Power of "Leaving It!"

Key Scripture:  “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against any one, forgive him and let it drop-leave it, let it go-in order that Your Father Who is in heaven may also forgive you your own failings and shortcomings and let them drop.”

Power Point:

When we asked Christ to come into our hearts, we asked for forgiveness of our sins. He said “yes”.  When we received Holy Spirit into our spirits we received freedom from our sins and the power to live in that freedom. If you read through the New Testament, almost everything you read is about relationships. We are given so many wonderful words of wisdom about how to live free. And Beloved, we need to read them, remember them and write them on our hearts.  In any relationship there will be hiccups. God says work through them. Why? Because if you don’t they follow you into your tomorrows.

God is very serious about “love”. Seriously.If you think about it relationships involve unconditional love, patience, unity, kindness, honor, honesty, and all those things we are normally not good at by ourselves. A major key to the exercise of those qualities is forgiveness.

There are some very strong cautions to us about forgiveness. Forgiveness is showing mercy. Forgiveness is living in freedom. Forgiveness is bringing heaven to earth.

In Mark 11:25, Jesus says that we should pray but that we should remember that it’s not all about asking God for things, He says, “If you have anything against anyone, forgive, -because only then will your heavenly Father be inclined to also wipe your slate clean of sins. (The Message). Yikes!

To forgive someone is to let something drop-to leave it, let it go. I guess I need to repeat that, “Let IT go!” My daughter Stefanie is a dog trainer. One of the commands that she teaches is the command to “leave it!” It’s important because your dog might at some time be near something that could cause it harm. If your dog has learned his command properly, he will “leave it” and whatever could be a potential threat is no longer a threat. When Jesus tells us to forgive He is telling us to “leave it!” If we are wise, we will do just that. If we are foolish, we won’t.

Power Thought:

Unforgiveness keeps you locked up inside. Forgiveness sets you free. Forgiveness brings heaven to earth.

Power of Being On The Fringe

Key Scripture:  “if I can just touch the fringe of His garment, I shall be healed.”

Power Point:

Sometimes when you hear the word “fringe”, you might think about “the fringe element of society”-those people who don’t stick to the rules of the place where they live. It is usually a bad thing to be described as “a fringe element”. In scripture, however, Christians are told to enjoy the privileges of being just that. In the Old Testament the children of Israel had tassels on the fringe (the hems) of their garments. It was a constant reminder of the Promises and the Power of God for them. If they obeyed His law and believed His word  they would be blessed by God’s power in their lives. If they didn’t-the curse would come. The curses were simply consequences of not listening to or obeying God. I guess they still are.

The fringe of His garment is for all of His children. At some point we each have to make the decision whether we will believe and receive what the "fringe" represents. We begin to live by the power and promises of God and we become “living proof” that He is amazing.

In other words we refuse to think "lack" and fear and doubt. Instead we use the gifts He has given us and are led by His Spirt and we move through this world bringing heaven to earth. Jesus said, in Mark 16 that His signs and wonders would be a part of our everyday life. He promised that everywhere we go, telling people about God’s good news, He would accompany us as we go, partnering with us, "validating the Message with indisputable evidence." (The Message, Mark 16) 

So off you go my friends, to bring heaven to your little corner of the earth today. You may be part of the “fringe element” of society but in this case that’s a very good thing, don't you think?

Take the elements of that fringe, the promises and power of God and bless someone with it. You show them His signs and everyone will wonder!

Power Thought:

Being on the fringe isn't a bad thing after all! Aren't you glad?

Power of Believing

Key Scripture:  “Have faith in God.” Mark 11:23

Power Point:

We get a little confused at times don't we? I can have faith for praying for healing for people, yet that faith doesn’t necessarily overflow into other areas of my life.  For example, you’ve seen preachers who have the faith to build churches or preach God’s word and they have amazing results. On the other hand, their finances may be in a mess, or their personal relationships are horrible. I’ve seen people conduct a beautiful revival in the power of Holy Spirit and then end up with egg on their face when it comes to their marriages. Why do we do that? Why is it easy to excel in faith for one area and totally fall apart in another? I’m pretty sure that is not what God intended. In fact, scripture says that the man of faith is blessed in everything he does. (Whatever he does shall prosper).  If we can believe that God is going to be good in one area, then why do we doubt his intentions in another?

