD!!

His Deep Love

Tonight I don't know what all the things that you are going through are but...I do know what I have been going through. But...if you read this blog you to know where I let my problems take me at times. What I can say about that tonight is...

GOD is bigger than any problem that I have and GOD is bigger than any problem that you have. It doesn't matter what name mine...or your...problem has. It can be a battle in your mind like mine often is. Or, it might be a sickness in your body. Then again...maybe it's your soul has holes in it from past hurts. I think everyone has had, or still does have, those kind of holes. Then...there's your heart. Most of all I want my heart to be good...right with the LORD. Really, what I long for is...the deep deep love of JESUS to continually wash over me and make me wholly HIS. I pray HIS love washes over you tonight.

His Deep Love

O the deep deep love of Jesus it washes over me

When I surrender all my worries and cares dear Lord to Thee

I come into Your presence with troubles on my mind

My heart is full of sorrows that I just can't leave behind

I know if I am willing to give it all to You

You will touch me deep inside and make my mind like new

What I want is to feel Your presence deep down into my soul

Just to feel Your healing oil cover me and make me whole

Lord You are the only One that can heal me to the core

You take away all pain and cover me once more

Please start Lord with my heart my body soul and mind

Cleanse me Lord right now and make me wholly Thine

O the deep deep love of Jesus it washes over me

I feel it Lord right now attending unto me

You are the great physician of body soul and mind

You heal up all the holes that my troubles leave behind

You've given me the strength to walk another day

To hold onto Your hand whatever comes my way

I love you JESUS. Thank You for washing over me today and touching me. I pray that tonight you will send Your love to wash over everyone who reads this. Give them strength, hope, joy and healing. Let them know just how much You love them. If anyone reading this doesn't know You, let them feel Your Spirit tonight and ask You...JESUS...to come and live in their heart so they will know...YOUR deep love for them. Amen

Lamentations 3:22-23

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
     his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
     great is your faithfulness.

Psalm 36:5

Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
    your faithfulness to the clouds.

 

You Deliver Me

Tonight I heard Selah sing a song that is new to me, it's called...You Deliver Me. The words are great. It's so true that when we feel like we can't go on...He does deliver us. Sometimes it takes a while...but maybe that's our own fault. I was noticing the last chorus. Is there ever a distance between who you want to be and who you really are? If there is can you close the distance by yourself or do you need the Lords help? Something to think about tonight. I know I'm thinking about it.

YOU DELIVER ME

Deep as the ocean
Right as rain
This powerful emotion
Lifts me up above the plain
It's taking me to places
I never thought I'd go
Showing me a grace
I never thought I'd know

[Chorus]
When I feel like
I can't go on
You deliver me
And when the road is winding
And way too long
You deliver me
You deliver me

I feel like a sinner
Whose sins have been washed clean
An absolute beginner
Whose heart has never seen
I must be forgiven
For sometimes asking why
I was chosen to be given
You in this life

[Chorus]

When there's a distance
Between what I am
And who I wanna be
You deliver me

Psalm 32:7

You are my hiding place;
You shall preserve me from trouble;
You shall surround me with songs of deliverance.

2 Samuel 22:2

And he said:

“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer;

Depression

When this post started forming in my thoughts today I had no idea it was going to take the turn it has taken. In no way was it my intention to write about this subject but I have learned to go the way the Holy Spirit tells me to go. It can sometimes be hard for me to share the feelings I have within me but today I am good with sharing this. The Holy Spirit  has been showing me that the things I go through that cause me pain can be used to help others find peace in Him. So today...I pray that what I am about to share helps someone out there. So here we go...

More than anything, I want to be one of the best Jesus girls you have ever met. Yet more than anything, I fail miserably everyday. I let fear and doubt lead me into something I really hate more than just about everything else in life...depression. The Lord doesn't want me to go there anymore than I want too. Yet once I start down that path it is so hard to get off of. It's like falling into a dark hole that continues to suck you down until you think you won't ever get out. Or, like quicksand...sucking you down and suffocating you at the same time. However it feels...as bad as this sounds...at times I wish it would just end. Sometimes, I can pray and read the bible and eventually climb out. Other times I have to talk to someone or ask someone to pray for me. Fortunately, I have amazing people in my life that will listen, or just pray, when I don't even tell them what the problem is. This past week I had to do that and the Lord was faithful. I started seeing the light up above me, and could breathe again, as soon as the prayer was said...actually as soon as I read it. Thank you Marge for praying and letting the Lord use you.

