Claire's Prayer

My son is a mountain climber. Not the type that hikes up a mountain and follows a path that will eventually take him to those magnificent views at the summit but the kind that uses a rope and climbs straight up the sheer granite wall! My heart fills with panic at the thought. It really doesn’t take much for him to scale that cliff, a tiny crack in the rock will suffice for a finger or toe hold and then up he goes! Amazingly he can climb glaciers, mountain walls, and sheer rock faces using just tiny cracks and toeholds.

Paul talks about toeholds or footholds in Ephesians 4:27 as he gives advice on how to walk a Godly path, “𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙤 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙡 𝙖 𝙛𝙤𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙙.” You see Satan does not need a pathway or a wide-open door into your life to destroy you, all he needs is a tiny crack. Like a snake or a mouse, the tiniest opening will suffice, he will squeeze his way in and make residence in your life! When we study the word foothold in Greek, we realize it literally means 𝘁𝗼𝗲𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱 – those same little spaces my son uses to climb the cliffs.

When that little bit of doubt seeps into your mind, doubt that the Word of God is true, that it is living or active, the enemy sees a foothold. He will use that to begin to destroy your faith. When skepticism or cynicism take root in your heart the enemy will start a campaign to obliterate your conviction. It doesn’t have to be the big things, your recognition that Jesus is the Son of God or even that your Abba Father loves you with an unending love, just the little ones, doubt, fear, unbelief. Even social media can be that toehold giving the enemy opportunity to take over your time!

Peter tells us to “𝙆𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙠𝙚! 𝙒𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝 𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙨. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙡 𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪. 𝙃𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙖𝙡𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙝𝙪𝙣𝙜𝙧𝙮 𝙡𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙢𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙝 𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙣. 𝙃𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙚𝙖𝙩.”(1 Peter 5:8) He knew that the enemy is not about to give you a break, he’s not about to go on vacation, we need to be aware that he is working against us looking for footholds and opportunity.

Today let’s open the door to the Holy Spirit, allow him to fill every space, take every available crack and seal them closed. Give him your doubt and unbelief, your fear, and your anxiety. 𝐀𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲. 𝐇𝐨𝐥𝐲 𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐞! 💕🦋

We all know the well-loved scripture in Acts 1:8; “𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙥𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙃𝙤𝙡𝙮 𝙎𝙥𝙞𝙧𝙞𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙪𝙥𝙤𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪; 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙈𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙅𝙚𝙧𝙪𝙨𝙖𝙡𝙚𝙢, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙣 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙅𝙪𝙙𝙚𝙖 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙎𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙖, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙝.” Can you imagine the lively discussion that broke out among the disciples at Jesus’ final words? “𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐮𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐨 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞?!”

Jerusalem was the city where an angry mob crucified Jesus, where animosity towards the King of the Jews was alarmingly high. Even saying the name of Jesus could bring some level of persecution. Judea outright rejected the ministry of Jesus, and Samaria was a barren wilderness of unclean heathens! The ends of the earth? Why that was full of Gentiles! I would imagine the disciples had a million different reasons, for not taking the gospel to any of these places.

Perhaps the baptism of the Holy Spirit was to supernaturally give the disciples the power to love, the power to be obedient, and the power to trust. Trust that the Father sees the bigger picture, and all we need is blind obedience! But what if the disciples didn’t act on those final, very important words of Jesus? What if they kept the gospel within the walls of the Upper Room?

Thankfully they didn’t keep it to themselves, and history was changed! Through the power of the Holy Spirit, millions heard about salvation through Jesus Christ. 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺! Through radical obedience, the whole world was turned upside down upon hearing the gospel! God could see the bigger picture. He could see the ripple effect that would happen when a few everyday people, filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, went to places they didn’t want to go to, and loved those they didn’t want to love!

Is God asking you to do something hard? Something you would rather not do? 𝐀𝐬𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐨𝐥𝐲 𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫, 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐇𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫. 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝. 💕

I have wonderful children who have done and accomplished many amazing things, and sometimes, not so noteworthy things. Whenever they do something which I am proud of, I say to my husband, “𝑴𝒚 daughter did this,” but when it is something not so good, I’ll tell my husband, “𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 daughter did this!” Do you do that too? My children can go from being mine, to being his, in just a day!

In Deuteronomy 9:12 it is interesting to see the Great I Am doing the same thing! “𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙇𝙤𝙧𝙙 𝙨𝙖𝙞𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙚, ‘𝘼𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙚, 𝙜𝙤 𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙦𝙪𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙡𝙮 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚, 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙗𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙀𝙜𝙮𝙥𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙪𝙥𝙩𝙡𝙮.’” Because of their great sin the Israelites were M̲o̲s̲e̲s̲’̲ ̲p̲e̲o̲p̲l̲e̲ – not God’s chosen people.

