God Thinks About You..
For the LORD your God has arrived to live among you. He is a mighty savior. He will rejoice over you with great gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will exult over you by singing a happy song. Zephaniah 3:17
Not even a sparrow, worth only half a penny, can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are more valuable to him than a whole flock of sparrows. Matthew 10:29-31
How precious are your thoughts about me, O God! They are innumerable! I can't even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up in the morning, you are still with me! Psalm 139:17-18
What an awesome God we have, a God Whose love is incredible for us. God loves to think about His children. The Word clearly shows how much our God loves and cares for us. God is crazy about us. He has so many precious thoughts toward us that they cannot be counted. He stands over you and rejoices with shouts of joy and singing. God knows you so well. He even knows the number of hairs on your head. He has great plans for you. A wonderful future.
Father,
I thank you for the precious thoughts You have for me. I thank You that You know me even better than I know myself. I seek Your will for my life. Allow me to choose the path You have placed before me. Teach me to love others with Your love. Let all my hope be in You.
I love you,
Amen.
Thursday, July 28, 2005
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
My Food
Jesus Tells about the Spiritual Harvest
Jesus said:
My food is to do what God wants! He is the one who sent me, and I must finish the work that he gave me to do. You may say that there are still four months until harvest time. But I tell you to look, and you will see that the fields are ripe and ready to harvest. Even now the harvest workers are receiving their reward by gathering a harvest that brings eternal life. Then everyone who planted the seed and everyone who harvests the crop will celebrate together. So the saying proves true, "Some plant the seed, and others harvest the crop." I am sending you to harvest crops in fields where others have done all the hard work. John 4:34-38
The "food" about which Jesus was speaking was his spiritual nourishment. It includes more than Bible study, prayer, and attending church. Spiritual nourishment also comes from doing God's will and helping to bring his work of salvation to completion. We are nourished not only by what we take in, but also by what we give out for God. In John 17:4, Jesus refers to completing God's work on earth.
I have brought glory to you here on earth by doing everything you gave me to do.
John 17:4
Jesus said:
My food is to do what God wants! He is the one who sent me, and I must finish the work that he gave me to do. You may say that there are still four months until harvest time. But I tell you to look, and you will see that the fields are ripe and ready to harvest. Even now the harvest workers are receiving their reward by gathering a harvest that brings eternal life. Then everyone who planted the seed and everyone who harvests the crop will celebrate together. So the saying proves true, "Some plant the seed, and others harvest the crop." I am sending you to harvest crops in fields where others have done all the hard work. John 4:34-38
The "food" about which Jesus was speaking was his spiritual nourishment. It includes more than Bible study, prayer, and attending church. Spiritual nourishment also comes from doing God's will and helping to bring his work of salvation to completion. We are nourished not only by what we take in, but also by what we give out for God. In John 17:4, Jesus refers to completing God's work on earth.
I have brought glory to you here on earth by doing everything you gave me to do.
John 17:4
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
A Morning Prayer
A Morning Prayer for healing:
Dear Father,
I thank you for creating me in Your image. I praise You that I am fearfully and wonderful made. I confess that You are God that heals, my Great Physican. I ask You to heal my body from the top of my head to the soles of my feet. I pray that You would regenerate every bone, joint, tendon, ligament, tissue, organ, and cell of my body. This is the day that the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.
Our praying health experience begins and ends each day with prayers of thanksgiving, prayers for healing, and prayers for petition. Try repeating this prayer daily to experience how the God of the ages will work a miracle in your life. Even if you have never prayed before, God promises that His Word will never return void, but it wil prosper in the thing for which He sends it. We can trust God's promises.
Dear Father,
I thank you for creating me in Your image. I praise You that I am fearfully and wonderful made. I confess that You are God that heals, my Great Physican. I ask You to heal my body from the top of my head to the soles of my feet. I pray that You would regenerate every bone, joint, tendon, ligament, tissue, organ, and cell of my body. This is the day that the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.
Our praying health experience begins and ends each day with prayers of thanksgiving, prayers for healing, and prayers for petition. Try repeating this prayer daily to experience how the God of the ages will work a miracle in your life. Even if you have never prayed before, God promises that His Word will never return void, but it wil prosper in the thing for which He sends it. We can trust God's promises.
Friday, July 22, 2005
True Love
God's Will - Perfect LOVE
But I don't need to write to you about the Christian love that should be shown among God's people. For God himself has taught you to love one another. Indeed, your love is already strong toward all the Christians in all of Macedonia. Even so, dear brothers and sisters, we beg you to love them more and more. This should be your ambition: to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we commanded you before. As a result, people who are not Christians will respect the way you live, and you will not need to depend on others to meet your financial needs. 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12
Father,
Don't ever let us disregard you or your Holy Spirit, which you give us. Give us perfect love for our brothers and sisters in Christ. Let this teaching of yours fill our minds. Let this love among us grow more and more, every day and in every way. May we aspire to live quietly, to mind our own affairs, and to work with our hands or our minds, so that we may be dependent on no one and command the respect of those outside your family. May that respect lead them to listen, to heed, and also to become you rchildren.