Asking for help...or for prayer...can be hard at times but if you need it just suck it up and ask. satan will tell you to just keep it to yourself because they don't want to be bothered. Or, to not talk to them because it won't do any good anyway. Or...one satan really likes to tell me...this time you are just to far gone to get help. What ever satan tells you...ignore him. He is the father of lies...the owner of deception! satan wants you to fail...fall all the way to the bottom...suffocate. Don't believe him...call someone!

I am blessed to have a couple of people in my life that I can talk to when things go bad for me.  I am even more blessed to know Jesus as my Lord and Savior. One day I believe that He will heal me of this depression problem. He has healed me of things...delivered me from things...and best of all...forgiven me of all my sins. Jesus loves me more than I can even imagine...and I love HIM!

Jesus loves you too. If you have a depression problem find someone that loves the Lord with all of their heart and ask them to pray with you about it. When you first feel it starting to hit you...pray...read the Word...and ask those that love you to pray for you.

Psalm 42:5-6a

Why am I discouraged?
Why is my heart so sad?
I will put my hope in God!
I will praise Him again-my Savior and my God!

My Bible says this...

When you feel depressed, take advantage of this Psalm's antidepressant: Read the Bible's accounts of God's goodness, and meditate on them.

Today I was reading in the book of Psalms.

Psalm 139:17-18

How precious are your thoughts about me, O God.
    They cannot be numbered!
I can’t even count them;
    they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up,
    you are still with me!

This makes me realize that our relationship with the Lord is really all that matters. He only thinks good things about us. Tomorrow...He will still be with us...cheering us on...loving us.

What we need to do is worship and praise Him. With everything in us we need to Praise the LORD!

Psalm 146:1-2

Praise the Lord!

Let all that I am praise the Lord.
  I will praise the Lord as long as I live.
I will sing praises to my God with my dying breath.

We have to choose every day to make the Lord our priority. We have to choose to believe that He has the best for us all planned out. We have to choose, no matter what is going on in life, to live for HIM! 

Today I am choosing to believe that He has the best for me already worked out. I don't have to worry about anything.

So What Now?

You ever notice that sometimes life just isn't all it's cracked up to be? Whether you're a Christian or not things go wrong. Friends aren't everything they say they are...your health isn't what it should be...money is tight....your husband or wife wants out....whatever it is...it is! So, who do you think starts trying to get a foothold in your life because he knows things stink right now? That's right...the old liar himself...the devil. So what now?...

Well, tonight I walked outside...looked up to the sky....and realized something. It doesn't matter how bad your day has been...your week has been...or your life has been...if you have Jesus in your life everything will be okay. Everything may change...but it will be okay. The Lord has a plan for our lives. We don't know what it is we just have to trust. That's big. Trust in the unknown...the unseen. Sometimes...that's just how it is. Hold on to faith...hold on to trust...hold on to hope...hold on to Jesus.

Sitting here thinking about all of this Jeremiah came to mind. I turned to Jeremiah 17 and read verses 5-8 ~

⁵ This is what the LORD says:
   “Cursed are those who put their trust in mere humans,
      who rely on human strength
      and turn their hearts away from the LORD.
 ⁶ They are like stunted shrubs in the desert,
      with no hope for the future.
   They will live in the barren wilderness,
      in an uninhabited salty land.

 ⁷ “But blessed are those who trust in the LORD
      and have made the LORD their hope and confidence.
 ⁸ They are like trees planted along a riverbank,
      with roots that reach deep into the water.
   Such trees are not bothered by the heat
      or worried by long months of drought.
   Their leaves stay green,
      and they never stop producing fruit."

This is some of what the notes in my Bible say;

Two kinds of people are contrasted here; those who trust in human beings and those who trust in the Lord. Trust in the first and you have no strength to draw on. Trust in the Lord and you will have abundant strength, not only for your needs but for needs of others. 

It can be hard when everything is coming out of left field and hitting you all at once. But, you...and I...need to stand strong and believe in the one who gave us new life.

So...I guess the questions to myself and to you are these...

Are we gonna let the devil in to get that hold on us that he so desperately wants? Or still yet...

Do we want to be a stunted little shrub with no hope, with nothing...and no ONE...to hold on to? Or the best one...

