Today may you experience Jesus and know Him as your
loving Savior,
close friend,
trusted counselor,
reliable guide,
powerful redeemer,
hope giver,
grace maker, and sovereign Lord.
” in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”
Colossians 2:2b-3 NIV
Take a minute to breathe Him in.
Change doesn’t occur without courage.
It takes a special kind of stubbornness to start a new thing in your life and to change the course of it.
It is a stubbornness to keep going against the odds and swim against the current.
Life in Christ means that you are being called upon to be a pioneer. He is calling you to be the first in your family to stay married, to break the cycle of unhealthy habits or to break the cycle of emotional or physical abuse.
“But you need to stick it out, staying with God’s plan so you’ll be there for the promised completion. It won’t be long now, he’s on the way; he’ll show up most any minute. But anyone who is right with me thrives on loyal trust; if he cuts and runs, I won’t be very happy. But we’re not quitters who lose out. Oh, no! We’ll stay with it and survive, trusting all the way.”
Hebrews 10:32-39 MSG
God is asking you to be a change-maker and to be stubborn about it.
Be stubborn about your goals but flexible about your methods.
Jesus never did the same miracle twice.
Each one was different and unique.
Be creative, use what God has given you and fight for change.
Change worth having is worth fighting for.
Go ahead – be stubborn and courageous today.
Jesus had a teaching moment with His disciples that is easy to miss and easy to misunderstand.
On His was to cleanse the Temple, Jesus spoke these words to a fig tree: “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” (Mark 11:14)
You see, the tree was advertising that it had fruit with its full leaves. When He checked it, the tree had none and Jesus is not a fan of false advertising.
On their way back, they saw that it had withered to its roots and was utterly dead.
The world says fake it until you make it but God is never okay with us pretending that everything is okay when it is not.
He would rather that we would be honest and say to Him, “I’ve got nothing today and I need help.”
My friend, you do not ever have to “fake it until you make it” with God. Be honest with Him today knowing that He is ready to give you what you need.
One of the most amazing things about receiving God’s love (and I mean really receiving it- taking it in, letting it sink into your soul, walking in the truth of it, living loved) is that it gives you courage.
Courage to step out of your comfort zone.
Courage to change the way you talk to yourself and to others.
Courage to not give in to old habits, coping mechanisms or escape tactics.
Courage to face your feelings and issues.
“My dear children, let’s not just talk about love; let’s practice real love. This is the only way we’ll know we’re living truly, living in God’s reality. It’s also the way to shut down debilitating self-criticism, even when there is something to it. For God is greater than our worried hearts and knows more about us than we do ourselves.”
1 John 3:18-20 MSG
When anxiety is stealing your joy, you can bet it is also stealing your ability to love fearlessly as well. Put your worries in God’s capable hands and get busy loving the people He has placed in your life.
Have a wonderful fearless- loving day, my friend!
Are you living today in faith or in fear?
This faith journey with Jesus is just that, a faith journey.
It is not a fear journey.
Faith and fear are both ways to walk into the unknown and I have a secret to tell you – every new day is unknown. You don’t know what will happen. It could go as planned or go completely different. Sometimes better different, sometimes not so much.
Fear holds you back, faith releases you forward.
I’m not suggesting that you ignore your fear or be in denial of it. I’m encouraging you to not let fear decide what you do or don’t do.
Give Jesus all your unknowns and allow Him full access to the places in your heart that are ruled by fear.
Let His love flood in and wash away the fears that are holding you back today.
It was an impossible situation.
The Israelites were stuck between the sea and their former slave masters coming to recapture them:
“But Moses told the people,‘Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the LORD rescue you today.The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. The LORD himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.”
Exodus 14:13-14 NLT
Hemmed in by the mountains on both sides, they had no way out and no way forward. Their newfound freedom seemed fleetingly short and ultimately doomed.
They knew that God had delivered them from slavery but little more. They had not been free long enough to learn how powerful He is.
They didn’t know that He would fight for them, split the sea before them and rescue them from an impossible situation.
