Tag: God

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The Wonder of Water

All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place from where streams come, there they return again. Ecc 1:6

There is something beautiful about watching a river flow into the sea. To see them, born in mountains high and distant, rushing into the vastness of the oceans of our earth

What stories could those waters tell?

How many lives did they touch along the way?

Who thanked the river for the countless blessings it gave as it crossed their land?

Water is a miracle. It is the magic substance that all of life depends on, the stuff that we are made of

Earth is set apart from everything else we see in the universe by its water. It’s what makes this planet full of an abundance of life

Water is the solution that allows us to exist. All the millions of processes happening in us every second, occur only because of its incredible qualities

Its chemical properties are amazingly varied and unique. Water dissolves, transports, adheres, oxidizes, reduces, blends, and mixes. It flows, floats in the air, and becomes like a rock when it’s cold

It can gently wash the dust from a leaf, or, split solid rock and wear down mountains

On Earth it is ever present and life giving. All of life relies on its life sustaining properties

God has created an incredible world for us to live in. He has made this watery place filled with great abundance. It exists in a perfect balance of temperature, gravity, and mix of elements that ebb and flow, supporting this miracle we call life

Give thanks, be in awe of this wonder created by His hands. consider the wonder of water and its beauty; the power of the ocean when a storm has stirred it, when it creates mountainous waves of awesome power

Remember the beauty of a waterfall cascading over cliffs, the roar of rapids in a river at flood stage; the towering summits of thunderstorms white against the sky that pour flooding torrents of rainfall upon the land beneath

How beautiful to watch a river meet the sea, to observe it completing a cycle that gives life to all it touches

How distressing then, is it to see scarcity and pollution. Of lack, that has caused great suffering across this world

To see the flash floods and rising seas that threaten so many, or to hear about pollution that we have dumped into our precious waters; poison that has stricken many who have no choice in the matter

All these tragedies are of our own making, caused by a warming climate and the runaway waste of industry. Propagated by selfish and cost centered decisions that value wealth above our health

Water, one of God’s most miraculous substances is being defiled and altered

As we raise the earths temperature and reduce the quality of our waters, we place all life into increasing peril

God has made us responsible for what we do here within His glorious creation. It is up to us to clean up our waste and give honor to Him and regard all that dwells within His world

Consider, this day, what we are doing to our waters. Thank God for the wonder of its existence, then make a difference with your life.  11/12/2021

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Come Worship Our God

Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker, for He is our God and we are the people of His pasture, the flock under His care. Psalms 95:6-7

Give thanks to the Lord and praise His name, for you have been cleansed of all iniquity and your lives, restored

Lift up your voices to heaven, sing loud and strong unto Him, for we have been redeemed and given unending hope

He alone has saved us by snatching our lives from the fire. In our own power we could do nothing, but He looked upon us with favor and pardoned every sin

What joy! sing aloud! We have the promise of life forever

Give thanks, for He is worthy. Never forget, for He has given us every good blessing

Cast off your fears, He has overcome them. Lift up your hearts to Him. Return to God again and again and worship Him with love and a genuine heart for He has done what no one could do.

Oh faithful God of unending beauty and grace, we throw ourselves at Your feet. In awe with gratitude, we praise You, for we who were sick are now healed

We love You God, for You have done incredible things for us. You have filled us with the Spirit of truth and made our wretched lives sound

God, You have made each day new, and although everything around us is unstable, You remain true

We sing praises to You, oh Lord, we worship Your holy name; we sing out with joy and in love, for You are an amazing God

Oh what joy You bring and peace to our stricken hearts. We lift up our praises only to You, our Lord

We worship with all our strength, for You have healed us. When we had no hope, You came and raised us back to life.  1/15/2011

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Our God Rescues

I sought the Lord, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears. Psalms 34:4

Give thanks, all you who believe in the Lord, for He is good, and powerful to rescue those who trust in Him

Let everyone who has faith, offer thanksgiving to our God, because He has redeemed us from every trouble and from the sentence of death

He has rescued us from our wandering and given us a home within His Kingdom by His power and mercy

Some of us were found lost in deserts of despair, sentenced to dwell in hardship because of the poor choices they made

There, they had stumbled and found themselves lost, thirsting for a redemption from all that they were suffering from

They called out to Him in their anguish and our God answered them. He picked them back up on their feet and led them from despair

God brought them to a place of goodness and light and gave them hope instead of futility, mercy in place of the punishment they deserved for their actions

Let those who believe give thanks to the Lord for He is good

He delivered them from those dark times when hope became distant

Give thanks to The Lord for His unfailing love and for His great gifts of deliverance