I have to say I read this with a smile, sometimes I do the same thing as the God of the Universe! I smiled even more when I realized that just like God I never give up on my children. They may fail or fall but like our Loving Father I’ll pick them up, dust them off, and set them back on their journey. In the same way your Heavenly Father will never give up on you! How do I know that? Take a look a few chapters on in Deuteronomy 26:18, “𝘼𝙡𝙨𝙤 𝙩𝙤𝙙𝙖𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙇𝙊𝙍𝘿 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙃𝙞𝙨 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚, 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙖𝙨 𝙃𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙨𝙚𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪, 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙠𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙃𝙞𝙨 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨.”

The very same people who had wallowed in their sin, just a few chapters back, were proclaimed God’s special people. They belonged to God, just as you do. Mercy extended, forgiveness given, and grace abounding. There are also another 34 chapters in the Old Testament alone telling the story of God’s chosen ones!

The story of your journey with God will also extend for many, many chapters. The story of the incredible God who never, ever gives up on His child and who always extends grace, mercy, and forgiveness to you!💕

Have you ever spent time in the wilderness? Have you been in a desolate and isolated place where everything seems to be dry and barren—a place where there is no life? The wilderness is a hard, solitary place. But it is a place where we can always find God.

In Hosea 2:14, we see that the LORD is with Israel in the wilderness: “𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚, 𝙗𝙚𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙙, 𝙄 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙧, 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙖𝙠 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙚𝙧.” What I find fascinating is that the LORD Himself brought Israel into the wilderness so He could speak comfort to her. Perhaps the LORD knew that such a stubborn nation would only listen to Him in isolation!

The Hebrew word for comfort comes from the root word ‘𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗮𝗯,’ which means “𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘢𝘯, 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘭, 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥, 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭, 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨; 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘵!” This is not a consoling pat on the back with a couple of encouraging words. It is so much more! Our Father wants to speak right into your inner man, into your heart, and equip you for adventures to come.

‘𝗟𝗮𝗯𝗮𝗯’ also means “𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵, 𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘪𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳.” Your LORD and King desires to enchant and delight your heart because of His overwhelming love for you. He has drawn you away into the wilderness, to a secret place where no one can disturb you, and is speaking right into your innermost being.

If you are in the wilderness, seek the LORD with all your heart and you will find Him. Allow Him to speak to your heart and encourage you with His magnificent love.

Do you remember what it was like when you first fell in love with Jesus? The sun shined brighter, everything seemed fresh and new! You couldn’t wait to spend time with Him and you wanted to learn everything you could about Him. I remember that time, Jesus was on my mind every single minute of the day, there was joy in my step, and a smile on my face!

A few days ago, I was asked an interesting question, “Think of a person who really loves the LORD?” My mind flew straight away to dear Maggie, a lover of Jesus, who faithfully came every Wednesday afternoon to our Prayer Group. Rain or snow, Maggie was there, praying for those she loved, until her Abba Father called her home at 101 years old! I still remember her beautiful face as we sang an old hymn, her eyes would close, her delicate hands would turn upward, and a smile would appear at the corners of her mouth. She was carried right into the loving arms of her glorious Savior! Maggie was in love!

John Piper asks us this thought provoking question, “𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴: 𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘯𝘰 𝘴𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘪𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘢𝘸, 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘩𝘺𝘴𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘵 𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘣𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯, 𝘪𝘧 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦?”

That’s a question that stops you in your tracks and makes you think!

Does your “𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙡 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜, 𝙮𝙚𝙨 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙛𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙇𝙊𝙍𝘿?” Does your “𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙡 𝙥𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙇𝙊𝙍𝘿 𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙙𝙚𝙚𝙧 𝙥𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧?” Do you “𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙠 𝙃𝙞𝙢 𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙡𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙛𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙝 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙃𝙞𝙢 𝙞𝙣 𝙖 𝙙𝙧𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩𝙮 𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤 𝙬𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧?”

Let’s ask the LORD to return us to our first love, to remind us how it felt to be in love with Him, let’s take the time to seek Him out and fall in love again with the lover of our soul.

1 John 4:19. Says; “𝙒𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙃𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙪𝙨.” Beautiful words. Words that breath refreshing and life into any weary soul. “𝗛𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁.” In this sweet and simple verse we hear the Father declaring His love for us, right from the beginning of time. A shout through the ages from creation to kings, from wars to prophets, down to the birth of His Son. “𝑰 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕!”

Our wonderful Heavenly Father is the initiator and we are the responder. “𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚𝙣 𝙢𝙚, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙄 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪.” John 15:16. He chose us, we didn’t choose Him. So often we tell the story of how we chose God, when the reality is, He chose you! He chose you way back when you were formed in your mother’s womb and your days were written in His book. God is the initiator we are the responder.

We don’t give, in order to move God to give us more! We give because He has already given, a thousand blessings, an abundance of miracles, the assurance of salvation. He gave first. Our response is to give back out of gratefulness and thankfulness for His generous love. We don’t praise Him to experience His presence. We praise our Savior as a response to His majesty, as a response to His greatness, His mercy and His grace. Creation responding to the Creator! God is the initiator, we are the responder.