What about this?  What if you used the foundation of God’s faithfulness to you in the area where you have been especially gifted and began to apply it in other areas? Why not begin to build a solid foundation for your finances by applying the same promises and attitudes that bless you in your health or any other area that you are successful in. Think about it! If God doesn’t change, and if His desire is to grant you the desires of your heart, and to bless you, why not believe that Truth for any part of your life?  When you have seen him do things in your “strong” areas-begin to remind yourself of that Truth in your “weak” areas. Apply the force of His power in every area. That is a life that honors God-a believer that believes Him in everything, for everything.  A believer that believes has no “weak” areas. They’re all continuing to grow strong in faith.  

Did Jesus say, “have faith in God for your health, or for your marriage, or for your job, or your finances?” No! He simply said, “Have faith in God.” He never intimated that one area of our lives should be more productive than another. They were all covered and redeemed at the cross.

So-do you? Do you have enough faith to take a leap of faith and believe Him for every single thing in your life? Need more faith? Read His word with the intention of believing it. Leap into His truth, His plans and His goodness.

Power Thought:

Ask and keep on asking. Knock and keep on knocking.  Believe and keep on believing. And for heaven's sake, let Him get out of the box into every area of your life.

Power of Stirring It UP!

Key Scripture:  Keep vigilant watch over your heart, that’s where life starts.”  Proverbs 4:23, The Message

“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.”  NLT

Power Point: -

I love peanut butter but I buy the “stir-it-up” organic kind (no more Jiff, sigh!)  Sometimes when I get to the bottom of the jar, it’s hard because I haven’t stirred it every time I use it. Usually I just give up and open another jar, while promising myself that I will do better next time.  And then I don’t. I do not keep vigilant watch over my peanut butter and something that should be soft and creamy and tasty becomes hard and not good for much!

Holy Spirit wants us to keep “stirring up” our hearts. He’s put an anointing in there that will change every step we take, and every thought we think. He is life in us. He has given us absolutely everything we need to live a “stirred up” life. In 2 Peter He says we’ve been given the ticket to participation in the life of God.  What a thought! And then He says,  “Don’t lose a moment in building on what you’ve been given complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love…With these qualities active and growing in our lives, no grass will grow under your feet.”(The Message)

In other words it’s our job to keep “stirring up” what we’ve been given. The anointing breaks every yoke, guides us in wisdom, and generally brings heaven to earth in us and through us.  How do we do that?

-We have been given a spirit of power, love, and a sound mind. When fear tries to harden those things in our heart we refuse it and “stir up” what Jesus told us.

-We have been given the words of The Word which are chock full of promises for us. Keep them in front of your eyes, and the back of your mind and the bottom of your heart constantly. Stir them up!

-These words are given to us to thoroughly equip us so that we are can be ready, willing and able to carry out every good work He has prepared for us. 

It’s all in the Word Beloved. The measure of thought and study you give to it will be the measure of power and wisdom that will come back to you. The Holy Spirit is the One who reveals deep understanding of the truth that you hear. His anointing teaches you all things. Some of the evidence of His presence in you is wisdom, power, enthusiastic joy, and peace. If that’s tucked way down in the bottom of your heart and the “issues” of your heart don’t “measure up" then maybe its time to give more time to “stirring up” the gift that is in you. Like that peanut butter when you get to the bottom of the jar, you have to keep stirrup up the anointing so that your mind, will and emotions do not harden. Life can’t come from a hard heart. The Life that Jesus died to give you comes from guarding the Gift He has given you in Holy Spirit. Stir Him UP! If you don’t stir up the ingredients properly when you are baking cookies or if you leave out a key ingredient, you will not get a good batch. The same is true in your life Beloved. If you leave out the key ingredients for life, His Word, His Spirit and His Anointing, then you will never have the life that God intended for you.  They’re there in the bottom of your heart- it’s your job to stir them up!