Some were found in prisons, either literally or figuratively. They sat there behind bars, in chains, left to suffer a cruel punishment. Day after miserable day they dwelled in boredom and hardship, their very lives threatened by the dangers that lurked around them

When they cried out to their God in truth and in faith, He listened and drew near to them

At first, He gave them glimmers of hope, but then, as they continued to live a life of faith and humility before Him, He began to release them from their distress, Bringing them out of the darkness and deepest gloom, into the light of life

Let them give thanks to Him for His unfailing love, for He opened the most impenetrable doors and cut through bars of hardened steel

Some found themselves stranded in dangerous and difficult places threatened by situations that might injure or even end their life. Disasters, wars, crimes, accidents, mistakes, illness, and disease; People at the end of the line, clinging to life, in need of a savior

Some who were wise, reached out to their God. They cried out to Him for rescue, remedy, or a life rope of some kind. There, they prayed a prayer of deliverance

Then our faithful God came and rescued them from the grave, He reached out His hand, and snatched them from peril

God acts to save us every time from the troubles we face in life, because He is a God of love, forgiveness, and mercy

Let us all give thanks and consider the great love of our Lord.   10/30/2021

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Our Home, Earth

Blessed are all those who dwell in Your house; they are forever praising You.    Psalms 84:4

Blessed are we who live in this sanctuary called Earth, and those able to see and experience all its boundless wonders

It is of God’s own making, and He made it exceedingly well

How fortunate is the family of mankind to dwell in this house, and to have been born into this place of beauty and comfort

It is a temple of God’s creation fashioned for us to live in, along with all the multitudes of life

Blessed is the entire family of plants and creatures that dwells here. We are all a part of earth’s character, born of this creation

Each of us are linked together as a family in this world, sprouting forth on the surface of this planet

We are cast into orbit around our star, the Sun;

Lost among a million stars, but not unknown, as we swirl within our Milky Way

And rise outward, along with an untold numbers of other galaxies, within this universe of unsearchable length, depth, and time

It is all His making

It is all that we know of

Even if we could think of what lies beyond the distant boundaries of all we know, He would be there, as its creator and as it’s Spirit

Blessed are we who have life, how lucky indeed, are we to experience this miracle and see, touch, and feel all the wonders that life allows

Praise God, for His infinitely grand creation. Commend Him, for this crazy thing called life. It exists here on earth in all its incredible depth and complexity

Glorify our God, because we have life amidst this beautiful world

Life is precious, it is fragile, and exceedingly rare. There is no other place that we know of where it even exists

We believe some simple primitive forms may possibly live somewhere else, but we have not seen them yet, despite all our searching

The universe is wondrous, but it is also an exceedingly harsh place, to find somewhere else that is as soft and hospitable as earth may never happen

How far away will such a place be if one even exists?

God sent His own Son into this place as a gift to Earth’s current apex species, so that we might not die, as every form of life eventually does, but that we might have eternal life

And so that we could have a pathway through faith in Jesus Christ to live on past our present life, the miracle that it is, and live in the presence of God, the very maker of all we know that exists

It begins through faith in Him who made us and by our love and praise for all that He has done

It comes by glorifying Our God and His Son through the very expression of our life

For He is worthy, because there is nothing that is greater than Him

Praise God for His creation and for the gift of salvation through our faith in Him.  9/17/2021

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God Will Restore Us

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive our sins, and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

Our God has compassion for His people. He cares for them deeply. Though they sin and do terrible things before His face, still He forgives them

God looks out across the entire face of the earth and gazes at the imperfections of man. There is no hope for us apart from Him, no path of our own that leads to safety

He sees all of our sin, we cannot hide it in any way, yet we have a savior, one who can help heal our own afflictions and remove the weight of our guilt

The Lord is awesome. He dwells in unapproachable light. We cannot find Him on our own, yet, He has searched us out and offered us forgiveness and light

Our sins will eventually kill us, they will not allow us to live. But by the power of God in Jesus, we can be saved unto eternity in Him

He can bear the weight of our sin and remove it from us, forever

Great is this gift, and glorious for all those who go before Him, for they will be made as new, purified and whole

Thank God for His goodness. Sing praise for His love

He sees us falling and reaches out to catch us, so that we might live in all fullness and life

Blessed are all who go before Him, who cry out for mercy at His feet. For He is always quick to forgive those who have an honest heart. God will surely restore those who have strayed

Sin is our enemy and a fatal deception. It will sicken us and leave us empty so that we forget the goodness and power of our God