Our motivation to give, to love, and to praise is a response to the Great I am loving us first. He gives in abundance, He never leaves us or forsakes us! You cannot read your bible long enough, pray enough, or do enough good works to make Him love you more. He loved you first, with a perfect love, a love that knows no bounds, to which there is no end. Should we not fling our arms to heaven and declare our love for Him when we know the depths of His love. Our response should be written into every detail of our lives, in our giving, in our doing, in our praising and in our living. “𝙒𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙃𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙪𝙨.”

Report cards!  The sound of those two words still fills me with dread.  Knowing that when my Dad saw those grades there would be big trouble!  The days of skipping classes and not doing my homework were recorded on a page that my Father held in his hand.  My sin had found me out!  For days I would be sick with fear, dreading the punishment I knew would follow.  The wooden spoon was not just for stirring soup in our house!

1 John 4:18 says this: “There is no fear in love.  But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment.  The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”  Jesus’ perfect love drives out fear, the nightmare of punishment, the thoughts that take root in your head, their ugly tentacles wrapping themselves around your mind.  “God is going to punish me for this, the Father is going to discipline me for that,” and the fear of retribution rises and tastes bitter on your tongue.

“Perfect love drives out fear!”  The one who paid it all, loves you so completely that He has already taken your punishment.  Take heart, rest in His perfect love for you.  God is not a god sitting angrily on His throne waiting to shell out retribution the moment you put a foot out of line.  In fact, He already knows you will fall, you will sin, and you will stumble.  But, in His great mercy, in His great love, He sent Jesus to pay the price, to take that sin to the cross, for you.

When our wonderful, Abba Father gets your Report Card, all He sees are A-pluses, well done, and great work!  Washed by the blood of a Savior, all the bad marks redeemed by the perfect love of our Jesus. We need not live in fear.  The love of Jesus cleanses, purifies, makes us holy, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish.  He puts a fine robe upon your back and a ring on your finger.  He is the lifter of your head, He is the one who gives your confidence, boldness to stand before your Father.  Made perfect in His love.

It’s a funny thing. So often the way we see something is not the same way others see it at all. In 2013, Dove launched a fascinating experiment called “Real Beauty Sketches.” They asked a forensic artist to draw a portrait of a woman as she described herself and then asked a stranger to describe the same woman to the artist while he did a 2nd portrait. The results were startling, each time the 2nd portrait described by the stranger was much more flattering and closer to reality than the one where the woman described herself. Dove had proved their point; you are more beautiful than you think!

What if you could sit down and describe yourself and then our wonderful Abba Father would describe how He thinks about you. What would He say? What would His perspective be? You see, Almighty God sees you through the blood of Jesus. He looks at you and says you are without spot or blemish, totally beautiful in His sight. He thinks you are valuable, more valuable than the sparrows (Matt 10:31), He knows you are fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:14) He sees You as a new creation, free and not condemned! (2 Cor 5:17, Romans 8:1). And you are loved, Oh so loved, unconditionally! (Is 54:10)

What would life be like if we could have a change in perspective and begin to see things from the Father’s point of view? Would we be less defensive, more willing to love on others, confident, and perhaps even brave? Today I pray that the LORD would give me His perspective, that I would see things from His point of view, and I pray the same for you – 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒅, 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒗𝒂𝒍𝒖𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒇𝒖𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌!

January 2024! When I say that out loud it doesn’t seem possible that we could be in 2024 already! Along with a new year comes new visions, resolutions, a brand-new page to be written upon. It’s a time to sit and ponder about what 2024 will bring, a time of hope for the future. We want to do better, be thinner, get fitter, save more, love more. A desire for change is birthed every New Year’s morning!

As I sat and considered my own life a study came across my desk, it is called The Power of 4 Effect. The Center for Bible Engagement surveyed over 400,000 people around their world and their findings were astounding. If you are not reading your Bible four times a week, then your life is statistically the same as that of a non-believer! Your life will not change in any significant way than that of one who never reads His Word! This survey also discovered if you are in God’s Word four times a week, you are 30% less likely to be lonely, 59% less likely to view pornography, 228% more likely to share your faith and 407% more likely to memorize Scripture! Those are some mind-blowing stats!

John 8:31-32 says this; “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.” If you tarry and remain in the Word of God, then you will know the truth! Not only that, His Word will set you free and deliver you from bondage! What a beautiful promise, a promise of change and freedom.

As the sun rises over 2024 may I encourage you that if you make any resolution, make it one of being in the Word of God. He will change you, remold you, and set you free. You will be a radically different person by the end of this year. Not only that but when those hard times come you will have something to stand on, God’s Word hidden in your heart!