A lot is going on in the world and in our own communities. Take heart!
The Lord our God is still moving on our behalf! We WILL see the goodness of the Lord in the Land!
His ways are not our ways. Don’t expect to see everything to happen as WE would plan and expect.
Just trust Him! Remain confident! Wait for the Lord!
As I was thinking of Valentine’s Day and the gifts that are given to each other to express our love, I found my thoughts going to the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
In 1 Corinthians 12, the gifts of the Holy Spirit are listed. I invite you to look them up and pray about which one(s) the Lord has given you to be used for His glory.
These gifts are not given to us to be put on a shelf and taken out and admired…but, they are given to us to be used for the body of Christ – for the Church – and to be used in the world to be a witness to others of God’s amazing Love for them.
The most important gift of all is LOVE! I see God’s Love as the wrapping that surrounds each gift. As we use our gifts in the church and in the world, each gift is offered in the covering of LOVE.
This Valentine’s Day may we start fresh and be intentional about using the gifts of God in places we have not thought of using them. May we be open to the leading of the Holy Spirit to step out in FAITH and distribute His grace and love wherever He takes us.
May everyday be a special day to express God’s Love! Are you willing to deliver His Valentines of Love to the world?
Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.” 1 Corinthians 12:7 NIV
Follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit…
1 Corinthians 14:1
As we journey together through this season of Lent…my prayer for you is Ephesians 1:17-19 CEB:
“I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, will give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation that makes God known to you. I pray that the eyes of your heart will have enough light to see what is the hope of God’s call, what is the richness of God’s glorious inheritance among believers, and what is the overwhelming greatness of God’s power that is working among us believers…”
I love how the Lord uses us wherever we may be for His glory! I was in the nail salon getting my nails done when I saw a woman I thought I recognized. She walked over and introduced herself. Come to find out, I taught her son in First Grade (many years ago). She began sharing the awesome testimony that her son had as a result of a car crash he had in January. God’s miraculous power and intervention was evident throughout this devastating crash!
It was such a blessing to me to hear how God has been using his testimony all over the world! Thousands upon thousands of people have been impacted by his story through social media. We serve a miracle-working God!!
Also, while I was there, another woman walked over to me. Our daughters had graduated together and she had recognized my name. On her way out of the salon, she asked me to pray for her and the team she was on. They were preparing to go on a mission trip to Nicaragua to minister to women there.
I was able to stand with her and pray for her and the team. I was able to pray for the women they would be impacting with God’s Love. After the prayer, she said that it was God’s plan for me to be there! And I agree! In the kingdom of God there are no coincidences. There are divine appointments and encounters!
I just love to go to get my nails done…and end up having “church” in the salon! God is everywhere…and He can use us everywhere in ministry! Where will He use you today?
Sometimes it’s very hard to choose the path of holiness…the path of obedience…the path of Truth! Lord, help us to choose correctly and we pray that some of the “crowd” will change direction with us…
I have noticed that this little bird has been camped out for 2 days in my bird feeder instead of flying off with it’s friends. It wanted to stay where the food was. As I watched it’s behavior, I realized an important spiritual lesson was unfolding before me.
Sometimes we need to “camp out” when we are being fed spiritually by the Lord. How often do we read our daily Bible reading and then rush off to do other things with our friends? Do we allow the Lord time to speak to us through His word?
Sometimes we need to commit to pray until we hear from the Lord. Do we go through our prayer list and then stop…or do we wait…seeking to connect with the Great Intercessor?
Do we have a time set aside so we may simply sit (camp out) in the Lord’s presence…to pour ourselves into Him and let Him pour Himself into us?
I hear the Lord saying, “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10
January is a time for new goals and resolutions to be made. It’s the first month of a new year and so many of us take this time to re-evaluate our lives.
What are we doing that needs to be stopped? Do we have some self-destructive behaviors that are undermining our progress forward?
What do we need to start doing? Are there things that we know we should be doing, but for whatever reason, we are not doing them?
And, of course, one of the major things that seem to come up is diet. Losing weight and getting healthier physically is the focus for many people as the new year begins.
I pray that during our focus on food and the hunger that arises as we begin to change our eating habits…we shift our focus to God. I pray that our hunger for physical things will be replaced with an increasing hunger for the Lord.
I pray that as we go over different exercise plans to get our physical bodies into shape…we will begin to get our spiritual lives into shape through the different “exercise plans” that the Lord himself has set before us.
May we be more intentional in our Bible reading; our worship; and our prayer during 2016. May we be more intentional about drawing near to the Lord and deepening our relationship with Him.
May the LORD Himself stir up a HUNGER within us for more of His presence actively moving within our lives!! May it be so, LORD!!
On this last day of 2015, as I put away the old, I will be praying for the NEW that I know is coming! Can you feel it yet?
I believe that we will see some major changes in the Church. I believe that the Lord will be calling us to make some hard decisions in the coming months. Do we really believe what we say we believe? Are we ready to be bold and break out of the comfortable routine that we have enjoyed? Can we accept new ideas; new plans; new perspectives? Are we REALLY willing to let God be God and follow HIS leading wherever that may take us?
I hear the Lord saying, “FEAR NOT!” May we trust that as He takes us into a New Year…a New Season…we will not fear!! Let us follow our CHAMPION into the unknown! Knowing that He KNOWS ALL and He already has the VICTORY!! Let us take up His Banner of Love and step where He steps!! Arise, Beloved of God, and get ready for that next step!!
There are many ways to express joy! Our joy can be expressed in song; in dance; in our facial expressions; and in our shouting out our joy (I think this is where the “noise” comes in).
Have you ever felt such joy that you just had to SHOUT? I know I have shouted out an AMEN when my pastor says something that stirs up the joy within me. And I have been known to shout out a WOO HOO when my joy is spilling over.
Brothers and Sisters, it’s okay to get a little “noisy” when we are swept up in joy! It’s okay to break forth in songs of joy and clapping our hands in joyous excitement!
There is a time to quietly adore our majestic God. And there is a time to get excited…and yes, a little noisy, about our GREAT GOD!!!
Have you seen the excitement and joy at a football game? People are swept up in what is going on and cannot sit in their seats! They cannot be quiet in their joy of seeing their team score a touchdown!!
Our God has scored the ultimate touchdown!! He has won the game!! Sin no longer has a hold on us! We have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb!! Beloved, isn’t that something to get excited about!!
Do you have a “weight” that you feel you are carrying around today? I have good news! You don’t have to carry it in your own strength! The Lord is more than able to carry the weight for you! HE is your strength!! Get ready for the hand-off…give Him your weakness and He will give you His strength!! REJOICE!!
