Day 351: Life IS Funny (Part 1)

Ecclesiastes 9:11

I have observed something else under the sun. The fastest runner doesn’t always win the race, and the strongest warrior doesn’t always win the battle. The wise sometimes go hungry, and the skillful are not necessarily wealthy. And those who are educated don’t always lead successful lives. It is all decided by chance, by being in the right place at the right time.

Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

1 Corinthians 2:9

That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagine what God has prepared for those who love him.”

This is one of the last series of the  year, but for the next couple of days I just want to talk about how unpredictably funny life is. It’s crazy, I sometimes sit back and look at my life, and think, how did i get here? I never would have thought that I’d be in the pace that I am in this moment. But I am and all I can do is thank God for it.

The truth is life is very unpredictable, so unpredictable that it is funny. The things that God does in us and in our lives we could never imagine. Especially when we take a look back at where we were and who we used to be and see how far God has brought us, it leaves us with our jaws dropped. Because He is that good. He is a God of miracles and He works miracles in us. I guess the question I am trying to ask here is, did you ever think your would be where you are? Did you ever think that God could take you and make you into the person that you are? Did you ever think that god could enhance your life and your quality of living the way Eh has. We may not be the person we thought we were going to be at this moment in our lives but we are exactly who God wants us to be. We are exactly where He wants us to be and that is so much better than we could ever do for ourselves.

We all have plans and dreams and vision boards outlining our life and where we want to be in a certain amount of time. We have a plan, we know what we want and we think we know how we are going to get there. The thing about God is that HE knows  the end goal and He knows how we are going to get to where we want to be and it might not be in the time we thought or the way we thought, but when we get there we will know it was HIm. When we get there we can do nothing but laugh because we see how His hand was on us the whole time but better than that, how His plan was so much greater than our. His path is full of growth and love. God sees our plans and He sees our wants and desires and He is not ignoring them. Instead He is taking them and doing what God does, He is making them better He is making us better. He takes our plans and erases the path we thought we would take in exchange for the path HE already had picked out. Let me tell you, this path does not look like our but we will know that it is God’s. The funny thing about it all is that sometimes God’s path doesn’t look right to us. It doesn’t look like we are going in the right direction. When we’re looking at it from where are, sometimes it can look a bit crazy. But when we look back we see the bigger picture. We see the moments that needed to take place. The delays that needed to happen in order for us to get to where we were going. We see the little bumps that needed to be there to prepare us for where we were going.

This is why we put our faith in God. This is why we trust HIm with our life, because even when it looks wrong it’s right. Even when it feels wrong, as long as we are trusting in God it’s right. God’s path may be a bit harder and take a little longer but I can tell you that it is worth the wait. It is worth every moment. God has something so great for each and every one of us, there’s just some work that He needs to do in us as we make our way to it.

All this to say, we might know where we are going, but life is unpredictable. We might now know the next step or we might not know where our foot will land but we have to trust that God’s has a plan, and I can tell you that HE definitely does. When we get to that place that God wants us to be we can laugh in joy because we never would have thought we would be where we are and because we are so grateful that God is in control.

Response/ Prayer Time

Take the time to think about where you have been and who you were. Now take the time to see who and where you are. Thank God for all He has done in your life and just thank Him that His plans are so much greater than ours.

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening! Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 352!

Day 297: God's Discipline

Hebrews 12:3-11

Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up. 4 After all, you have not yet given your lives in your struggle against sin. 5 And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children?He said,

“My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline, and don’t give up when he corrects you.

6 For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.”

7 As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father? 8 If God doesn’t discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children at all. 9 Since we respected our earthly fathers who disciplined us, shouldn’t we submit even more to the discipline of the Father of our spirits, and live forever? 10 For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. 11 No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.