Do you  want to trust in the LORD and be blessed and have hope...confidence...and a strong hand that will hold on to you?

Linking up with Tracy

                                                                   

O Lord Jesus

O Lord Jesus

You are my King

My Master my Lord

My everything

You opened my eyes

So I could see

Your amazing light

Shining out to me

One so lost when
You reached down

Sometimes so low

I couldn't be found

But You O Lord

You took my hand

You pulled me up

Helped me to stand

O Lord Jesus

I love You so

Your healing my mind

My heart and my soul

You are my Rock

My soon coming King

You shelter me below

Your all covering wing

One you surrounded

With all of Your love

Then encompassed me

With Your arms from above

I knew from that moment

I'd never be the same

You opened my heart

Started removing the pain

O thank You Lord Jesus

For all that You've done

You gave me a gift
It can't be out done
You opened my eyes
My heart and my soul
Thank You Lord Jesus
For making me whole

PLEASE FORGIVE ME

This post is one that the Lord told me to write while I was at work today. Listening to music while I was working a song came on titled...Please Forgive Me. As soon as the song started a scene from my past came back to me and the words started forming in me. I said, "Really Lord. You want me to write about that?" He said, "Write it." My response was, "Really" and again, "Write it." I said, "Okay." No argument at all from me. The reason being...

This morning I had a talk with God on the way to work. Usually that's what takes place while I'm driving to work. But today was different. Because of things that have been going on with me recently I told Him that I would...write whatever He told me to write...say whatever He told me to say...do whatever He told me to do...and go wherever He told me to go. Well, if you don't mean it, I guess you shouldn't say it. He will take you up on it every time...and He doesn't seem to waste any time doing it either! There are many things He could have asked me to write about but for some reason He wants this one. So, I may have written about this a long time ago but...here we go anyway...

One night when I was 16 or 17 a friend and I decided to have a party for two. We partied a lot but not usually at one of our houses. But, her parents were gone for the weekend so that's where we were. She lived up a long, narrow, gravel road with 7 or 8 houses up the hill past theirs. People were in and out at all hours so it was nothing for cars to be on it a lot. We were smoking weed and drinking so you can imagine what kind of shape we were in. Around 10 p.m. some other friends came over and we helped them with what they had. All I remember is at some point after midnight I was not feeling very good. It was cold and raining out so I went outside to get some air and passed out. I have no idea how long I was there. When I came to I finally stood up and started walking...I thought I was going back to the house. Next time I woke up I was more coherent and noticed I was still outside and drenched from the rain. Then I noticed where I was. I was laying with my head and shoulders in the road and my head was in the tire track. There wasn't any lights on this road unless a car had it's headlights on. Well, I believe now that God was watching out for me even though I wasn't a Christian. Just as I managed to get up, and stumble a couple of steps, a car came barreling down the road right where I had been...didn't even slow down for a second. Had I not gotten up I probably wouldn't be here writing this. After being in the rain for so long I was pretty well straightened up and couldn't believe what almost happened. God wasn't in my thoughts but I thought I had been really lucky!

Why God put this time in my thoughts, I don't know. All I know is just how much He loves me and He loves you. I always knew about God but for many reasons...never knew Him. I wanted to but just couldn't get there. So for many reasons this song really "fits" for me. When the chorus started playing is when God started talking to me. The chorus was kind of my prayer this morning driving to work. If I want to be totally honest...the whole song is just me. Sometimes it is hard to believe that...The God of earth and glory would take the time to care for someone like me! But He did, and He does, and I am so thankful!! 

This scene was replayed in my life many times just with different scenarios. I am just so blessed that one day I did hear the Holy Spirit talking to me before it was to late.

I pray that if I am writing this because someone out there needs to hear it that it helps you to find the Lord. There really isn't any thing that makes you feel as good as Jesus does. He is the answer to all of your dread and pain...from your yesterdays...your today...and your tomorrows! We all have problems and pain all the time but if you have Jesus in your life you will be able to get through them a lot easier. I don't know what else to say except...Talk to Jesus. Ask Him into your heart. You will never be sorry you did.

Here are the lyrics to the song.