Power Thought:

What's in the "bottom of your heart"? Start stirring. Faster!

Power of Being Anchored

Key Scripture: “Now we have this hope as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul it cannot slip and it cannot break down under whoever steps out upon it--a hope that reaches farther and enters into the very certainty of the Presence within the veil where Jesus has gone before us.”  Hebrews 6:18-20 The Amplified Bible 

Power Point:

As a young girl I used to go sailing with my dad and my brother. I loved it when it was pretty and there was a breeze. I did not like it when there was no wind to fill the sails or when a storm came up unexpectedly. When that happened we would have to anchor ourselves on the floor of whatever body of water we were on so that the storm could not move us off course. Being anchored didn’t always feel good. If we had pulled that anchor up we would have moved with the wind not against it. Of course we could have ended up in Massachusetts instead of Ohio but you wouldn’t have had to battle the storm-you would simply go where it took you.

Jesus is the anchor for our souls. That means that His Word, His truth is what we are always to be anchored to. It keeps us steady in the middle of any storm.  I want to ask you to examine where your anchor is fastened today.

Are you anchored to your feelings or your faith?

Are you anchored to Truth that sets you free or facts that bind you up?

Are you anchored to Who God is and Who He wants to be for you in this situation?

Is Jesus anchoring your mind, your will and your emotions or is the storm deciding where you will end up?

Beloved, Jesus passed through every situation you will ever go through. His anchor was his heavenly Father and the power of the anointing of His Holy Spirit.

You have the same privilege, the same choice, the same opportunity to be anchored by heaven in every area of your life. That’s abundance. That’s Life. That’s safety.

You are anchored by what you believe, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer.

Where you place your faith will either anchor you in heavenly places or it will allow the storm to take you off course.

Which one will you choose?

Power Thought:

You can get really seasick if you’re not anchored. I speak from experience.

Power of A Cramp In Your Style

Key Scripture:  “That’s why we live with such good cheer.  You won’t see us drooping our heads or dragging our feet! Cramped conditions here don’t get us down.  They only remind us of the spacious living conditions ahead.”  II Corinthians 5:4, The Message

Power Point: 

Have you ever awakened in the middle of the night with a cramp in your leg? It’s so startling that you are immediately wide-awake trying to rub that nasty little thing out or you jump out of bed and try to walk it out. Ouch! Cramps are painful things when they attack our bodies but Beloved we can have cramps in our spirits that “cramp our style” too.

When unforgiveness, or bitterness or hatred, jealousy, fear or any evil thing seep into our hearts, it cramps our style. Our “style” is to flow in the power of the Holy Spirit to overcome all those things and replace them with the life of God. Freedom comes when we replace the “old” with the “new”.

You remember Jesus? I like His style, don’t you? He never had a "love cramp" or a "forgiveness cramp".

How did He do what He did? He was never in a “cramped place”.  He always kept His heart bound to His Father’s heart and the Spirit’s emotions. He continually renewed His mind so that His thoughts were higher and wider and deeper than earthly thoughts. Nothing kept Him from bringing heaven to earth.

We have the privilege and the opportunity to walk just as Jesus did, with nothing cramping our style. We’re called to abundance, and hope, and relationship with the same Spirit that Jesus had. He knew we would need Him. He left so that we could have Him. He comes bearing gifts for us. Things like perfect love and perfect peace for every area of our lives. He comes with power to set us free from unforgiveness or bitterness or any of those things that cramp our spirits by stopping the flow of the blood of Jesus over our sin and the sins of others. He wants to set us free and open the prison doors so that we don’t live in that cramped space anymore.

Beloved, life only comes when the flow of Holy Spirit is unrestricted in your heart and mind and spirit. He can ease the pain of all those negatives and bring peace and calm to those cramped places in your life.

Got a cramp?  Start walking it out and let Him massage life into the painful places. Jesus walked right out of everything the enemy threw at Him without allowing it to “cramp His style” of living the Spirit filled life.

