~Inexhaustible grace~

"Grace,... allows me to hear the hardest things about my flaws and patterns of sin because I know, by grace, that there is no flaw I can discover nor any sin I can unearth that can ever decimate my life. I cannot be any more loved and accepted than I am by the Lord who loves me with the full knowledge of what I have done, am doing, and will do; I have unshakable confidence that nothing can reduce His love for me. Therefore, I am free to admit my desperation. In so doing, I can experience real change, which is the very power of the kingdom of heaven in my life.

What marks kingdom people as genuine Christians is that they keep coming back to this one thing - the inexhaustible grace of God, knowing that it is all we have and all we need."
~Elyse Fitzpatrick

The Lord is good...

"Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good;

Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!"

Psalm 34:8

~New mercies for each day~

I have been learning lately the value of focusing on one day at a time... focusing on God's great love for me... and focusing on His sovereignty.

There is something within each of us, that wants to control our lives, isn't there? But it is a fruitless pursuit. It is a road filled with worry and anxiety. No matter how hard we try we are incredibly insufficient to plan our life out.

And to add a little note: I'm not necessarily saying we shouldn't plan or have dreams and goals, but that we should focus on today and eternity mostly and hold those dreams/plans for the future lightly. As Corrie Ten Boom aptly puts it: "Hold everything in your hands lightly, otherwise it hurts when God pries your fingers open."

So here comes faith. God IS indeed in control. And that is good news... yet, I find there's a daily surrender I have to do to refocus my mind on His majesty and my dependence. Placing hopes and dreams on the Lover of my soul, who has planned life out.

So I'm learning to refocus on the truth. Trust in Him. Because fretting "only causes harm"... (Psalm 37:8b).

And what does the Bible tell us to do instead?
Let's look here:
"Trust in the Lord, and do good;
dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
Delight yourself in the Lord,
and He will give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in Him, and He will act.
He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
and your justice as the noonday.

Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him..."
~Psalm 37:3-7

There's so much direction packed into those verses, isn't there?

His mercies are new for each day. They're happening right now. They're not for tomorrow yet...

Our loving Father holds our lives in His hand. Nothing can stop His sovereign plans!

Take heart with me, and let's delight in our God and His mercies for today! =) =)

~Jesus Christ is so much better~

"Jesus Christ is so much better than getting what you think you want right now... every situation that comes into our lives is meant to make us more like Christ and to bring Him glory."

~Elyse Fitzpatrick

Jesus has overcome...

I have said these things to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” 

~John 16:33

Ah, friends!! I hope you are all doing well...
These have been busy days... and somewhat challenging days for me.

God is showing me the value of moment by moment dependence on Him. Refining me. Causing me to press into Jesus, the sovereign One. What a trustworthy Savior He is! He loves His children more than we can fathom!

When the way seems unclear and anxieties want to thrive, I'm learning that moment by moment, when I turn my eyes on the Lord, peace comes.  Anchoring myself in God's goodness!

He is faithful.

He is all powerful.

He has everything in His hand.

We are not alone...

So I turn and listen to Him...

And His words bring comfort.

“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

He created *all* things. Every human heart. Everything. It's by His will that they exist and were created. Nothing escapes His notice. 

“Worthy are you, our Lord and God,
    to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,
    and by your will they existed and were created.”

~Revelation 4:11

He is so worthy of our praise! He is working all things for our good and making us more like His Son.

We're more than conquerors through Him! So let's be still and know that in every moment God is working all things His glory!!

When life seems overwhelming may we run to Jesus who has overcome the world!

A quote for the day...

"...God is gracious and sovereign even when He is silent." ~John Piper

Words of life...

This morning as I read in the Bible I came across these verses in Philippians 4:

"...do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
 verses 6-7

These verses never fail to point me in the right direction! What an amazing promise of peace we have when we earnestly pray and give thanks to the Lord. Giving Him our burdens.

It's so easy to become anxious, isn't it?  But praying shows our dependence on the faithful One ~ Jesus! God's grace is here for each moment...

~~~~

Do you have any Bible verses you would like to share? Life verses or recent portions that you've come across that have blessed you?
Leave them below in the comment section! I would be encouraged to read them! Thank you! :-)

Keep resting in the Sovereign One, friends!

Things to be thankful for...

Recently I read a small book about the sovereignty of God in the sweet and bitter times of life. What a blessing that was to read...

To remember that God is working all things for good. Anxiousness adds nothing to our lives. It only takes away. It drains us. But if God cares for the grass and lilies of the field {and He does}~ what have we to worry about?

Aren't we showing that we don't believe there is a God in those moments? Could worry show a momentary atheism?

Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. {Matthew 6:31-33}

What if, instead of worry, I were thankful for each moment God gives. Seeing that He is everything we need.  And knowing that He loves His beloved far more than we can imagine. His sovereign hand is ruling everything... and it is all for our good and His glory.

That truth gives hope, yes?

I found this in A Gospel Primer by Milton Vincent (yes... I'm enjoying this book so much! :-) )...
This is a wonderful list of things we can be thankful for.

1. My God is immense beyond imagination. He measured the entire universe with merely the span of His hand. {Isaiah 40:12}

2. He is unimaginably awesome in all of His perfections, absolutely righteous, holy, and just in all of His ways. {Deuteronomy 32:3-4}

3. He has also been unbelievably good and merciful to me as the Creator and Sustainer of my life.

4. Every breath, every heartbeat, every function of every organ in my body is a gift from Him.

5. Every legitimate pleasure I experience is a gift from His loving hand to me. {1 timothy 6:17, Acts 14:17}

6. All that I am and all that I have I owe to Him and to His goodness. {James 1:17}

7. My life in every way is, and will continue to be utterly dependent upon Him in whom I love and have my being. {Acts 17:28

8. This wonderful God is the most supremely worthy Object of admiration, honor, and delight in all of the universe; {Psalm 96:3-7, Revelation 4:11, Psalm 16:11, Psalm 37:4}

9. And He has created me with the intention that I might glorify Him by finding my soul's delight in Him and by living in joyful obedience to Him in all of my ways.{Psalm 37:4, Deuteronomy 5:28-29}

We have a great God. We have a sovereign God. And we have much to be thankful for, friends!!