Please Forgive Me (crabbs)

my sleep is gone, my heart is full of sorrow

i cant believe how much I've let you down
i dread the pain that waits for me tomorrow
when the sun reveals my broken dreams scattered on the ground

chorus:
please forgive me
i need your grace to make it through
all i have is you, I'm at your mercy
lord, I'll serve you
until my dying day
help others find the way
at your mercy, please forgive me

i cant believe the god of earth and glory
would take the time to care for one like me
but i read in the bible that old story
how he plead for my forgiveness while he was dying on a tree

Psalms 37

The last few weeks I have not been very faithful in reading God's Word. I have still been reading devotions...there are always a few scriptures there...and listening to music...they sing about the Lord...but it's not the same as actually picking up your Bible and spending time with Him. The Lord speaks to us when we are having quality time with Him on a regular basis. I absolutely love it when He speaks to me. There is nothing like hearing Him...that voice inside my soul...in the early morning hours. Or, when I sit at my computer in the evening and He fills my mind with words to write! He fills me with joy...hope...faith to believe...love...and everything else that is good that He gives to His children.

Today the barrier...walls I'm sure I erect myself...was broken. I sat down at my desk and picked up His Word. Truthfully I picked up my Jesus Calling devotional first. I read today's devotion and then looked at the scripture...Psalms 37:23-24. I read those verses and then I read the whole chapter. I've read it many times but today certain ones jumped off the page at me...

37 vs 4-7a

Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you your heart’s desires. Commit everything you do to the LORD. Trust him, and he will help you. He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun. Be still in the presence of the LORD, and wait patiently for him to act.

37 vs 23-24

The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the LORD holds them by the hand.

My Bible says that to take delight in someone means to experience great pleasure and joy when in their presence. Who in our lives should we take delight in most? The Lord. To do this we really have to know Him. Spend quality time with Him. Not just a minute here and there. We don't have to just sit and read His word and pray for hours...but some time each day should be set aside for this. We have to commit everything to Him and trust Him with everything in our lives. If we are spending the time we need to be with Him...that will come easier for us. So, regardless of circumstances in my life, I have made a new commitment to do this. I want to know Him more everyday!

There is another verse I love...Psalms 46:10 Be still and know that I am GOD. I thought of that when I read vs 7a. Sometimes we just need to sit and be still in HIS presence. He will meet us there if we do that. Another verse that comes to mind is...Psalms 62:5 Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in him. These are just all great verses that I need to think about daily! Reminders for me to just sit quietly before Him at some point in my day. They remind me of what He told me the first part of the year...Press In to HIM!

Hosea 6:3 Let us acknowledge the LORD; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth.

Do you want the Lord to direct your steps? I know I do. I will be starting on a new venture and there is nothing I want more than to make sure that the Lord is leading me and that I am following. I want to be in the center of His will for this. I need His direction more than ever before...in every step I take! I want and need Him to direct my way. Without a doubt I'm sure that I will make mistakes...stumble as the verse says...but, if I put my hand in His it will all be okay. He won't let me fall...fail...as long as I'm in His will and doing it for Him. It's when I don't put my trust in Him that I have doubt...and fear the unknown.That's when I find myself putting up those walls I talked of earlier. As long as I do what the Lord has shown me in His word this morning...it will all be good. He will never leave me or forsake me.

Deuteronomy 31:6

Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.

Challenge Accepted

P raising Him

R ejoicing in Him

E nveloped by Him

S urrendered to Him

S trengthened by Him

I mmersed in Him

N ew because of Him

At the first of the year I felt the Lord was telling me that I really needed to "press in" to Him and "draw near" to Him.  I should do this so that I would know...regardless of where He leads me...that He is with me always. So far the path hasn't been bad just different. I'm finding that He is changing me more and more...having me do uncomfortable things...and that's why I need to "press in". 

For all of us, He leads us down different paths than we are used to all the time. That's because He's growing us and perfecting us. Even if the path takes us places we don't want to go we have to surrender to Him...take His hand...and let Him lead us. It's the only way we can have the strength to follow our path sometimes.

So with each step along the way...hold on to Jesus' hand and...

Walk with Him and Praise Him...Rejoice in Him...let His love Envelop you...Surrender your will to His...all the time letting Him Strengthen you. Let Him cover you with His grace while you...Immerse yourself in Him...and let Him make your life New.