Now I know we’ve all been in trouble before, by our parents/guardians, grandparents, aunts, uncles, teachers, coaches. Maybe I’m just speaking for myself when it comes to being in trouble by everyone. I’m told it takes a village to raise a child and I turned out fine. However that’s not the point. We all know what discipline feels like one way or another. I can speak for everyone when I say it’s not fun, we don’t like it. The big kicker is when our parents discipline us, because they say they are doing it because they love us. Now when I was younger I was not here for any of it, I did not want to hear it. My mother was a firm believer in “spare the rod, spoil the child” with that being said, there was physical punishment. Every time we would get in trouble, when my mom was done whooping us, she would talk to us and tell us that she was only doing it because she loves us. Little did I know how much that discipline and correction would affect the person I became as I grew up. What I failed to realize is that this discipline was rooted in love, she could have easily let me do what I wanted, not corrected me, and watched me become something I was never meant to be. But she loves me too much. I did not understand it then but now I know that my parents corrected and disciplined me literally because they love me. They did not want me to grow up wild and not knowing the difference between right and wrong. They raised me the best they knew how, and I turned out great. Proverbs Proverbs 22:6 says “Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it.” My parents raised me right and I I grew I learned to appreciate that discipline, because it gave me direction and helped shape me into the person I am today. When we put that into context, how much more does God love us? He loves us immeasurably more than our parents ever could.

God disciplines us in the same way that our earthly father discipline’s us. God loves us so much He is going to correct us, He is going to discipline us, He is going to make sure that we stay on the right track. I love that the scripture labels these as encouraging words, because it is very encouraging. It’s encouraging to know that we have someone that loves us so much that He will not allow us to go down the wrong path if He can help it. Not only that but He gave us the Holy Spirit as a guide, giving us direction and correction. Sometimes we deliberately disobey Him, but that’s another topic for another day. God has a path laid out for each of us, and sometimes on that path we will have to endure times of correction and discipline. God does not discipline us because He’s mean and evil. No He disciplines us to train us, to help us, to teach us how to live a life that is pleasing to Him. We learn a lot from our moments of discipline, we learn a lot about our mistakes and the things we do. However we also learn that God loves us so much that He will not watch us destroy ourselves. He will not stand back and watch us ruin ourselves. No, God is too invested in us, we are His children. Imagine if God did nothing when He saw us straying away. Is that really love? God corrects those He loves, and He has blessed us with parents and guardians to do the same.

The thing about discipline is it doesn’t feel good. It’s painful, it hurts but sometimes it takes pain to grow. It takes pain to mature, I might have gotten in trouble for things when I was younger but I knew not to do them again. No, God’s punishment will not feel good, correction isn’t the easiest thing to take in, but it allows us to grow. It teaches us something. But after it all we will flourish, we will know what it is like to live right. To walk with Christ. It’s a part of growing up. We may not understand it now but when we look back we will be eternally grateful for God’s correction.

All this to say, don’t overlook God’s rebuke. He is not going around constantly looking for ways to punish us, in fact He is constantly drawing us closer to Him. He is raising us to be His children and He will discipline and punish us as He sees fit because He loves us. He loves us enough to hurt our feeling for a little while in order to make sure that we are walking and living how we are supposed to. He’s willing to hurt our feelings for a little while in order to teach us and raise us. Sometimes love is brutally honest and cannot spare our feelings, but it doesn’t mean that it is not love.

Reflection

1. Can you think of a time when your parents punished you and you can look back and be grateful for it now?
2. Can you agree that discipline is rooted in love?

Prayer Time

Take the time to pray to God and thank Him that He is a God of correction and that He loves us so much that He will correct us. Pray in whatever way you feel led. Just have a conversation with God.

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening! Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 298!

Day 294: Recap!

Day 288: Living Well Series (Part 3):Our Living is a Result of Our Loving

Today we continued with our "Living Well" series and we talked about how loving God and loving people is basically a way of living. We  proposed the question how are we loving, are we loving the way God wants us to love. We talked about how love changes the way we live. We focused on 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, Matthew 22:37-40, Ephesians 5:2, 2 John 15-6, John 12:34-35.

"When we come into the knowledge and understanding of God’s unconditional love towards us, it changes our lives, and ultimately changes how we live."

Day 289: Living Well Series (Part 4): Life is So Beautiful

Today we closed out our "Living Well" series. We talked about how beautiful life is, how beautiful life can be when we see it through the lens of God's eyes. We talked about how God raises us like a parent raises a child from birth to adulthood. We went into what it means for us to be born again, when we accept Christ into our lives. We focused on 2 Corinthians 5:17, 1 John 2:6, and Ephesians 5:1-2.