Shouldn’t we?

Power Thought:

Sometimes cramps come when you are deficient in something your body needs. We need to make sure that we are never deficient in our spirits so that nothing hinders the flow of Life to us.  Nothing should “cramp our style” with Him and nothing should cramp our style in Him. 

Power of The Faith Race

Key Scripture:   Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how He did it.  Because He never lost sight of where He was headed-that exhilarating finish in and with God-He could put up with anything along the way: cross, shame, whatever…when you find yourself flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through.  That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!” Hebrews 12:1,2

Power Point:

When the storms in your life arise, which rises to the top first, your faith or your fear? Do you start at  “Oh ME!” to get to “Oh My Goodness! That's awesome!”?  It really is a matter of the substance of our faith isn’t it?

Those very first moments in a crisis are the most important because its there that either faith or fear will guide our way through whatever valley we’re in.  The sooner you decide what and Who you are going to believe are crucial.  It doesn’t matter when your faith rises to the top as long as it does!

The trip is a lot less bumpy if you sit yourself down and remind yourself of whose you are and what His promises are for you. If you start at the Goodness of God and refuse to be moved from that place, then your faith will rise to the top. If you sift every thought through the goodness of God, you’ll find yourself standing taller and firmer.  If you begin with doubting that, Beloved, you may have a harder time of getting out of that pit you just fell into.

If you doubt that God is always  and only good, (which is what HE says about Himself) and you begin to respond to all the lies about Him that the devil will throw at you, then you are definitely on shaky ground, and faith doesn’t thrive there at all.

In the Olden Days, we used to have our milk delivered to the door in glass bottles. There was usually an inch of two of thick wonderful cream. My mom LOVED it. She would scoop it out and save it for her coffee later on. I never tasted it but I bet it was wonderful. I guess that’s where the phrase came from, “the cream always rises to the top”.  Faith always rises to the top-and it brings you with it! It's the cream of the crop of those Faith Words that you plant. 

How about examining what you really believe about God before the next opportunity arises for you to need your faith. Study Jesus-that will shoot adrenaline into your souls!

Power Thought:

Rise to the top or sink to the bottom. Faith or fear?  Sink or swim. Your choice!

Power of Blazing Holiness

Power of Blazing Holiness:

Key Scripture:  “Be holy because I am holy.” I Peter 1:16

Power Point:

We come running to meet Jesus with amazing enthusiasm don’t we? We offer Him the gift of our poor, tattered hearts and He offers us the gift of His perfect love, wholeness and peace.

We have a ‘honeymoon” period where we freely give to Him all the “ick” in our lives in exchange for the opportunity to see ourselves cleansed and made perfectly whole by His love and kindness. Ah. Lovely.

Then He begins to gently tug at those things that are still in our soul that are hostile  to His presence, and in fact, they fight back. Hard! Our emotions fight back, protecting the soul’s right to be wrong. 
The word “holy” has been popping up in my mind lately. As a pre-Christian and even as a new Christian, I thought it meant “perfect”. If I was “holy” I thought it meant that you could never do anything wrong. That couldn’t have been farther from the truth. In both the Old and New Testaments the word for “holy” means something that is set-apart, something consecrated to someone or something. In other words, as Peter puts it in I Peter 1:16, “as obedient children let yourselves be pulled into into a way of life shaped by God’s life, a life energetic and blazing with holiness.  God said, “I am holy; you be holy.”
Beloved, “holy” means that you set aside and consecrate your mind, your will and emotionsto the Spirit of God in you. You give Him room to grow, and room to SHOW! It will be a battle, but we have the perfect example for us when we look at Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. He didn’t want to be a sacrifice. If there was a Plan B, He was all for it. But His spirit, so connected to Holy Spirit, went back to the place where He was anchored. In the most difficult place, He stayed consecrated and set apart to His Father and His destiny.  That’s really an awesome picture of what can happen when we do that too, don’t you think? Other people’s lives are blessed as we stay consecrated and committed to Him.

