God sent His Son ... Jesus sends us

“As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” ~ John 20:21

God
sent His Son
Jesus

Jesus
sends us
His children

We --
do we go?
do we do His will
do we abide with Him
do we hold onto
the Peace
He gives us

or

do we forget
His promises
His examples
His Love

do we fail
to seek Him
to study and meditate,
to listen to His Word
to obey

God sent His Son
His Son sends us
Who are we sending
Are we making disciples

Are we showing another
God’s love illustrated through His Son

or
are we only passing on
our opinion
of what we believe and perceive
and not what
God’s Holy Word says

If we say we love Jesus
then we will do the will of the Father
We will Trust Him and be obedient

(c) March 31, 2014

God shows us … do we wait and follow Him or just go alone?

“I have set the Lord always before me … You will show me the path of life.” (Psalm 16: 8, 11)

Don’t let the world rule you
Don’t become enamored with all
that is in the world,
with all that befalls you,
angering and frustrating you.

Give your fears and worries, your doubts
over to the Lord
Trust in The Lord
He will guide you safely.

No, it is not easy
But yes, it can be accomplished
One step at a time
Moment by moment

If you never try
you’ll never know
if you will succeed

God is the answer to every need.
The key is in His workbook -
The Bible

Study and meditation are necessary
Just picking up the Book
on a Sunday
to read the Scriptures
will not bring about much
of a transformation

They are just words
clumped together
that sound good
and make you think
briefly about them

But to learn to trust the Lord,
you must be in His word daily.
You must consider,
contemplate,
carve out time to spend with Jesus –

The One who set (s) you free

If only you could see
There are some who are blind
who see the Truth
more so than those
who have no sight

Seen through their hearts,
hearts of love

God is love.
God’s Son lives in our hearts
as the Holy Spirit
when we accept Him

When we walk with Jesus
we stumble less
because our focus is more on Him
and less on those things
that can derail us

He shows us the path
and how to stay on the path
but it is up to us
who determines
if the way we will go
is Our Will
or His Way

It is us alone
whose decision
determines
the ultimate judgment.

Keep your eyes on Jesus
Do not become daunted
by the affairs of those around you
They have choices to make too
Live for Jesus
Live on the path He shows you
Do not veer off the path  

to places unknown
just because you want to.

Seek God.
Look to Him for your every guidance.

Trust Him.
Trust Him for everything.
Trust Him for your very life. 

(c) March 27, 2014

The Sun ... Son shines bright

Winter lingers
Snow-capped rooftops, lawns and streets
glimmer in the morning sun
Coldness seeps into every pore
Spring still aloof
Trees remain bare and dormant
no budding, no blooms,
no soft green grass to run barefoot through

When will winter go away?
When will spring have its say and stay for a while
before settling into the heat of summer?
Oh when will it be?

The Lord God of all
controls the seasons
But we have had enough!

What do you teach
What are we to learn
Or is it a reminder
of whose really in charge?

The sun shines bright
But there is no warmth

Perhaps the Sun
is a reminder too
of God’s Son
His light shines
forever
Do we see it,
witness it,
Are we aware of it
in the midst of every dark, cloudy, dreary day?

Are we missing the bigger picture
when we refuse to look beyond
our personal self-serving box
of woe?

 (c) March 25, 2014

Trust Him, Thank Him, Rejoice in Him

Trust Him More

Jesus will
equip me
to get through this day,
every day
victoriously.
All I have to do is
be dependent on Him
Trust Him
Stay close to Him
Pray to Him
Talk, converse with Him
Keep Him foremost in my mind
and not how the day is or is not going
nor how levels of pain affect me
Depend on Jesus

He will help me (and you) through the day,
whatever the circumstances,
whatever life throws at you.
Jesus is the answer.
Seek Him at every turn.

The events of life
big and little
seem to swirl us
out of control
We fail to look to God
with our every question
for our every answer.
Instead,
we withdraw into ourselves
We succumb to a pitiful existence
that takes us down a road
we should never go

Circumstances bring our demise
They don’t have to
but they do
and I am
as guilty as another.  
We strive to live above
where we are
To think positive
To remember God’s eternal love for us

But a negative focus moves to the forefront
of our thinking
and we are caught, blocked, trapped in a place
we cannot free ourselves from

Shades of gray
surround us in every stage of life
What we do
can help us connect the dots
to where God wants us to be
with a clearer, sharper focus,
less shady, less gray.

