Tag: Joy

It’s You

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“Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant on the lookout for choice pearls. When he discovered a pearl of great value, he sold everything he owned and bought it!”  Matthew 13:44-46 NLT

In the above verse, Jesus is telling His own story.

The story of a man who found something so precious, that he happily sold all he had and paid the price for it.

Whatever your day looks like, I pray that today you stop for a minute and realize that your Savior sees you as a priceless pearl worth leaving heaven and all His rights for.

The reason He came to earth as a babe was to redeem the treasure that is worth the high price He paid on the Cross- YOU.

It’s you.

He lived, died and rose from the grave so He could love you today and for all eternity.

You are His treasure.

Beyond Measure

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God loves you beyond measure.

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”‭‭ ROMANS‬ ‭5:8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

You Are Loved.

You are loved today, tomorrow and will be loved every day until your death and then beyond into eternity.

Nothing can separate you from God’s love. 

Not fear.

Not shame.

Not worry.

Not finances.

Not circumstances.

Not the rules of men.

Because of Jesus you can live in the glorious freedom of being a cherished child of God.

Are you?

On Being Grateful

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For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.”    

Romans‬ ‭1‬:‭21‬ NIV

There are two things that will keep your thinking clear and your hearts filled with God’s divine love today giving God glory and giving God thanks.

You can know God and still get stuck in a mental tornado of worry and fear.

When you make gratitude and worship your daily bread and fortifying your spiritual life with His Word, He becomes the calm in the midst of the storm and the eye of the tornado.

He becomes the safe place you can run to and rest untouched by the winds of trial whipping around you.

Jesus defeated all sin and rose from the grave unleashing His power for you. His triumph secures your freedom from all fear.

It is the difference between enduring and embracing your life. In the middle of trials and stress, it is choosing to be present and aware of God’s goodness.

It is focusing on what you have instead of dwelling on what you are afraid of losing.

What are you grateful for today?

I am thankful for you.

Joy Stealer

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“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” 

Galatians 5:22-23

What steals joy?

Envy.

Comparison.

What restores joy?

Your relationship with God through Jesus.

He does not compare you to anyone else and doesn’t expect you to be like anyone else.

He expects you to be you.

He is the Spirit of Love that abides in you and delights in the unique, amazing, incomparable person that He created when you took your first breath.

You are precious to God.

You are His kid.

He doesn’t compare you to anybody else.

Don’t let envy of someone else’s place steal the joy of yours today.

Love Never Gives Up

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“Love never gives up.”
‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭13:4 MSG‬‬

So much can be communicated through a small touch.

A reassuring pat of the hand.

A hug.

A gentle tug on the elbow of someone who you want closer.

Holding a hand.

A small touch can make a bad thing okay, an okay thing good, and make a good thing great.

Small touches are difference makers in a relationship and in our lives.

They can be the first thing we unconsciously give and the first thing that we unconsciously withhold.

When we struggle, when we are angry, when we are hurt, we withhold the small touches.

It’s easy to forget how important they are to us and to those we love until we can’t give them anymore.

Love never gives up.

If you need to reconnect to someone today, a small touch may be a great way to start.

Your Take

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“Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.  His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.”  

2 Peter 1:2-3

All relationships have to be give and take in order to be healthy.

This includes your relationship with God.

Your “give” to God: to journey with Him and hold nothing back.

So what is your “take”?

Your “take” is to partake of God’s promises, dwell in His presence and walk in His power in every area of your life. 

This taking is not a selfish act, it is a trusting one.

How is your relationship with Jesus today?

What do you need to recieve from Him?

What is He asking you to give?

Joy Over Circumstances

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Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!   Philippians 4:4 NIV

Rejoicing is the theme of the book of Philippians, even though the circumstances with which it was written seem to hold no reason to rejoice.

The Apostle Paul is under house arrest in Rome waiting to go before Caesar. He is cut off from his friends and chained to a guard 24 hours a day. He is not comfortable and knows that he will probably be executed.

As Jesus’ followers, joy is not contingent on circumstances, it bursts through in spite of them.

Are you missing out on joy today because you are waiting for your circumstances to warrant it?

Don’t wait one second more, joy is a fruit of the Spirit, not the fruit of your circumstances (Galatians 5:22).

Receive the gift, invite some friends over and throw a joy party!

Let Hope In

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What are you hoping for today?

“Wait, Israel, for GOD. Wait with hope. Hope now; hope always!”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭131:3‬ ‭MSG‬‬

Hope now. 

Right now.

While you wait.

While you are stuck.

Open wide your heart and let hope flood in.

Let it wash over your mind and fill your spirit to the brim.

There is no better day than today.

There is no better time than right now.

No matter what is going on around you, hope is available to you.

Jesus died on the cross, destroyed the power of sin and rose again to eternal life.

He is alive.    

He is holding out eternal hope to you.

Don’t procrastinate hope, you have permission to hope now – no matter what.

Tenderness, Courage and Hope

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“Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace.  For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:  a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.”

Luke 2:27-32 The Passion Translation

When Simeon took the babe Jesus into his arms, he was gazing tenderly on the promise of salvation given thousands of years to his people.

As he held the babe, he gazed into the power of the universe in human form, knowing that it was not just a gift for his people but for people – Jesus was given for the salvation of all nations and all nationalities.

Christmas is a thousand stories of revelation, joy, courage and hope when the truth of who Jesus is, is revealed to the soul. He is embodied love, uncontainable light and the majestic glory of God Himself sent from heaven to live vulnerable, speak truth, challenge lies and free the soul from the bondage of sin forever.

Somehow, through the traditions of Christmas in every nation, the gift of love and hope remain. Whether people realize it or not – Christ has not been taken out of Christmas, it is His heart that beats through it all, for all, until all know His eternal love.

Four days till Christmas…..

Rest Is

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“This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.”

Isaiah 30:15 NIV

Rest is spiritual and powerful.

It is an indispensable weapon of warfare.

It is when you turn from fear and launch yourself into God’s arms.

It is to pause the relentless cycle of thoughts fueled by fear or the need to control everything and everyone.

It is choosing to trust God with your world.

It is getting out and enjoying God’s creation.

It is laughing with your friends.

It is playing your favorite game with people you love.

It is one of the most powerful things you can do.

Rest is essential and as you rest, God’s power flows.