Thank God then, that He is always willing to forgive us

For all who approach Him with an honest heart will be restored without fail, so that they can live in all fullness of life once again.   10/14/2009

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God’s Love Compels Us

And let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds… Hebrews 10:24

In whatever God has placed before you, may you do it with all of your heart and endeavor to complete it with all of your strength

Let your effort be an inspiration to others, so that they might be encouraged along the way

May your work stand out from that of others, and be noticed, not necessarily for it’s volume, but, by how it shows forth the passion of your heart to accomplish the good inspiration that flows forth from God

There is a drought upon this earth. A scarcity of good will and good works. Love is found lacking and the flow of charity has begun to dry up

May you listen to God’s will for your life which has been directed towards your heart, that you might change the entire course of your life and lean towards whatever God’s love compels in you

Produce good works. Be honest and trustworthy. Lead by a good example. Meditate upon the great love of God

Consider His blessings, and then bless those who surround you

Be consistent with God, for He has never left Your side. Make every effort to stay close to Him, so that the Lord, our God, will draw along side you and assist you each day

He will provide encouragement so that your efforts will be reinforced. For in God lies all our strength and the foundation of all truth, which will direct us towards every good path

There is no part of our life that is greater than small. We can do nothing apart from God. He does not need us in any way, still, He loves us and cares deeply for our lives

He chooses us, so that we might work alongside Him. That we might know the joy of His goodness, and the power of His love

Even though we can never understand His ways, we can taste, and know, experience, and have faith, that there is nothing more glorious or awesome, than Him.  9/20/2007

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Wake Up, This is Real

 

If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy them; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple. 1 Corinthians 3:17

This world is changing, our climate is warming, the balance of our living world is degrading and few of us are paying attention

It appears, that the ways in which our climate is changing does not easily set off alarms in us. Perhaps it is happening at such an incremental rate that it defies our deep perception

We notice things are different, but we endure or adjust, and then move on. This  has left us profoundly vulnerable to this danger

Wake yourself, arouse your mind and sharpen your perception, become an observer and listener of nature. This is more important than we realize, a problem which will be difficult to recover from

Never forget that this planet was made by our God, created for life and for wonder. It is a miracle of His work

Do you think God applauds its destruction?

Many say they don’t see the climate changing. Look more intently, study the data determined by the experts.

Remember the harm you have seen across the lands nearby. Recall the gigantic fires, the powerful storms, the unusual freezes and unrelenting heat; the devastating droughts, and all of the collective damage done so far

Sense the enormity of environmental stress that covers most of the world now. It is all there for you to see, just open your eyes and understand

Some say it is a hoax or scheme to defraud us. But, why are so many brilliant people telling us there is now no doubt?

Climate change is happening. It is real, and our own actions are to blame. The real hoax may lie in the disinformation and lies spread abroad, sowed by those who can gain by creating confusion and distrust in the truth

Our God is a God of justice and righteousness, He considers those who act justly, and those who aspire towards what is good, but He is against anyone who acts selfishly and propagates lies

How do you think He feels about those who are damaging this precious Earth?

Some say it is our right to subdue this World that God gave us to live in. But we have gone far past overcoming the challenges of living on this planet

Never has there been so much destruction wrought upon our land, seas, and air; harm that has affected all life, especially our poor and our defenseless, the ones God calls precious in His eyes

Oh Lord, I pray for our collective climate awareness, that we might sharpen our focus upon this threat. Please help us grow closer and more united as we seek to find good solutions

We elevate you, the Lord of the heavens and of this Earth, so that we might regard You in all our ways, that justice may be served, and the health of our world, upheld

May we always acknowledge You, as we work to restore the bountiful abundance of this world, so that it may be well for us, and for all who live here, and so that You may be forever praised for your all Your awesome works. 3/5/2021

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Seek Unity in Christ

“Even from your your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard!” Acts 20:30

How wonderful it is, when God’s people can get along with each other, when our differences can be overlooked, and our judgements, dismissed

Joy bursts out when the followers of Christ lay down their arms and focus on the greatness of His salvation, which renders every element of discord as petty and meaningless

Blessed are the peacemakers in the eyes of our God. For they see and understand His incredible mercies. They recognize the dangers that arise from divisions within our ranks, and seek to mend and heal that which has become a cancer within our society

Who are they, who seek to fan the flames of division? Are they not our enemies?

And what do they hope to gain from their actions? Is it not to persuade us away from peace for their own gain?

