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Defender and Vindicator
“No weapon forged against you will prevail & you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their vindication from Me,” declares the Lord. Isaiah 54:17 NIV
This doesn’t say no one and no thing will ever come against you. This says weapons will form & people will talk. But God is your defense. He prevents the weapons from prevailing & He vindicates you, because you are His.
Because You Love Me
Today’s Musical Monday song is Because You Love Me by Jodee Messina
I suppose that you could make this song about a person who was there for you and really loved you, but really it’s about God’s unconditional and unending love.
Last Thursday, I had a rough and emotional day. One of those days when you just want to flip off the world and go to bed. I was so frustrated and discouraged. Then this song came on and I just cried. I cried because I remembered that I’m not alone. I remembered that I am here because God loves me. I am alive and I survived because of Him. I can be brave because He loves me.
It was exactly what I needed to get my emotions back in check and roll on with my day. So on this Monday, reign it in and remember that you are beloved of the Great Creator and you can do all things through His son Jesus who strengthens you.
Not alone
Today’s thought of the day: God is our provision.
One of God’s names is Yahweh Yireh (Jehovah Jireh). This means that He doesn’t just provide, but that He, Himself, is our provision!
“Because of your great compassion you did not abandon them in the desert. The pillar of cloud still led them forward by day, and the pillar of fire showed them the way through the night. You sent your good Spirit to instruct them, and you did not stop giving them manna from heaven or water for their thirst. For forty years you sustained them in the wilderness, and they lacked nothing. Their clothes did not wear out, and their feet did not swell!” Nehemiah 9:19-21
Perception is the Key
Picture this. A prisoner has been pardoned. But instead of leaving the prison, the prisoner sits there in the cell. The shackles have been removed. The door is open. The prisoner could just walk out and be free. Yet the prisoner sits there because he’s not chosen to walk in freedom. His perception and perspective is that he is and will forever be a prisoner. But the truth, the reality, is that he’s free. He doesn’t believe the truth but has chosen to believe a lie.
If you are caught up in the cycle of addiction, you are that prisoner.
If you are beating yourself up over the past, you are that prisoner.
If you believe that you are worthless, you are that prisoner.
If you believe your situation is hopeless, you are that prisoner.
If you think that things will never change, you are that prisoner.
If you are allowing your past to bind you and prevent you from moving forward, you are that prisoner.
If you believe your past is more powerful that Jesus’ sacrifice, you are that prisoner.
Jesus came to reconcile us to God. Reconciliation was His main purpose. But that was not the only benefit and purpose of His death and resurrection. Luke 4:18-19 (Also found in Isaiah 61) tells us that He came to restore us body, soul and spirit. “The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.”
He came to reveal the whole truth. The truth of His Kingdom, who we are, and how God feels about us. (In case you don’t know He loves us A LOT).
He came to show us who the Father is by doing what He saw the Father doing.
He came to heal your body and your heart.
AND He came to set you free. John 8:31-34 says,
“Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, ‘You will be made free’?”
Jesus answered them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.”
Even though you have been set free, you need to walk out that freedom. A slave (prisoner/unbelief) mentality and not understanding their true identity kept an entire generation out of the Promised Land. See Deuteronomy 1. They still saw themselves as slaves. They cried out to go back to Egypt. Their wrong perception of themselves and their lack of belief robbed the ENTIRE GENERATION of their inheritance. Only two men of the millions that left Egypt from that generation entered the Promised Land, Joshua and Caleb. Did you hear that? Two out of millions! And the only difference between those two and the rest of their generation was that they believed what God said, not what anyone else said. Did you hear that? They believed God. Not their circumstances. Not what they saw. Not what everyone else said. They believed God.
What’s my point? Well my point is that you need to believe what the Lord says about you and your future. You need to stop speaking negatively over yourself and beating yourself up for your past mistakes. You have value. You are loved.
Your situation is not too hard for God. Joseph went DIRECTLY from the prison to the palace. See Genesis 41. You don’t think God can do that for you? Nothing is impossible for God. NOTHING.
God’s Not Afraid of the Dark
I loathe fear. So when my friend Danielle posted about God not being afraid of the dark, I asked her permission to share it with you. It’s encouraging and challenging at the same time. With that I give you what Dani wrote:
A Cheerful Heart
It’s Monday. And I think that people need to laugh and smile more. So does Solomon. Proverbs 17:22 says, “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength.”
So if you are finding your strength waning in the midst of whatever it is that’s going on in your life, do something fun. Watch old sitcoms that are actually funny or some other comedy. Read a light hearted book. Take a walk or do whatever it is you enjoy that makes you smile or laugh. Start speaking positively. Make plans that you will look forward to and enjoy. Choose to find something joyful in your day. Be silly!
Since it’s Musical Monday… Here’s “A Cheerful Heart” by Rick Pino. and “Laugh” by The Monkees
You are…
Just a heads up that I won’t be on here for about 2 weeks. I will be without access to the internet. While I’m gone I want to leave you with this…
You are seen…because He is the God who sees. (Genesis 16:13)
You are known…because He knit you together in your mother’s womb. He even knew you before He created the world. (Psalm 139, Ephesians 1:3-6)
You are loved…because He is love. (I John 4:7-19)
You are never alone nor forsaken…because He has said He will never leave nor forsake you. (Deuteronomy 31:6, Joshua 1:5 and Hebrews 13:5)
You are never hopeless…because Jesus is the hope of the world. (Psalm 71:5, Jeremiah, 17:7, Acts 28:20, Romans 15:12, I Timothy 1:1, Titus 2:13-14)
You are never without grace…because Jesus is the personification of grace. (John 1:14, Romans 5:15, II Corithians 8:9, II Corinthians 13:14, Ephesians 1:7, Ephesians 2:8-9, Titus 2:11, Titus 3:7, I Peter 1:10)
You are valuable to God. (Luke 12:6-7)
You matter to God. Never forget that!