"As Christ begins to change our hearts, He begins to weed out the things that do not need to be there. Being born again is a process of purification, elimination, healing, it’s like a detox. He’s taking things from us that we don’t need and giving and equipping us with everything we will ever need."

Day 290: It's Possible!

Today we talked about how often times we look at living a sinless life as impossible. But all we have to do is submit ourselves to Christ and take the example He gave us and live how He lived. We talked about how Jesus gets it, He was born a human just like us and tempted just like us, yet He lived a life completely free of sin. We focused on Hebrews 4:15.

"God gives us strength in those moments of weakness to escape, He always gives us a way out. There is always another choice, another door to go through, we do not have to fall every time. God is standing right there with us in those moments but He will not make the decision for us. Sometimes we have chosen to be weak because it is easier."

Day 291: Waiting for "The One"

Today we talked about relationships and waiting for that special someone God has for us, we talked about how God has someone special for all of us and even though we have to wait, when the time is right it will all be worth it. We talked about how there is someone out there for all of us, and that God is the perfect matchmaker. I can't say too much or I'll give it away, you gotta read it. We focused on Matthew 6:33, Genesis 2:18, Jeremiah 29:11, and 1 Corinthians 13:4-7.

" Sometimes we settle for people that do not fit us, We settle for people not just because we’re lonely but because they have what we think we want. They have the whole package according to our standards. But what about God’s standards? What about His plan? We must get to a point where we are not willing to sacrifice our faith for pleasure."

Day 292: This Beautiful Image

Today we literally broke down Psalms 23 verse by verse. We talked about this beautiful image David paints in this passage with His words or poetry. But more important than that we talked about the beautiful image God is painting through the message of His word. We obviously focused on Psalms 23.

"God is beautiful. He paints these beautiful images with His word, but going beyond that, God is just so beautiful. I mean He did create beauty. Everything He touches is beautiful, all things from God are beauty."

Day 293: But Wait...There's More!

Today we talked about how God does more than we could ever ask for expect. We basically talked about how God is always outdoing us, and showing us up in the best way possible. We discussed how God goes a step further than what we'd expect and continues to pour His love and blessing out on us.

We focused on Malachi 3:10 and Ephesians 3:20.

"God will go above and beyond for us, because He loves us that much. Sometimes we are waiting for God to move in our lives, waiting on promises, and when they do come to pass God makes the wait so worth."

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening! Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 295!

Day 293: But Wait...There's More!

Ephesians 3:20

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

Malachi 3:20

Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!

Recently I had a realization, that no matter how big I dream, no matter how grand my plan is for myself and my life, God will always top that. It’s mindblowing to think about. Most people who know me know that I’m a dreamer, and I dream big, not only that but somehow someway all of my dreams are going to come to pass. It’s crazy when I sit and think of all the things I want out of life, and I’m reaching for the stars, I get a revelation that even in those moments God is bigger. Meaning He has a bigger vision, and a grander plan. That makes me trust Him even more. It pushes me to lean into His will a little more. God can do far beyond what we can ever think, or ask. That’s just a testament of how great God is compared to us, He expand our dreams, expands our faith, and expands our expectations. Simply because He is that good. I mean we’re talking about the guy who created the entire universe and everything in it.

When God blesses us, He really blesses us. It’s like a proud parent showering their child with gifts. God will go above and beyond for us, because He loves us that much. Sometimes we are waiting for God to move in our lives, waiting on promises, and when they do come to pass God makes the wait so worth. It’s a beautiful thing when we expect things from God. When we are waiting for Him to move miraculously in our lives, because He goes beyond our expectations. Over the summer I was really struggling with how we were going to pay tuition this year. I have struggling with this my entire time in school, and this times it seemed close to impossible. My family was going through so much financially, I couldn’t find a job, no one was willing to give me a loan and no one was willing to cosign. I found one person to co-sign and it got denied. Everything got denied. So I just kept praying and kept trusting God. I did not know how it was going to happen but I knew it was going to happen. But here’s the thing, I was expecting God to provide a loan approval, or enough money to start the payments. I called financial aid to see what they could do and they all told me there was nothing they could do. So I prayed some more and emailed the president of the school. Three days later I got an email saying, they would increase one of my grants. But wait...there’s more, they gave me a scholarship that would cover the rest of my tuition for not one but both semesters! I started screaming and broke out into tears, I was not expecting that but God went beyond my expectations and did something I did not even think of. Then I got offered not one but two jobs. I didn’t know how I was going to take care of myself financially, but I have four on-campus jobs. But wait...there’s more, I didn’t think I would get a refund check, but I went to the financial aid office and they had one there waiting for me, so now I don’t have to worry financially. God just keeps on blessing me, and it’s beyond whatever I could think or imagine.