And this is the lovely revelation I can give you today. We know that God’s Spirit in us is called “Holy”.  If you think about that, what God is telling us is that His Spirit is always consecrated and committed to us and set apart for us-to fight our battles in us, to fight the battles around us and to fight the battles for others through us.  That makes us not only winners, but more than winners. We always have heavenly “back-up”.

Don’t ever doubt or question His Holiness. It’s a good thing. It doesn’t mean you’re separated from Him, it means you’re separated to him. It means that God loves us so much that He has moved heaven and earth to be there for us, with everything He’s got.

Power Thought:

Is your life being shaped by God's life-energetic and blazing with energetic with holiness?
Well Power UP!

Power of Going With the Flow

                              

Key Scripture:  “Rivers of living water will flow (gush) from the heart of anyone who believes in me.” John 7:32
Power Point:
I love going with the flow. Years ago we had an opportunity as a family to go white water rafting on the Colorado River.  I was so terrified that I nearly threw up before I got on that yellow raft. We had a very good guide who of course sensed my fear and tried to put me at ease. There were two other strong men in the raft so ultimately I decided I’d be okay. (maybe).  Off we went and up came the river for all it was worth. It lasted for maybe 5-10 minutes. All I had to do was sit there and watch my son and the other men frantically maneuvering us through the rapids. The guide just smiled the whole time while yelling instructions at the men. When I knew I was probably going to be okay, I began to relax and actually enjoyed it. The interesting thing was that for the whole rest of the trip the water was perfectly calm and I got very, very bored! I had rather enjoyed being safely in the exuberant flow of that river.

It can seem a little scary at first-putting yourself in that little raft on the river of Life and seeing the rapids ahead but Beloved you have a very good guide.  He’s been this way before and He knows every inch of that course you are on. He actually can help you enjoy the ride. He will make you feel safe when it doesn’t look safe, peaceful when there is nothing but chaos, and connected when it looks as though you are alone.

Like my little trip up the river, in the really calm times of my life I can sometimes get a bit bored, I’ve learned not to mention that because usually when I do, the white water starts churning up and we’re off for the time of my life. I’m holding on for all I’m worth and my Guide is just smiling and giving me instructions.

The neat thing about Jesus is that He loves the “white water" as well as the calm stretches. in our lives. Neither one concerns Him at all. He knows where you’re going, what course to take and exactly how it will turn out. And He knows that the white water will just get you there faster.

I remember someone saying that when the storm arose in the boat and the disciples were afraid, Jesus was pretending to be asleep in the back of the boat, praying, “Stir it up Dad” This will be fun!”

There’s no time like the present to go with the flow of Holy Spirit. Put on your life jacket and hold on for all you’re worth. You’ll be there in no time.           

Power Thought:

Are you ready to say, “Stir it up Dad.  I’m ready. This will be fun!"?

Power of Giving It Away

Key Scripture:  “This most generous God who gives seed to the farmer that becomes bread for your meals is more than extravagant with you.  He gives you something you can then give away, which grows into full-formed lives, robust in God, wealthy in every way, so that you can be generous in every way, producing with us great praise to God.” II Corinthians 9, The Message

Power Point:

Your prayers are a force to be reckoned with. Give them away.

His love in you is a force to be reckoned with. Give it away.

Heaven in you and through you is a force to be reckoned with. Give it away.

Being in Jesus is a force to be reckoned with.  Give it away.

God’s glory is a force to reckoned with. Give it away.

The key to abundant life in the kingdom is having the generous heart of God in you.  He gave everything away for us and we’re supposed to keep the flow going. He’s given us gifts.  Give them away. Give away His wisdom and knowledge, His healing and compassion. Give away His thoughts. Give away His Presence. He’s given you the keys to abundance in Him. Give them away. He’s given you Himself.  Give Him away.

You get to bring God on the scene for yourself and for every person you meet. Give Him away so that other people can see His goodness and kindness and His plans for them. He gives us freely all things to enjoy. Give those things away.

“If you want more happy than your heart can hold,

If you want to stand taller if the truth were told,

Take whatever you have and give it away!”