In the name of Jesus I ask,
Amen.
God is not interested in our spiritual life. He's interested in our life.
-- John Ortberg
But I don't need to write to you about the Christian love that should be shown among God's people. For God himself has taught you to love one another. Indeed, your love is already strong toward all the Christians in all of Macedonia. Even so, dear brothers and sisters, we beg you to love them more and more. This should be your ambition: to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we commanded you before. As a result, people who are not Christians will respect the way you live, and you will not need to depend on others to meet your financial needs. 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12
Father,
Don't ever let us disregard you or your Holy Spirit, which you give us. Give us perfect love for our brothers and sisters in Christ. Let this teaching of yours fill our minds. Let this love among us grow more and more, every day and in every way. May we aspire to live quietly, to mind our own affairs, and to work with our hands or our minds, so that we may be dependent on no one and command the respect of those outside your family. May that respect lead them to listen, to heed, and also to become you rchildren.
In the name of Jesus I ask,
Amen.
God is not interested in our spiritual life. He's interested in our life.
-- John Ortberg
Thursday, July 21, 2005
Watch Your Tongue
Then Jesus called to the crowds and said, "Listen to what I say and try to understand. The food that you put into your mouth doesn't make you unclean and unfit to worship God. The bad words that come out of your mouth are what make you unclean. Matthew 15:10-11
Wouldn't it be nice if we could make ourselves pure simply by eating the right things? It is hard to eat the right things. But it's a lot harder for most of us to say and do the right things. We have all sorts of problems with our speech: we say too much, we gossip, we lie, we take the Lord's name in vain, we exaggerate, we distort, we slander, we wound, we curse. The list could go on and on because the tongue can get away from us. Part of the problem is that our mouths often let fly what is unredeemed in our hearts. Another part of the problem is that we don't think about what we are going to say before we speak it. Still another part of the problem is that we do think what we would say to wound, hurt, or get back at someone; then, when we are given the opportunity, we say it. Purity is an ongoing struggle. Jesus is saying don't make it so simple, so external, as just a matter of what you eat.
Father,
Forgive me for wanting a cheap, quick fix to the problems of my heart's purity. I want you to redeem my heart. So I commit today to avoid what can pollute, putrefy, and poison my heart toward you and your children, and I ask for the power of the Spirit to help me with this commmitment.
In Jesus' name I ask.
Amen.
We always thank God that you believed the message we preached. It came from him, and it isn't something made up by humans. You accepted it as God's message, and now he is working in you. 1 Thessalonians 2:13
Wouldn't it be nice if we could make ourselves pure simply by eating the right things? It is hard to eat the right things. But it's a lot harder for most of us to say and do the right things. We have all sorts of problems with our speech: we say too much, we gossip, we lie, we take the Lord's name in vain, we exaggerate, we distort, we slander, we wound, we curse. The list could go on and on because the tongue can get away from us. Part of the problem is that our mouths often let fly what is unredeemed in our hearts. Another part of the problem is that we don't think about what we are going to say before we speak it. Still another part of the problem is that we do think what we would say to wound, hurt, or get back at someone; then, when we are given the opportunity, we say it. Purity is an ongoing struggle. Jesus is saying don't make it so simple, so external, as just a matter of what you eat.
Father,
Forgive me for wanting a cheap, quick fix to the problems of my heart's purity. I want you to redeem my heart. So I commit today to avoid what can pollute, putrefy, and poison my heart toward you and your children, and I ask for the power of the Spirit to help me with this commmitment.
In Jesus' name I ask.
Amen.
We always thank God that you believed the message we preached. It came from him, and it isn't something made up by humans. You accepted it as God's message, and now he is working in you. 1 Thessalonians 2:13
Tuesday, July 19, 2005
Jesus Prays For Us
My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. John 17:20-21
Few things are more precious than knowing that Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, thought to pray for us! So often, we read the words of John 17 and study them as a prayer for his apostles in the upper room. But if we look closely at this passage, we also see that Jesus prays for us, those who believe on him because of the apostles' testimony. He wants us to be one! He wants us to live with the same unity, purpose, and character of God that he did.
If we do not, then how will the people of the world know that God sent his Son? How will they know what to believe? How will they find Jesus as their Savior?
Dear Father,
Forgive us and change us and help us see what is most important in our lives as your disciples. Break down the barriers that divide us into different religious groups and help us find unity around the things, and the One, that matter most.
In Jesus'name I ask.
Amen.
Prayer is exhaling the spirit of man and inhaling the spirit of God.