-Dyamond

I think many times  it depends on our faithfulness, God will bless those who are faithful. He is looking at the ones who are constantly faithful to Him, and obeying Him. God sees that and He rewards the ones whose hearts stay with Him. This is not to say that we should only serve God for a blessing, but that faithfulness definitely pays off. Yes it pays off in eternity but it also pays off while we’re still on earth. We all have something that we want from God, continue to be faithful and wait what He will do. I’m a living testimony of what happens when God is faithful to us and we are faithful to Him.

All this to say, don’t underestimate God. Keep dreaming big and expecting God to move in your life and He will do more than you could ever imagine.

Reflection/Prayer Time

Just take the time to thank God that He is faithful. Take the time to pray and be grateful for who He is and what He does. Reflect on the times where you have seen Him move in your life. Reflect on the times when maybe you weren’t as faithful to God but He remained faithful to you. Take that with you as you pray today and pray however you feel led. Have a conversation with Him, if you need something tell Him, tell Him your greatest hopes and dreams and watch what He does.

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening! Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 294!

Day 287: Recap!

Day 281: God's Grace and Forgiveness

Today we talked about God's grace and not taking it for granted. We talked about how we often used God's grace as a freedom to sin because we know He will forgive us and continue to love us no matter what. We focused on Ephesians 1:7, Daniel 9:9, Hebrews 10:17, Acts 3:19, and 1 John 1:19.

"God is loving and graceful, and will love us forever no matter what we don. However, let’s value our relationship with Him enough so that we will want to live our lives with Him, and devote our hearts to Him. Not take it back whenever we decide that we want to sin and give it back when we want our conscious cleared."

Day 282: This Temporary World

Today we talked about how fleeting this world can be and how we must not put our trust in the tangible things, but rather put our trust and faith in God. We talked about how at the end of the day when all else is gone, if we do not have God we have nothing. We can have everything we ever wanted or dreamed of, but if we don't have Christ we have nothing because He is our everything. we focused on 1 Timothy 6:6-8, 17-19, and Mark 8:35-37.

"We cannot walk through life very long trying to fulfill ourselves off of worldly possession and tangible things. Now I’m not saying that we are to walk around denying ourselves the joys of the world. What I’m saying is, do not be defined or identified by the joys of this world but let your identity be in Christ."

Day 283: Faithful God

Today we talked about God's faithfulness, how even when we are unfaithful to Him, He remains faithful to us. We talked about how committed God is to His people. We also talked about how God will not send us someone who is unfaithful. We focused on 2 Timothy 2:13.

"When we have our moments of being unfaithful, He doesn’t stop being faithful us, instead His love for us remains the same, because that is who He is. God loves us so much that instead of walking away from us, He forgives us, and works through it with us."

Day 284: When Everyone Else Leaves

Today we talked about how God is always there for us and that He will never desert us. We talked about how sometimes people walk out of our lives, and sometimes we feel like we are going through it alone, or fighting battles on our own. But God is always there, even when we don't think He is and when everyone else leaves, He's always there. We focused on 2 Timothy 4:16-18.

"God loves us way too much to leave us. He will never leave us to live life on our own or fight by ourselves. Every second of every hour of every day He is right there with us. God never leaves us or walks away from us, we walk away from Him, and even then He is still protecting us and giving us life."

Day 285: Living Well (Series)

Today we started our "Living Well" series, where we will explore what it really means to live well. Today we talked about what that means and how in order to live well we must live like Christ, love like Him and walk like Him. Living well means having a relationship with God and a solid foundation in Him. We focused on James 3:13-18.