If you want less lonely and a lot more fun

And deep satisfaction when the day is done,

Throw your heart wide open and give it away.”

(Bill Gaither, “Give It Away”)

Power Thought:

Do you want more happy than your heart can hold?

Power of Being Untouched By Grace

Key Scripture: “Then He touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith and trust and reliance (on the power invested in Me) be it done to you.  And their eyes were opened.”  Matthew 8:29 Amplified Bible

Power Point:

Have you ever met anyone whose lives have been “saved by grace” but not “touched by grace”?  By that I mean that they have allowed God to save them from hell but heaven doesn’t touch their lives. Would you like me to say that in English?

In I Corinthians 1 Paul says, “I thank God for your lives of free and open access to God, given by Jesus. There’s no end to what has happened to you--it’s beyond speech, beyond knowledge.  The evidence of Christ has been clearly verified in your lives.” Beloved, grace is supposed to make a difference in our lives. It’s supposed to be something we can “hang our hat on” for the rest of our lives. Grace is to bring comfort and encouragement and hope in dark times that God will be with us through it all. The power of Grace is God’s favor and blessing on our everyday lives so that we experience a true partnership with Him. The Spirit of Grace wants to rest on our lives and fill them with the same power, the same strength, the same wisdom and persistence that characterized Jesus when He walked this earth.

Grace is supposed to make a difference. We are supposed to be “living proof” that grace is a “good thing”.

Yet I see people who never think of asking God to help, or to strengthen or bless them. They are clearly unaware of the magnitude of grace for them. To me, that’s sort of like being married but never living in the same house as your spouse. You maintain separate residences. You have a legal contract but you never really exercise all the blessings and intimacy of marriage. You simply continue to date!

Beloved, we have entered into a contract with our heavenly Father and it has a lot of benefits! The chief one being allowing Holy Spirit to bring all that He is into every area of your life. We are supposed to “grow in grace.” If you’ve ever seen a couple that has been married for 50 or 60 years you see people who have grown in relationship, confidence, and comfort with each other. They didn’t continue to “date” after they were married; they realized the benefits and have grown closer over the years.

Jesus wants to touch your life. He went through a lot to redeem and rescue us from our old lives and give us new ones with “full access” to all that He has. He touched people and when His touch met faith, grace released blessing and people were changed forever.

I pray that Jesus will touch each of us today and open our eyes so that we can see grace in action and so that others will see the evidence of Christ in us verified in our lives.

Power Thought:

When Jesus touches us He brings heaven to earth. That's a good thing.

Power of A Prayer To Be Reckoned With

Power of A Prayer to Be Reckoned With           

Key Scripture “The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with.” James 5:16, The Message

Power Point:

I LOVE THIS PHRASE! Our prayers are a force to be reckoned with.  When we pray for people, or situations or countries, our prayers are a force to be reckoned with; they change things. The word for “fervent” means “to put forth power” . We are a force! In James the apostle has spent four earlier chapters talking about not letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. We can do that when it comes to prayer can’t we?  We can hear those promises about "whatever we ask will be done for us" and it sounds “nice” and then we are a bit timid about applying it. What if, in every prayer you prayed you began to declare to yourself, “My prayers are a force to be reckoned with”?  What if you got out some Post It’s and put that scripture all around your house.  What if you made sure that the foundation of your prayers was so filled with faith that God wants to answer them, is ready to answer them and reward your faith?  What are you saying?  Are your prayers a force to be reckoned with or an expression of fear, doubt and unbelief? What if you took that situation that you’re dealing with and set it firmly in Solid Rock Faith that God will do what He has said He will do, and He will be what He has said He will be. AND Beloved, (and this is really important) that you are who He says you are-a warrior, a disciple, His ambassador, a carrier of His name and presence and power of God to the world. Jesus didn’t have any unanswered prayers. His prayers were a force to be reckoned with and they burst open all the prisons, dissolved disease and broke through the gates of hell and set us free. We have that same power, Beloved. Holy Spirit loves to explode on the scene. He loves making a grand entrance and watching the enemy scatter. He’ll do that for you too. Believe it. Pray fervently and effectively with force and power. And have no doubt that you and your prayers are a force to be reckoned with.