He wants us with Him
To seek Him
To pray to Him
To trust Him
To put our faith in Him
To believe in Him
To  love Him
To  live our lives for Him
To see, To become aware of the blessings He gives us daily

Thank Him

Blessings and judgments flow
God above provides both to all
The judgments we may see coming
especially if we are mindful of our wrongdoings
But the blessings
we can easily miss
even when staring at us in the face

We live in a world
where we think we are the controller
Whatever happens or does not happen
is under our control
We forget there is
a higher power --
that being God
and we do not look to Him
for much of anything

Look at your life
Consider it all

Concentrate on Him
Concentrate on Trusting Him
and less on you

Our circumstances need not be
what determines our attitude
Do not dwell on the negative
of all that is around you
Dwell on the positive

Be thankful.

There is much to be thankful for
in the midst of every moment, every event
we have.
Trust Jesus.

Cling to Him
He who created you
Saved you
Delivered you from sin
Loved you and Loves you still

Thankfulness lifts you up,
above your circumstances,
brings you out of despair
brings you peace.

Trust Him, Thank Him, Rejoice in Him.

 (c) March 21-22-23, 2014

Look to Jesus for your everything

Trust all that is
and that will be
to Jesus
Look to Him
for your everything
and He will walk with you
through it
and you will be blessed

All you need
comes from God above
There is nothing
we alone
can do
to improve any
and all
circumstances

Except Pray

Pray to the Lord
for our every need
Little and Big

Pray unceasingly
with anticipated joy
as we seek
His guidance
in our struggles
His love
in our lives

Trust all that is
and that will be
to Jesus

and Thank Him
for His every provision
now and to come

Always.

(c) March 15, 2014

Rise above (a note from God)

Rise above
The physical pain

Rise above
The financial pitfalls

Rise above
The chaotic home life

Be still
Find a quiet place
away from noisy distractions

Rest in Me

I wish you to spend time
with Me daily
but you do not

You let your problems
fall around you
You want things fixed,
made better,
but you cannot make it so

Your fatigue grows
as does your distress
over the circumstances
you are currently facing

It need not be so

Return to Me my child.

The TV might give you
a temporary fix
as does computer games

But I alone
AM what you need.

Now. Today.
Tomorrow.
and the days after.

Come.

(c) March 14, 2014

The puzzle of our lives comes together with Jesus

Our lives are like a puzzle
Thousands upon thousands
of pieces
to fit together
and make us complete,
whole.

The Lord Jesus
is central
to making the pieces
fit correctly

Without Him
we are nothing

The pieces
don’t come together
the way we’d like them to
and certainly not the way
God intended

The edges are not straight
The valleys are deep
The mountaintops unreasonably high
And everything in-between is in such
sad disarray

Yes, without Jesus
we are nothing

But there are many
who prefer nothing of Him
Phrases of disdain roll off the lips of the lost …
“So what?!”
“What is that to me?”
“I’ll wait”
“When I’m ready, then maybe”

Readiness will never come.

God pulls on your heart strings
Perhaps you feel something
but are unsure what it means
The tugging continues
You are bewildered
You feel
You listen
but what do you hear
and how should you respond?

Talk to God.
He will listen.
He cares.
He  loves you.
He will walk with you
and at times He will carry you.

Pour out all the  anguish you feel,
all the struggles that seem insurmountable .

Talk to God.
He can heal you
if you allow Him to.

So simple,
we make it so hard.

Accept Him.
Believe Him.
Confess Him.

But what do you accept?
and what do you believe?
and what do you confess?

Admit you are a sinner.
We are all sinners.
Not one of us is free from sin
Except One – Jesus Christ
The Son of God.
Accept Him.

Jesus is the one who was born of the Virgin Mary
and God
Jesus is the one who took all our sins upon himself
who went to the cross at Calvary
who bled and died for you and me
Jesus is the one who was buried
and on the third day, rose.
Jesus is the one who sits at the right hand of His Father.
Jesus is the one who is ALIVE.
Accept Him.
Turn away from your sins.
Turn toward Jesus
He  is The Way, The Truth, The Life
Accept Him.
Believe Him.
He lives!

Confess, proclaim!
your faith in Jesus
as your Lord and your Savior.

Dear God,
I  believe you love me. I believe I am a sinner. I believe you died for me. I know I am drowning. Help me God to turn away from all that imprisons me and attacks me. Help me God to turn to you. Save me God. I want to be whole. I pray this in Your name. Amen

I want to be whole
I want to be complete
I want Jesus

When we are One with Him
and stay focused on Him
through every trial we encounter
each piece of our lives
will come together
and fit according to His purpose.

Our lives
radiate from Him
for Jesus is the cornerstone
in the puzzle
of our lives. 

(c) March 10-11, 2014