"We cannot live well, or have a good life outside of Christ."

Day 286: Living Well Series (Part 2)- Winning At Life

Today we talked about winning at life and how exactly we do that. We posed the question, "Are we really winning at life if we are not living with Christ?" We talked about the many definitions the world has for winning but Christ has already given us the tools we need to truly win. We focused on 1 John 5:12.

"As long as we have Christ we are winning, if we define winning at life by how successful we are, we will never truly be winning."

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening! Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for more of the "Living Well" series!

Day 286: Living Well Series (Part 2) - Winning At Life

1 John 5:12

Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God's Son does not have life.

Are you winning at life?

What does winning at life look like to you?

I’m sure we have all heard these concepts of “winning at life”. Buzzfeed had probably posted articles about how to win at life, buzzfeed also probably posted a quiz, that most of us probably took, about how to know if you are winning at life. When we think about this idea of winning at life, do we think of it as just something tangible. Are we thinking about winning at life as beating our enemies, or just being better than everyone else? How does it look to win at life? What doe sit mean? First let’s define that word, to win. What does it mean, according to my dictioanry.com app on my iphone, there are quite a few different meaning of the word. All the definitions are centered around success: to finish first, to succeed by striving or effort, to gain the victory, overcome an adversary. The slang definition is to be successful or competent and be acknowledged for it. These definitions are sometimes how we as people define ourselves. We always have to be first, we have to be the best. We have to prove that we are the best and the winners by constantly working hard. The last one hits close to home, we all want to be recognized for our success. We want to be acknowledged for winning at life. Often times we put up an image, most times on instagram, to make our lives look successful, and they might be. But how successful are we if we do not have Jesus? Are we really winning if we do not have Christ in our lives?

I can tell you right now that winning at life does not look a certain way as a matter of fact it lives a certain way. How we live determines how we win. What I mean is that we cannot win at life if we are not living in Christ. The very man who gave us life, how can we live apart from Him. To take that even further how can we win at life if we do not live in Him. It took Jesus to come from His throne in heaven to not only teach us how to live, but also it took His life so that we can have life. Before Jesus came we were dying in our sin, we were losing this game of life. Jesus gave us the tools we needed to win. Theres is only one way to win at life and His name is Jesus.  John 14:16 says. “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’”

The idea of winning at life is the idea of pushing hard to earn it, but with Jesus we didn’t earn it, He gave it to us. All we have to do is believe, all we have to do is give our hearts to Him. True winning is when we are truly submitted to christ, that’s how we win at life. We give our hearts to the man who gave up everything for us. Winning at life is still having life in eternity when everything of this world fades. When all else is gone and we still have Christ to hold on to, that’s how we know we’ve won at life.  See as long as we have Christ we are winning, if we define winning at life by how successful we are, we will never truly be winning. Because we are not always going to be or feel successful.

All this to say, winning at life is declaring our victory in christ, not in the world. Jesus gave us the tools we need to win at life, and we cannot live apart from Him.

Reflection

1. Are You winning at life?

Prayer Time

Take the time to talk to God about what we discussed today. Have a conversation with Him about what it looks like to win at life. Thank Him for Jesus, take the time to thank God for giving us a savior who has given us eternal life.

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening! Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 287!

Day 283: Faithful God

2 Timothy 2:13

If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny who he is.

This scripture had me shook when I read it. I brings me to the question when someone asks, “Who is God?” One thing we can say is He is faithful. It’s who He is, cannot be unfaithful. Have you ever met someone that is faithful even when the other person isn’t. He’s faithful even when we aren’t faithful to Him. What?! God is faithful to us even when we are unfaithful to Him. Where else are we going to find this kind of commitment? We are all looking for commitment in relationships, but we’re overlooking the commitment we already have. God is committed to loving His people and that means being faithful. He is committing to sticking to and following through on His word. God is here to stay and He will never leave. This is the type of commitment we are looking for but we are looking for it in the wrong places. We have someone who is going to love us eternally and unconditionally. We have someone that is going to remain faithful no matter what, someone who will never break a promise and always follow through on His word. Why are looking everywhere else to find it? More importantly, why is so hard for us to be faithful to Him?