They did not know God…yet.
When you don’t want to go back but don’t know how you are going to go forward, trust God and:
1. Don’t let fear dictate your decisions.
2. Don’t run around trying to figure out what to do. Stop. Pray. Listen. Stand still and watch the LORD work.
When going forward looks like an impossibility, trust Him.
He goes before you.
He goes behind you.
He stands next to you.
The LORD Himself will fight for you.
You get to know about God as you trust Him to be God.
Trust Him and watch what He is about to do.
“By an act of faith, he lived in the country promised him, lived as a stranger camping in tents.” Hebrews 11: 8 MSG
Fear will hold you captive in your comfort zone.
The only way to break fear’s hold is by an act of faith.
To go after all that God has called you to, you are going to have to move beyond the fear that holds you there.
Fear can be overwhelming when it is a general mass of unknown anxiety so you need to name it.
What are you afraid will happen when you step out in faith?
Define it or one part of it.
Narrow it down.
Find the core.
But know this: facing the fear doesn’t take away the emotion of fear but it allows you to see what it is and lie behind it.
When you name the fear you disarm it of its power but it takes a while for your emotions to fall in line with your faith.
You may not know where your journey will end up but you can be sure that God will be there with you every step of the way.
God is calling you forward, don’t let fear stop you today.
Faith is choosing to trust God with the path, the detours, the disasters and yes, the destiny of where you will end up.
Courage is feeling the fear and stepping out in faith anyway.
What is God calling you to do?
What is stopping you from stepping out in faith?
What is the name of your fear?
“Strength! Courage! Don’t be timid; don’t get discouraged. GOD, your God, is with you every step you take.”
Joshua 1:9 MSG
You may be at a crossroads today.
You may be tired and worn out.
Maybe a bit discouraged and overwhelmed.
You know that the task before you is too big for you to do on your own.
God knows this too.
He doesn’t intend for you to do it on your own or by yourself.
He intends for you to move forward with Him.
To face the impossible challenge with Him.
To take the promised land back from the enemy and learn to live in it with Him.
So when you are at this crossroad wondering if you should keep going forward or if you even have the strength to, hear these words from your Father in heaven:
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
Joshua 1:9 NIV
Should you move forward?
Yes.
Can you?
Yes.
Why?
Because you can do all things through Him who strengthens you.
Just one.
But make sure that it is a step of faith.
You will never feel more alive than when you take a step of faith.
When you make the call,
Say the words,
Reach out,
Run ahead,
Or slow down.
You do it before you see results,
without assurance of success,
and not knowing where it will take you.
It is a step of faith.
“In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”
James 2:17 NIV
The reverse is true as well- every time you let an opportunity pass to put your faith into action, it dies a little bit.
If you are reading this, you are not dead. Neither is your faith.
Put it into action.
How is your faith?
What step of obedience do you need to take today?
To love deeply gives you strength.
To be loved deeply gives you courage.
One of the most amazing things about receiving God’s love (and I mean really receiving it- taking it in, letting it sink into your soul, walking in the truth of it, living loved) is that it gives you courage.
Courage to step out of your comfort zone.
Courage to change the way you talk to yourself and to others.
Courage to not give in to old habits, coping mechanisms or escape tactics.
Courage to face your feelings and issues.
Deal with them honestly and work them through because you are loved– completely, unconditionally and fearlessly by God. When you grasp this, even just a bit of it- you will begin to love others fearlessly and let go of fear yourself.
“My dear children, let’s not just talk about love; let’s practice real love. This is the only way we’ll know we’re living truly, living in God’s reality. It’s also the way to shut down debilitating self-criticism, even when there is something to it. For God is greater than our worried hearts and knows more about us than we do ourselves.”
1 John 3:18-20 MSG
When anxiety is stealing your joy, you can bet it is also stealing your ability to love fearlessly as well. Put your worries in God’s capable hands and get busy loving the people He has placed in your life.
Have a wonderful fearless- loving day, my friend!