Do you believe that? Do your prayers force mountains aside, and calm the seas?  Do they force earth out of the way so that heaven can explode here and now?

Power Thought:

If we really believe God  the force of our prayers will explode with all the powerful force of heaven.

Power Of An Attitude Of Gratitude

Key Scripture:  “Stay alert, with your eyes wide open in gratitude.” Colossians 4:2, The Message

“One of them, (the lepers) when he realized that he was healed, turned around and came back, shouting his gratitude, glorifying God.  He kneeled at Jesus feet, so grateful.  He couldn’t thank him enough.”  Luke 17:14, The Message

Power Point:

Recently we talked about “savoring the moment”. I want to amplify that a bit. When you are “savoring”, why not add an attitude of gratitude? In the story of the 10 lepers who were healed, in Luke 17, only one returned to say thank you.  Jesus was a bit surprised. He noticed. He said, “Were there not 10 healed?  Where are the 9?”  In Luke 10, after the disciples returned triumphantly from their first assignment, we read, Jesus rejoiced in His Spirit”. He was grateful.  In John 14:41, He says, “Father I’m grateful that You have listened to Me”.

I love it when people are grateful when I do something for them.  I think God probably is too!  When was the last time you made it a point to take a moment (or a few) and "be alert with your eyes wide open in gratitude” to Him? Could you do it right now? Could you ask Him to help you remember the things for which you can be grateful? May I help?

I’m grateful that He is faithful even when I am not.

I’m grateful that I know Him and that I know that He is for me and is working out every detail in my life for good.

I’m grateful that He is the Father of my family and He takes His role seriously.

I’m grateful for my home, my car, my poodles, my family, and my friends-not necessarily in that order.

I’m grateful for every promise He has given me to help me partner with Him to bring His plans and purposes into reality for me and those I love.
I'm grateful that when I take a leap of faith, He catches me.

Beloved, we are called to be grateful. It is a key to kingdom life. Paul said we are to “be thankful in everything”. Not for everything but in everything. If you’re in a tough place, begin to focus on the fact that you’ve made it this far. You’re still here!  Begin to vocalize your gratitude. Say it out loud-you need to hear it too. Did you notice a shift in your atmosphere when you began to think of things to be grateful for? When we “Choose Life” by choosing to be grateful, everything changes.

Psalm 100 says that we enter into His presence with thanksgiving. Gratitude opens your heart to Him doesn’t it?  Gratitude causes us to begin to think on the good not the bad, the beautiful not the ugly.  It causes us to think of all the “impossibles” that are possible for us with Him. It releases heaven to earth for us. 

Why don’t you try it? I think you’ll like it. It’s a good habit to form don’t you think?

Power Thought:

 “Do you see what we've got? An unshakable kingdom! And do you see how thankful we must be? Not only thankful, but brimming with worship, deeply reverent before God.” (Hebrews 12:28)  Can I hear an "Amen"? Louder please!

Power of Idleness

Power of Idleness           

Key Scripture:  “But I tell you, on the day of judgment men will have to give account for every idle (inoperative, nonworking) word they speak.”  Matthew 12:36, Amplified Bible

Power Point:

Have you ever seen one of those nifty little shiny red sports cars stopped at a stop-light?

It’s usually a guy trying to impress all the other people in their SUV’s and minivans. He sits there and idles his engine. He makes a lot of noise but he doesn’t go anywhere. That’s a good picture of what Jesus is saying in Matthew 12.  I used to think that He meant that I couldn’t tell jokes or tease my friends-that those were idle words. But I think the point that Jesus is trying to make here is that God’s Words, once spoken, never return without doing what He told them to do!  He says that they will have a positive prospering effect in our lives. 