-Edwin Keith
Few things are more precious than knowing that Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, thought to pray for us! So often, we read the words of John 17 and study them as a prayer for his apostles in the upper room. But if we look closely at this passage, we also see that Jesus prays for us, those who believe on him because of the apostles' testimony. He wants us to be one! He wants us to live with the same unity, purpose, and character of God that he did.
If we do not, then how will the people of the world know that God sent his Son? How will they know what to believe? How will they find Jesus as their Savior?
Dear Father,
Forgive us and change us and help us see what is most important in our lives as your disciples. Break down the barriers that divide us into different religious groups and help us find unity around the things, and the One, that matter most.
In Jesus'name I ask.
Amen.
Prayer is exhaling the spirit of man and inhaling the spirit of God.
-Edwin Keith
Monday, July 11, 2005
Burdens - Help Each Other
HELP EACH OTHER: BEARING EACH OTHERS' BURDENS
My friends, you are spiritual. So if someone is trapped in sin, you should gently lead that person back to the right path. But watch out, and don't be tempted yourself. You obey the law of Christ when you offer each other a helping hand.
If you think you are better than others, when you really aren't, you are wrong. Do your own work well, and then you will have something to be proud of. But don't compare yourself with others. We each must carry our own load.
Share every good thing you have with anyone who teaches you what God has said.
You cannot fool God, so don't make a fool of yourself! You will harvest what you plant. If you follow your selfish desires, you will harvest destruction, but if you follow the Spirit, you will harvest eternal life. Don't get tired of helping others. You will be rewarded when the time is right, if you don't give up. We should help people whenever we can, especially if they are followers of the Lord.
Galatians 6:1-10
My friends, I pray that the Lord Jesus Christ will be kind to you! Amen. Galatians 6:18
Prayer:
Dear Father,
Fill my heart with love for my brothers and sisters in Christ. If someone is overtaken in some wrong deed, help me to assist to bring back that person, in a spirit of gentleness. Let me watch out for myself. Help all of us to bear one another's burdens. Help us not to deceive ourselves, thinking we are something when we are really nothing. Teach each of us to bear our own burdens.
In Jesus name I ask all this and that you will give me a Spirit-filled life.
Amen.
Give me a grateful spirit, a thankful heart. Help me to give thanks in everything. Help me to acknowledge and express the benefits and blessings that I have received from You and others. Protect me from a discontented heart and a murmuring tongue. -Nancy Leigh DeMoss in A Place of Quiet Rest
My friends, you are spiritual. So if someone is trapped in sin, you should gently lead that person back to the right path. But watch out, and don't be tempted yourself. You obey the law of Christ when you offer each other a helping hand.
If you think you are better than others, when you really aren't, you are wrong. Do your own work well, and then you will have something to be proud of. But don't compare yourself with others. We each must carry our own load.
Share every good thing you have with anyone who teaches you what God has said.
You cannot fool God, so don't make a fool of yourself! You will harvest what you plant. If you follow your selfish desires, you will harvest destruction, but if you follow the Spirit, you will harvest eternal life. Don't get tired of helping others. You will be rewarded when the time is right, if you don't give up. We should help people whenever we can, especially if they are followers of the Lord.
Galatians 6:1-10
My friends, I pray that the Lord Jesus Christ will be kind to you! Amen. Galatians 6:18
Prayer:
Dear Father,
Fill my heart with love for my brothers and sisters in Christ. If someone is overtaken in some wrong deed, help me to assist to bring back that person, in a spirit of gentleness. Let me watch out for myself. Help all of us to bear one another's burdens. Help us not to deceive ourselves, thinking we are something when we are really nothing. Teach each of us to bear our own burdens.
In Jesus name I ask all this and that you will give me a Spirit-filled life.
Amen.
Give me a grateful spirit, a thankful heart. Help me to give thanks in everything. Help me to acknowledge and express the benefits and blessings that I have received from You and others. Protect me from a discontented heart and a murmuring tongue. -Nancy Leigh DeMoss in A Place of Quiet Rest
Tuesday, July 05, 2005
"One Anothers"
God's Family
There are 58 "One Anothers" in the Bible that teach us how to treat our brothers and sisters in the family of God.
In God's family we are called to love and care for our fellow members.
Love One Another
Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 1 John 4:11
Encourage One Another
Leet us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another. Hebrew 10:25
Serve One Another
Serve one another in love. Galatians 5:13
Pray One For Another
Confess your sin to each other and pray for each other. James 5:16
If we walk in the light, as Gos is in the light, we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. 1 John 1:7
We understand what real love is when we realize that Christ gave His life for us. That means that we must give our lives for other beleivers.
Giving of yourself and putting others first isn't easy but God asks you do it because he did it first. He loves us even thought we are not perfect and his purpose for you is to do the same. Jesus wants you to love real people, not ideal people because there are no perfect people.