Vortex of ideas…
My head has been a swirling vortex of ideas this whole week. SO many things on my mind. I’ve thoughts and even notes but I’ve struggled a bit with getting them in a format that is understandable or readable by anyone but me. So I haven’t blogged this week.
And now it’s Friday. Meaning it’s my last chance for the week to put something encouraging into the blogosphere. I can’t let that opportunity pass me by. So please ponder this…
God spoke everything into existence. (Genesis 1:1-25) Do you know the only thing He didn’t speak into existence? Humans. We were formed and lovingly created. (Genesis 1:26-28) We were given life when God breathed into us. (Genesis 2:4-7) We are the clay and He is our potter. (Isaiah 64:8)
You were made by God with purpose, for a purpose and on purpose.
Everything God makes is beautiful. God made you. Therefore you are beautiful.
Happy Weekend!
Quote of the Day: What we are is God’s gift to us. Who we become is our gift to God. -Unknown
I need a break
I am counting down to my upcoming vacation. I am sooo excited. I haven’t had a real vacation in quite some time, and I need it desperately right now.
There’s something about taking a break from life and unplugging now and again, it recharges and rejuvenates. For me it can be a spontaneous road trip to anywhere I can get lost in the beauty of the earth God created, a completely planned trip and itinerary or anything in between. No matter what I adore traveling. I love to explore new places. I enjoy sitting and watching the waves hit the beach at Lake Michigan. I enjoy walking around art museums and seeing the different architecture in historical towns. I enjoy taking a camera and capturing little details that other people may not bother to look for. Those things make me happy.
I’m sure I’m not alone. I would imagine everyone likes to go on vacation and just get away from everything for a bit. Get away from the stresses and pressures of work and family life. Get away from the general day to day grind. But what about those times when you need a break and you don’t have the vacation time or money or your situation will not allow you to have that break you need? What do you do then?
Personally I like to talk nice long walks, like 4-5 miles. It helps. When I’m really overwhelmed (when I don’t want to think) I will read or watch movies. I like to go live in someone else’s world for a few hours before coming back to deal with real life.
Jesus never took a vacation, had hobbies or anything like that. But what He did do was maintain a good balance with His time. 1. Ministry: Jesus talked to people, poured into people, prayed with and for people, healed them and etc. 2. Growing and teaching disciples: But He also took time to teach and grow His 12 disciples. 3. Friendships: He spent bonding and chilling out time with 3 of the 12 disciples. 4. Alone time and God time: Jesus went off alone to pray & spend time with Father God often. That is how He was able to do what He did. He was continually rejuvenated and refreshed by seeking God. Check out Matthew 14:13-23 to see Jesus’ priorities.
Matthew 14:13-14, Jesus heard that John the Baptist was killed and planned to take some time alone. But he was unable because the situation. So He took care of the immediate situation first, “As soon as Jesus heard the news, He left in a boat to a remote area to be alone. But the crowds heard where He was headed and followed on foot from many towns. Jesus saw the huge crowd as He stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.”
After taking care of the immediate situation, Jesus took the time He needed as soon as He was able. Matthew 22:23 says, “Immediately after this, Jesus insisted that his disciples get back into the boat and cross to the other side of the lake, while he sent the people home. After sending them home, he went up into the hills by himself to pray. Night fell while he was there alone.”
This wasn’t a onetime thing, in Luke 5:16, it says Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer. In His biggest trial, knowing He’d be crucified, He went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray and seek the Father. Jesus knew that no matter what was going on, taking some alone time to pray and just enjoy God’s presence was essential.
When you have to deal with things you’d rather hide from or you need a break and a rest, seek God first. Here’s what I mean….
If you are a new parent with a tiny screaming baby, pray while you are giving them a bottle in the middle of the night. Praise Him for your baby’s healthy lungs and that you have a healthy child.
If you have a stressful situation at work, take a few minutes and go into the bathroom and pray. Or go for a walk around the building and pray. It’s amazing what even 10 minutes in the midst of a situation can do.
If you are at the hospital with a loved one, take a minute and go to the chapel or to sit on a bench outside and remind yourself that sickness isn’t from God, it is one of the curses from the enemy, along with lack, poverty and death. Speak life to the situation. Speak His word. Jesus healed everyone who came to Him. Every single one.
If you are under attack from people, read Psalms out loud. Give the situation to God and remind yourself that the battle is His, and the victory is yours.
These are just some little things you can do to seek God no matter where you are or what’s going on. God is always with you. He’s everywhere so it is physically impossible for Him to leave you. The word tells us that He never leaves us or forsakes us. All you need to do is acknowledge His presence (even just speak His name) and He turns His attention to you.
I’ve found that these seemingly small things keep me focused on God and prevent my attitude from spiraling downward. It helps me get from day to day in the rough patches and deal with the people in my world that aren’t exactly pleasant.
“Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” Thessalonians 5:16-18
“So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.” Deuteronomy 31:6
Happy Wednesday!
jillbeingstill 