One Thing

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In our multi-tasking mounting pressure culture to juggle your life AND plan your future well, there is a prayer whispered from the heart of a king that reveals to us the secret of the One Thing.

He was the former bear wrestler, lion chaser, singing sheep keeper that faced the giant and beheaded him. This king who was the warrior worshipper prayed for this:

“I’m asking GOD for one thing, only one thing: To live with him in his house my whole life long.

I’ll contemplate his beauty; I’ll study at his feet.

That’s the only quiet, secure place in a noisy world, The perfect getaway, far from the buzz of traffic.”

Psalm 27:4-5 MSG

It is the secret that David shouted out and the source that fueled his life.

He knew that ONE THING was needed above all others: to live WITH God every day. To enjoy Him, learn from Him and have a safe house to escape to when the world goes nuts.

David lived in the palace but longed for the Temple.

The ONE THING thing David longed for, Jesus made a reality. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 6:19  “Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God?”

Because of the death and resurrection of Jesus, you are able to experience this kind of relationship with God everyday, wherever you are and whatever you are doing.

May your day be rich and focused with this One Thing and may all the rest of life be filled by it.

Hope Full

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Where you place your hope is important.

If you put your hope in yourself, you will be disappointed – you are human.

If you place your hope in another person, you will be disappointed – they are human.

If you place your hope in hope itself, it is a powerless, empty idea – like a wish. 

Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.
Psalm‬ ‭25‬:‭5‬ NIV

Put your hope in God.

Jesus is real, bigger than your situation and does more than just offer you hope, he offers you the truth to walk in.  He teaches you how to walk in it.

He empowers you to be brave, to see his vision for your life and rest in his loving arms while you wait.

My prayer for you today is that you would be filled with the Holy Spirit and walk in his truth.  I believe that your questions will be answered and the path will open up before you when the time is right.

May your hope quotient be full and heart secure in Jesus as you tackle the daily tasks of living and bring glory to Him in everything that you do today.

 

Made For More

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You are created to live every day with:

overwhelming love,

deep joy,

persistent peace,

solid patience,

thoughtful kindness,

soul deep goodness,

stubborn faithfulness,

grace-filled gentleness and

Spirit inspired self-control.

What a beautiful existence, can you imagine?

“But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”

‭‭Galatians‬ ‭5:22-23‬ ‭NLT‬‬

God wants you to do more than just imagine it, He wants you to live it.

Jesus paid for it.

The Holy Spirit provides it.

So you can live it.

You were made for more, don’t settle for anything less.

What is holding you back?

A Quiet Heart

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“In simple humility, let our gardener, God, landscape you with the Word, making a salvation-garden of your life.”

‭‭James‬ ‭1:21‬ ‭MSG‬‬

Living in a loud world requires cultivating a quiet heart and it is more like cultivating a garden than completing a to-do list.

It needs loving care and tending.

It needs to be protected from predators and weeds must be pulled.

New things NEED to be planted, old things NEED to be pruned.

Just as an untended garden grows wild and will produce good things as well as life-threatening weeds, it is the same with your heart.

However, you are not the gardener of your heart, God is. You are the soil.

As you invite Jesus in, He waters your soul. As you spend time with Him, the Holy Spirit pulls weeds. As you trust the Father, He plants seeds of faith.

It is a partnership but one that is different than you are used to.

Your most important job is to give God time, opportunity and full access to do His work in your heart.

A quiet, secure heart is of great value to those closest to you as well as the loud, insecure world around you.

Shut the world out and invite Jesus in today to landscape your heart with his amazing grace.

You Need help

So do I.

You would think it would be easy to stay free, right? The prison doors are open and you run out. Finally free. But when you have spent most of your life as a prisoner, you learn how to become a really good one. You learn how to work the system, make the most of it, make your own cell cozy and homey. You know how to live in the cell.

What you don’t know is to live in freedom. That is why we venture out and begin to walk in freedom but end up navigating right back to the cell. It is what we know.

How do you live in freedom? How do you live there and make it your new home?

So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. (Galatians 5:16 NLT)

One step at a time, one day at a time and you have a guide to help you.

Just ask.

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