God’s Word is alive and well. It’s infused with all that God is and all that He plans for us. It is never “idle” or powerless.  God never sits in His shiny red sports car at the crossroads of our lives and idles His engine.  He’s always ready to go. Just as rain prepares the earth for growth so His word prepares the soil of our hearts. If we use it “idly” or let it sit idle in our hearts and don't add our faith to it- it just won’t go anywhere and we'll live our lives in neutral.
It’s similar to when we’re told to not take the Lord’s name in vain. In addition to meaning “blasphemous”, "vain" also means that you must not let His name be without effect in your life. Don’t let it be in vain (fruitless, pointless or unsuccessful).

 What we do to make it the Word grow and flourish is of the utmost importance. We can't sit idly by and expect it to work. When we speak His words from our mouths without adding the power of our faith, we've just spoken them idly. God never doubts His word. We shouldn’t either. It stands to reason that we are responsible to know The Word, and His Words and then apply the power of faith that will make them active, energetic and powerful. He's given us His sword. It's up to us to learn how to use it.

You don't want to make a lot of noise and go nowhere do you?  Then don't let His name or His Word be idle and ineffective in your life.


Power Thought:

If God said it, I believe it. If I believe it, I'll act on it. If I act on it believing it, I'll succeed every time because God said it and I believed it. And I acted on it because I believed ... 

Power of Savoring the Moment

Power of Savoring the Moment

Key Scripture: “Think on and weigh and take account of these things-fix your mind on them.”  Philippians 4:8, The Message

Power Point:

Something I have incorporated into my life in the last few years is taking time to “savor the moment”. I do this several times a day, no matter where I am or what I am doing.  Savoring something means taking the time to step back and just be grateful for that moment. Have you ever “savored” a cup of hot chocolate sitting by a roaring fire on a cold day? You take that first sip and “MMMM Good!” It just hits the spot doesn’t it? I love to get up early. This morning as I sat down in my chair, I was savoring the moment. I am so grateful for these hours that I sit and chat with the Lord every morning. I can’t imagine life without them and I tell Him that.

Reagan savoring the moment

It’s all about a decision I’ve made to simply stop and be conscious of all that I have and what that one moment is offering to me. I can remember when my youngest granddaughter Hannah Joy was born, she decided to change her due date and come early. That meant that I was the only grandparent who could get there to help. I slept in my son’s king size bed, that night, or at least that was the intention. Shortly after I snuggled in, I heard JD say, “Gami, can I sleep with you?” Sure. Then in came Benny and of course Reagan Grace soon followed. My head began to spin with all the thoughts of what would be required of me the next few days and how much sleep I would NOT be getting. And then the Lord whispered in my ear that this was His gift to me.  As I lay there in a tangle of arms and legs throughout the night all I could think of was how grateful I was for those moments. I knew God would enable me to do what I had to do for the days ahead and I would let HIM worry about my energy level.  I just lay there with those precious children-my gifts from the Lord and savored every moment.

The key word for most of our lives today is “BUSY!”  We can get so accustomed to moving at warp speed we don’t enjoy anything we are doing. How different our lives would be if we did that. You see, “savoring the moment” is really an expression of faith isn’t it? It's stepping back and reminding yourself of Whose you are and all that you have.  I’ve seen people devour a piece of cake and never enjoy one bite. I’ve also seen people who slowly enjoy each bite.  The first person will quickly forget the “moment” while the other person will call it to mind as a pleasant experience, and the same joy that they had while eating the cake will return to them. As a young mother I would hurry through my days. Sometimes there were so many things to do I was constantly thinking about the tasks that needed to be done while forgetting to step back and “savor the moment”. Instead of stopping in midstream and giving my kids a hug or reading a book with them, I needed to get the laundry done. I wish I’d known then what I know now. The “things” will probably get done even if I take a few moments to “savor” and my kids would have enjoyed those moments and it would have taught them a good lesson as well.

Savoring the moment blesses us and it blesses God. It resets your mind on the good not the bad, the beautiful not the ugly, things to bless and not to curse. That’s really important Beloved. REALLY! So will you do it?

Power Thought:

When I forget to “savor”, Life loses its flavor!