I know many of us have been in relationships, but how many of us can say we will stay in a relationship with an unfaithful person? I know for a fact that I would not, and that’s why I’m not God, However there are many things I am willing to work through but there’s only so much of being unfaithful that I can take. However God is not the same, He is constantly working through it with us. When we have our moments of being unfaithful, He doesn’t stop being faithful us, instead His love for us remains the same, because that is who He is. God loves us so much that instead of walking away from us, He forgives us, and works through it with us. How amazing is that? That we have someone who will always be there. No matter what, we can always know that God is there for us. That no matter what we can always depend on Him. That’s beautiful! It’s amazing. One of the greatest example of God’s love for us and His want to be in relationship with us is Jesus. He sent His only son to die on a cross so that we may be saved and that we may have a relationship with Him. If that’s not love I don’t know what is.

The last thing I want to say is that God will not send us someone who is unfaithful Sometimes we are looking for someone to be faithful and love us unconditionally but we have not come into the knowledge or understanding of God’s love and faithfulness for us. Before we can fall in love with anyone else we have to fall in love with god. Before we have a relationship with anyone else we must have a relationship with God, because God teaches us how to love as well as be loved. God has someone for all of us, but don’t settle. God has someone that will be faithful to us and love us the way He loves His church. But in the meantime rest in God’s love and faithfulness.

All this to say, God is faithful. He is the most faithful person be will ever be in a relationship with. Let’s focus on being faithful to Him, and committing our lives and heart to Him.

Reflection

1. Have you ever been unfaithful to God?
2. Why do you think it is so hard for us to be committed to God and faithful to Him?
3. How do you feel knowing that someone loves you and will be committed to you forever, despite the things you do or go through?

Prayer Time

Take the time to thank God today, before anything just offer Him a prayer of thanksgiving. Tell Him how much you love and appreciate Him. Then pray in whatever way you feel led. But today I want you to thank God for who He is and what He has done for us.

Day 281: God's Grace and Forgiveness

Ephesians 1:7

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace

Daniel 9:9

The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him;

Hebrews 10:17

Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.”

Acts 3:19

Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord,

1 John 1:19

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

You can obviously see a pattern in the scriptures we are talking about today. We are going to discuss God’s grace and forgiveness and how sometime we abuse this. Have you ever continued to do something that you knew was wrong but you kept doing it because you wouldn’t be held accountable for it? Or have you ever kept doing something to someone because you knew they would forgive you over and over again? We may not have done it to the people in our everyday lives but how many times have we done this to God. How many times have we interpreted God’s grace and forgiveness to mean that we can sin and live however we want because God will forgive us anyway? Grace is not a sin for all gift card. We do not get to live any kind of way just because we know God will forgive and that His love will cover our sin. The thing about having a relationship with God is that once we give our hearts to Him, we will do away with all the things that kept us separated from Him in the past. That is when we grow in our faith, and in our relationship with Him. If we are constantly sinning just because we know He will forgive us, it’s like constantly cheating on a spouse because we know they will not leave us. What I’m saying is, just because we know we will be forgiven doesn’t mean we have to hurt the people we say we love. We do this to God too often, we take a chance and disobey Him, because we know that at the end of the day all we have to do is pray for forgiveness and we will have it, because God loves us that much. But can we love Him enough to not sin? Can we love Him enough not to just use Him as a grace card that we can swipe when we need our conscious cleared?

When we think about it, when we live like this are we really committed to God. When we are willing to give up a relationship just for pleasure that will only last a minute, are we really in a relationship with Him? Did we ever really love Him? Last time I checked leaving or hurting someone you love isn’t easy. When we have a relationship with someone that we truly love, we will fight for it. We’re not going to give it up that easy, we won’t cheat on someone we truly love because we take everything into consideration. How bad we will hurt this person, what it may mean for the relationship. Why do we not do the same thing for God, why are we only in a relationship with Him to secure our spots in heaven, go to church on Sundays, and live however we please the rest of the week?

All this to say, if we are going to commit ourselves and our lives to God we have to really commit. We have to be devoted in this relationship to Him. God is loving and graceful, and will love us forever no matter what we don. However, let’s value our relationship with Him enough so that we will want to live our lives with Him, and devote our hearts to Him. Not take it back whenever we decide that we want to sin and give it back when we want our conscious cleared. When we know better we do better. Not knowing or being ignorant is no longer an excuse when we encounter God and give our lives to Him.

