Isaiah 43:1-2 ESV, “….Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.”
Fear not! God is with you through it all. He has promised to never leave your side. He will not allow you to be overtaken by evil when you keep your hand in His. Every tribulation that you must endure, He will strengthen you to do so. In your weakness, His strength is made perfect. He is upright and just in all His ways. His wisdom far surpasses our limited understanding.
He loves you with an everlasting love and He will never fail you. No matter what you are going through, He is still God and He knows your name.
Psalm 150:6 NIV, “Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD.”
For some reason, when I read this verse, the first thing that came to my mind was butterflies. I wanted to know how they breathe. Per http://www.butterflywebsite.com, “Adult butterflies, as well as caterpillars, breathe through a series of tiny openings along the sides of their bodies, called “spiracles.” From each spiracle, a tube called a “trachea” carries oxygen into the body.”
Photo By: Suzy Hazelwood
We, along with butterflies, have breath in our bodies. We were created to give praise to our God. I heard someone once say that, “Praise is our way in, but it’s also our way out.” No matter where we find ourselves, praise will always lift us higher. It reminds us of God’s authority and greatness. It also reminds us of our purpose and puts things into perspective for us.
Everything we say and do should glorify and honor the Lord Jesus Christ, and give Him praise! Let everything that has breathe praise the Lord!
Hebrews 4:12 NLT, “For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.”
We have our way of thinking and God has His. As we grow in the knowledge of His Word, we should desire to abandon our own agenda, and our own way of thinking and follow His. His Word transforms us. It causes us to see things through His eyes and understand His perspective. His Word is alive and powerful. It exposes deception and speaks everlasting truth.
Photo By: Rawpixel.com
The Holy Spirit is always working to bring us into truth. As He refines our hearts, we must be willing to obey His instructions and make the necessary changes. Growing in Christ, means we will outgrow sinful ways and relationships that are not of Him. In order to accomplish what He wants us to accomplish, we must let go of what is not pleasing to Him, no matter how uncomfortable letting go may be.
Sometimes the things we are doing may not be sinful. They may be good things, but they are still not God’s plan for us. The ”good” things and people that seem harmless, can end up being the biggest hindrances in our walk with God. So we must let them go and move on. Otherwise we will not walk in our God given purpose.
God is always trying to take us to higher places in Him. But when He calls us, we must be willing to trust Him, take action and go.
Teachers are some of the first people we meet in life that have a significant impact on us. I admire them for the contributions and sacrifices they make everyday. I know that for them to do what they do, they must care deeply about others. I still remember the names of most of my teachers from grade school. To me, teachers are hero’s.
Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of joining The Teachers Ministry at church. The purpose of the ministry is to encourage teachers by showing them appreciation throughout the school year. (Below are two pictures from a recent event we had at the school.) One of the best parts of the ministry is the prayer box, where teachers are free to leave prayer requests so that we can pray for their needs. The leader of the ministry is a retired teacher who taught elementary school, and it’s been a blessing working with her.
Please remember to pray for the strength of our teachers as they begin this new school year. 1 Thessalonians 1:2 NIV, “We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers.”
Prayer BoxGrab and Go Snacks
I wanted to acknowledge some of my fellow bloggers who I know are teachers or retired teachers, and share their post related to the joys of teaching. Thank you for all you do, or have done, to help others through your gift of teaching. You are truly making a difference in ways you may never know. (If you work or have worked as a teacher or teacher’s aide in any capacity feel free to let me know in the comments.)
John 8:36 NLT, “So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.”
I awaken this morning reminded of what a privilege it is that we can lay our burdens at the foot of the cross. There is rest in Jesus. He takes care of us and will provide all we need. Thinking about His goodness makes me smile. His love brings hope, even in the situations that seem the most hopeless.
There is freedom in Jesus. Freedom from the grasp of sin and shame. Freedom from hurt and pain. Freedom from the lies of the enemy. In Jesus we have freedom to be all that we were created to be. We are free to walk in His truth and light. We are free to say no to the wicked ways of the world.
We are free to be confident in who He is and who we are in Him. The cross where He suffered and died represents freedom. In Him we have abundant life that far surpasses anything the world could ever offer us.
Photo by: Aaron Burden
My favorite hymn is called, “At The Cross” by Isaac Watts.
A few of the words are….“At the cross, at the cross where I first saw the light, and the burden of my heart rolled away. It was there by faith, I received my sight, and now I am happy all the day.”
Be blessed and have a wonderful Sunday. In Jesus Christ you are free!
Thanks big brother Matt @ Jesusluvsall for sharing your struggles with chronic illness and reminding us that Jesus understands any pain we must endure.
Because Jesus is eternal, there are multi multi multi faceted aspects to who he is and his ministry towards us. One aspect is that Jesus is our Sympathetic High Priest who understands our weaknesses because he lived in this world.
Last year I wrote about how Jesus Understands Trauma. Today my focus is about Jesus understand physical pain and what that means to me.
Living with chronic illness means living with pain. Some days there is less pain and some days there is more pain. I do not remember what it is like to not have pain. That has been the reality of my life for over 25 years.
Psalm 5:2-3 NIV, “Hear my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray. In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.”
When I read these verses it always stands out to me that the Psalmist waited expectantly. He knew that God heard his voice and that He would answer. He had faith and he had hope. It’s the same for us. We should pray and then wait expectantly. When we cry out to our God, He hears our prayers and will answer us.
Photo By: Torsten Kellermann
Every new day that God allows us to see, is a new chance for us to know Him more and experience His goodness. It reminds me of a song we used to sing at church when I was little, “Everyday with Jesus is sweeter than the day before. Everyday with Jesus, I love Him more and more.”
Jesus is our living hope, who made everything possible. He will never fail us. Never stop praying. Never stop believing. Never stop expecting. God hears you.
Drawing Closer to Christ 