Wake up America, and listen, all you people of the world; Seek peace, and turn your ways towards the righteousness of God

Bring together all of God’s children through the outworking of His love, so that God’s perfect work may abound within us

There is an extreme level of anger and division building within our world. It threatens to overrun us, and take away our liberty

I have seen that everyone who joins into the discourse of division believes they are right, but each one only aids and abets the mistruths of our enemies

Believe and trust in the truth of God, for it is where our strength and peace resides

Live according to His ways, and have faith in the saving grace of Jesus Christ. For without these we will revert to our old ways of sin

Stay away from all who cause divisions, who claim to be righteous only to further their own cause. Avoid their messages, for they seek to divide us to one side or the other, so they can gain power, riches, and control

We are one in Christ, and each of us is a child of God

Our God is truly a God of love, justice, and mercy. How do you think He regards those who scheme to divide us?

Most often we never meet or see the purveyors of these lies. They hide within cyberspace, or talk in carefully crafted media. Some are not even real, but computer-generated algorithms designed to amplify their effect

Do not get caught in their trap, or be persuaded by the shocking tone of these staged opinions, for they are skilled in crafting their message and given to deception

Consider then, the quality of the ‘fruit’ that results from their words. Do they create harmony, or foster discord? Will it help to bring peace between those on both sides of the issue?

Does the message build up the Church as a whole, and not seek to separate some to one side and the rest to the other?

Pray that God will give us a spirit of unity and love in these times.  3/18/2021

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In Christ We Overcome

“I have told you all these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” John 16:33

The accuser ever stands ready to strike at us. He bends the truth and good judgement in order to bring us down. Yet, the truth of God remains forever

He wars with us, in order that we might fail, and yet, if we persevere we will be made stronger

God allows what He chooses to allow. It may not be our desire, yet in His wisdom, He ordains for things to be as so, and allows suffering into our lives as a kind of medicine so that we might more fully know the truth

How small we are in understanding, but God is great beyond measure

Our accuser beats upon our weak spots and tries to convince us that we are condemned. Yet, God has promised that this can never be. For He loves us, even giving us His Son so that we can be saved

If we trust in Christ, we are never lost or forsaken from God

The accuser may tempt us to give up our faith. He may argue that we are of no value to God. But God has called us His most precious and beloved in all of creation, and that His love for us stretches from before time until forever

We are, indeed, powerless in our own strength. Our wits are no match against our enemy, to help us in this battle. For we are only flesh and blood

Only in God are we made strong, and only through His strength are we made alive

Our trust throughout our life can only be made sure in Him

We fail each day, but God will never fail to uphold us. He will show us a way that leads us to safety

We will have doubts and stumble on stones cast before us, yet, God’s love will set us upon our feet, and steady us when we become unsure

Therefore, remain patient in afflictions and wait for the Lord. Trust in Him, for in all things, both good and bad, He is at work beside us, making our strength more affective and building up our faith

Afflictions are actually gifts wrapped in pains and suffering; But, when received open us to greater fellowship with God

Endure, be patient, Give thanks to our Creator and King. Sing praises to Him, for He is worthy

For no matter if we stand or if we fall, or are brought low in our afflictions, God is at work in us, bringing us closer to Himself. For His love for us is greater than our understanding.  6/17/2005

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A Benediction For Renewal

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11

May the Lord draw you near this day and remind you of His presence, so that you might remember your place in Him, and be restored towards a completeness in faith

On this day, come back to your God. Return from your wandering, so that you might be made whole again, and be healed from the wounds that sin has inflicted upon you

May God richly bless you this day with the revealing of His truth and wisdom. So that you may see clearly the road ahead, and begin again, to follow His ways of living

By His power and through His love, He will begin to restore every broken place, and lift up those who may be broken, to renew them by His truth and goodness

May the Lord of righteousness, walk with you each day, our one true savior, and heal those wounded places, so that you may be of sound mind, body, and soul

Cease from your wandering. Leave behind, those things that cause desolation. Build up your life within the strength of God, and be made new

May you come before the Lord each day; and with each waking of the morning, return again to Him, so that you might call upon His name, and listen

Never tire from seeking our Lord, for He will return to all who look for His presence, and will soon be beside those who desire His friendship

Cry out to God, and come back home to a place of safety and communion with Him

Return, once again, and be filled with God’s Spirit and truth. There you will find a safe haven from the storms of life

May the Lord always remind you of His love for you, and bring to remembrance  the magnitude of His goodness. For all good things come from Him. All that has ever been a blessing in your life, has been a gift from God

Sin is a liar. It promises, but always withdraws true reward. Instead, it’s bite is like a venomous snake, which shows no mercy upon its victims

May God continue to deliver you from every form of evil, and draw you near today, so that you may be filled with all fullness of life.  11/18/1006