Response/Prayer Time

Respond in whatever way you feel led. Allow that response to guide your prayer. Examine yourself and see if you have been taking God’s love and grace for granted. Then talk to Him, confess, ask for forgiveness, and allow Him to change your heart and influence your life.

I love you and I hope you have an amazing Day or evening! Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 282!

Day 274: The One He Left the 99 to Find

Luke 15:3-7

So he told them this parable: “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’  Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

This is one of my favorite stories in the bible. This story is followed up by a lost coin and the prodigal son. I love these stories so much because I can relate. I don’t like losing things, even if I have a thousand more, I will tear my room apart looking for that one, because it’s just as important to me as the other thousand, and when one is lost, I have to find it. There’s no other choice. I think that’s what Jesus was getting at here, when He told this story. When He talked about leaving the hundred sheep to find the one that had strayed away. Now many would ask, why would you do that seeing you have ninety-nine more. Count the one as loss and move on. I mean it seems to make logical sense to look at the ninety-nine and be satisfied even if one is missing. I mean you still have ninety-nine sheep, but not to Jesus, ninety-nine wasn’t the same as one hundred. Jesus had a different understanding of this story. Jesus didn’t come to leave any man behind, we see that in verse 7 when He says, “Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”

Jesus came to save those who are sinners, not those who were already saved. He could have spent His time with those who were already saved and living a righteous life, but what would that have done? Jesus was willing to come down and search for the lost hearts, the lost souls and bring them back. Jesus loves us all the same, but when He came He came seeking those who needed salvation, healing, freedom. That meant He has to leave the sheep that never left Him in order to go after the ones that strayed, because He loves us that much. He came for His lost children, and rejoiced when they repented. It’s almost as if Jesus came and said, ‘I need to go find my lost children. I need to go find the one that has strayed away and tried to go on without me. I cannot let them die, knowing they need me.’ He came with the intention of finding those who were lost. Jesus says even though we willingly turn away from Him, He’s still gonna come find us to bring us back. Even though we walk away, He’s always there to bring us back. Jesus knows that we cannot survive without Him, if we could He would have stayed on that throne in heaven.

When we put it in perspective we must come to the realization that we are that one. We are the one He left the ninety-nine to find. At one point in our lives we were the sheep that strayed, and Jesus came and found us. I don’t know if this is true for you but God never left me get too far when I strayed away from Him. He came and found me. He didn’t let me walk away and count it lost, because He loves me. He cares enough to come and find us even when people think we can be replaced. See the thing about God is, we cannot be replaced in His heart. If we could, do you think Jesus would leave the ninety-nine to find us. We are so special to Him that He had to come and find us. We have to understand that we as God’s people as His children, when we come into this life we complete the body of Christ. We cannot have parts of the body leaving and walking away and never being found. He will come and find us. Sometimes He will wait for us to return like the father of the prodigal son. He’s waiting with open arms to bring us back into His house, and throws a party when we return.

All this to say, we are so important to God. He loves us so much. He loves us so much that instead of replacing us, which He can do if He wanted, He leaves the ninety-nine to find us. To God we are worth it, to God we were worth sending His son.

Response/Prayer Time

Take the  time to respond to what what we discussed today in whatever way you feel led. Allow that to guide your prayer today. Take the time to thank God that He is so loving, caring, and gracious. Thank Him for salvation and repentance. If you are someone who needs to repent now is the time to do it. If you have not accepted Christ into your life and you want to, now is the time to do it.  

If that’s you, if you want to make that decision today, pray this prayer with me.

“Jesus I declare that you are my Lord and Saviour who died for my sins and was raised three days later. I repent of my sins and I give my life to you. I believe in my heart that you are the true living God. Thank you for saving me. In Jesus name, Amen.”

If you made the choice to follow Christ, rededicate, or to submit your life to Him fully, Go to Romans 10:9-10, If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening! If you made the decision to follow Christ today, congratulations! Please do not hesitate to reach out (to me or anyone else) and get plugged into a church. Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 275!