Psalm 91

¹ Those who live in the shelter of the Most High
      will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
 ² This I declare about the LORD:
   He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;
      he is my God, and I trust him.
 ³ For he will rescue you from every trap
      and protect you from deadly disease.
 ⁴ He will cover you with his feathers.
      He will shelter you with his wings.
      His faithful promises are your armor and protection.
 ⁵ Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night,
      nor the arrow that flies in the day.
 ⁶ Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness,
      nor the disaster that strikes at midday.
 ⁷ Though a thousand fall at your side,
      though ten thousand are dying around you,
      these evils will not touch you.
 ⁸ Just open your eyes,
      and see how the wicked are punished.

 ⁹ If you make the LORD your refuge,
      if you make the Most High your shelter,
 ¹⁰ no evil will conquer you;
      no plague will come near your home.
 ¹¹ For he will order his angels
      to protect you wherever you go.
 ¹² They will hold you up with their hands
      so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.
 ¹³ You will trample upon lions and cobras;
      you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!

 ¹⁴ The LORD says, “I will rescue those who love me.
      I will protect those who trust in my name.
 ¹⁵ When they call on me, I will answer;
      I will be with them in trouble.
      I will rescue and honor them.
 ¹⁶ I will reward them with a long life
      and give them my salvation.” 

                                                          


                                                               

                                                                          

FATHER GOD today we come with praise and thanksgiving for all you have done for us. You are The HOLY and ANOINTED ONE that we serve thankfully and gratefully. There is no one else like YOU! Thank YOU for all the things YOU have done for us and for all the many more that YOU are doing right now! Praise YOU LORD GOD! 

Father, right now in JESUS name I ask that you reach YOUR mighty arms of love down and just wrap them around all of our friends and family that need special strength and courage from YOU today. Many are going through things that we just can't understand. I know that YOU have everything under control but since we aren't YOU it can sometimes be very hard for us. Please just give us understanding of how we are to handle the many situations in our lives today. Help us to comfort those around us that need comforting. Give us YOUR strength...YOUR courage...YOUR love to get through this day. Help us to feel with YOUR heart...hear with YOUR ears...touch with YOUR love...hold with YOUR arms...see with YOUR eyes. 

I praise YOU and thank YOU FATHER for listening today. Thank YOU for sending comfort and healing right now to those that need it. Thank you for sending YOUR SON JESUS to be our SAVIOR. Thank YOU JESUS for dieing on that cross. Praise YOU JESUS. I ask all of this in YOUR name today...Amen!!!

 

Matthew 21:12-13

Do you remember the story in the Bible when JESUS went to Jerusalem and threw out all the merchants and money changers from the Temple? Recently I was reading about this and thought about how it applies to me.

Matthew 21:12-13

^12-14Jesus went straight to the Temple and threw out everyone who had set up shop, buying and selling. He kicked over the tables of loan sharks and the stalls of dove merchants. He quoted this text:

   My house was designated a house of prayer;
   You have made it a hangout for thieves.

The Temple was the House Of GOD...a place to worship. With it being used as a marketplace, access for what it was intended was almost impossible. So JESUS went and did some major house cleaning! First HE tore it up and then HE tossed them out! My study bible notes say that JESUS' actions were justified because GOD'S glory was being desecrated.

So, how does this apply to me?

What came to mind when I was reading this was...how many things do I let into my house that aren't pleasing to GOD? No...not the house where I reside but me...where the HOLY SPIRIT lives...inside me! I'm speaking about what's in my heart...my thoughts...my very soul!...that is not pleasing to the LORD. I know that daily there are many things. Some of these things continue to live inside of me for longer than they should. Why? Because I don't always see them as a problem...something that will keep me from worshiping the LORD and living to my fullest for HIM! Sometimes it may take a week or two before I come to the realization that I do have a problem. My daily Bible reading comes to a halt...talking to GOD doesn't happen as often as it should...things start going wrong in my life and I start feeling myself slipping down a little lower everyday.  As with everything, there's always a choice that I have to make. At the first sign of a problem do I let the junk...contamination...stay in my life, or do I ask the LORD to come in and help me to get rid of it? When I feel that little nudge...from the HOLY SPIRIT...that something isn't quite right I should just take care of cleaning it up right then. In this way I can stay in right relationship with HIM.

I always want to be able to worship the LORD without feeling that something is blocking me from HIS presence. These verses are good to pray daily...sometimes for myself...multiple times!

Psalm 51:10-12

New Living Translation (NLT)

 ¹⁰ Create in me a clean heart, O God.
      Renew a loyal spirit within me.
 ¹¹ Do not banish me from your presence,
      and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.

 ¹² Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
      and make me willing to obey you.