Real fellowship means being as committed to each other as we are to Jesus.
There are 58 "One Anothers" in the Bible that teach us how to treat our brothers and sisters in the family of God.
In God's family we are called to love and care for our fellow members.
Love One Another
Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 1 John 4:11
Encourage One Another
Leet us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another. Hebrew 10:25
Serve One Another
Serve one another in love. Galatians 5:13
Pray One For Another
Confess your sin to each other and pray for each other. James 5:16
If we walk in the light, as Gos is in the light, we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. 1 John 1:7
We understand what real love is when we realize that Christ gave His life for us. That means that we must give our lives for other beleivers.
Giving of yourself and putting others first isn't easy but God asks you do it because he did it first. He loves us even thought we are not perfect and his purpose for you is to do the same. Jesus wants you to love real people, not ideal people because there are no perfect people.
Real fellowship means being as committed to each other as we are to Jesus.
Monday, July 04, 2005
Grace and Freedom
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Galatians 5:1 NIV
Christ died to set us free from sin and from a long list of laws and regulations. Christ came to set us free - not free to do whatever we want because that would lead us back into slavery to our selfish desires. Rather, thanks to Christ, we are now free and able to do what was impossible before - to live unselfishly.
Grace and freedom are not a license to sin (Jude 4). In fact, sin enslaves us; sin is addictive (John 8:34). As those for whom the old person of sin has died and been buried with Jesus in baptism, we are not to let sin reign over us or become our master because we have been liberated by grace (Rom. 6:1-14). So let's seek the power of the Holy Spirit to cleanse us (Heb. 9:14) and powerfully liberate us from sin (Rom. 8:10-15). Let's use our freedom to bless and build others up. Let's use our freedom to offer our hearts and lives to the work of God!
Prayer:
Holy Father,
Thank you for freeing me from the guilt and power of sin. Please empower and transform me by your Spirit so that I can leave my sinful past behind and live a life of character and blessing in my family, in my work, in your church, and in your world.
In Jesus' name I ask.
Amen
Christ died to set us free from sin and from a long list of laws and regulations. Christ came to set us free - not free to do whatever we want because that would lead us back into slavery to our selfish desires. Rather, thanks to Christ, we are now free and able to do what was impossible before - to live unselfishly.
Grace and freedom are not a license to sin (Jude 4). In fact, sin enslaves us; sin is addictive (John 8:34). As those for whom the old person of sin has died and been buried with Jesus in baptism, we are not to let sin reign over us or become our master because we have been liberated by grace (Rom. 6:1-14). So let's seek the power of the Holy Spirit to cleanse us (Heb. 9:14) and powerfully liberate us from sin (Rom. 8:10-15). Let's use our freedom to bless and build others up. Let's use our freedom to offer our hearts and lives to the work of God!
Prayer:
Holy Father,
Thank you for freeing me from the guilt and power of sin. Please empower and transform me by your Spirit so that I can leave my sinful past behind and live a life of character and blessing in my family, in my work, in your church, and in your world.
In Jesus' name I ask.
Amen
Saturday, July 02, 2005
Fix Our Eyes On Jesus
After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: "Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you." John 17:1 (NIV)
John 17 is one of the most moving chapters in all the Bible. Jesus knows he is going to die. He knows he is spending his last few hours before his death with disciples who do not understand what he is about to do and why he is about to do it. Jesus has two key goals in mind as he prepares himself, and his disciples, for their life ahead without him. He wants them to be one so they can remain strong and influence the world for God. He wants what he does to bring glory to the Father.
While he faces humiliation and abandonment, his desire is to bless others. We are going to face hardship. What will be our goal? No wonder we are reminded to fix our eyes on Jesus and follow his example.
Prayer:
Precious Jesus,
I cannot thank you enough for leaving me a powerful example of how to endure life's heaviest burdens. Please make my life a blessing to others and give me courage to serve and to bless even in times that are hard.
In Jesus name I pray.
Amen.
John 17 is one of the most moving chapters in all the Bible. Jesus knows he is going to die. He knows he is spending his last few hours before his death with disciples who do not understand what he is about to do and why he is about to do it. Jesus has two key goals in mind as he prepares himself, and his disciples, for their life ahead without him. He wants them to be one so they can remain strong and influence the world for God. He wants what he does to bring glory to the Father.
While he faces humiliation and abandonment, his desire is to bless others. We are going to face hardship. What will be our goal? No wonder we are reminded to fix our eyes on Jesus and follow his example.
Prayer:
Precious Jesus,
I cannot thank you enough for leaving me a powerful example of how to endure life's heaviest burdens. Please make my life a blessing to others and give me courage to serve and to bless even in times that are hard.
In Jesus name I pray.
Amen.
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