Day 318: Light Up My World

2 Peter 1:18-21

18 We ourselves heard that voice from heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain. 19 Because of that experience, we have even greater confidence in the message proclaimed by the prophets. You must pay close attention to what they wrote, for their words are like a lamp shining in a dark place—until the Day dawns, and Christ the Morning Star shines in your hearts. 20 Above all, you must realize that no prophecy in Scripture ever came from the prophet’s own understanding, 21 or from human initiative. No, those prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit, and they spoke from God.

We all have that one thing or that one person that just lights our world up. Making us feel good and cozy on the inside, we all have that one thing that makes us feel like no matter what it going on everything will be alright. No matter how I’m feeling when I come in contact with this person or this thing everything is fine. There’s something for all of us that just lights our world up, you might not be able to point it out now, but you know what it is when it comes up. That’s how the word of God lights up our life. It’s a light to our path, there’s something about walking with God and knowing that no matter what He’s always with you that lights up our world. He comes and turns everything upside down in the best way possible. God is just so amazing He lights up our world. Sometimes I can’t help but be taken away with how great He is. I can’t help but fall into His presence and worship Him, because He brings so much into my little world and life. God improves our lives so much, and improves who we are as people. No one can light up our life the way God can, He provides a light brighter than every light on the earth. He provides a joy that we can get nowhere else. The word of God is what will lead us to eternity. We listen to the words of the prophets and we still have faith in this beautiful book written thousands of years ago because it never failed. This word came straight from God, He used people to show us a way that was and is better than ours. His word gives us the opportunity to have a relationship with Him and live a life lit up by Him. He lights everything up in our life. God is the one person that no matter what is going on in our lives we know that as long as we have faith in Him we are alright and the proof is in His word. The beauty of this cannot be described in words.

His word is like a lamp to our path, as the scripture says. God’s word is direction for our feet. He lights up every step that we take, He directs us and leads us where we need to go. Everything we could ever need, the answer is in His word, if we are looking for direction it can be found in His word. If we are looking for a way out of darkness the answer is in His word. The beauty of God’s word is that it gives us so much, a while ago I heard someone say the acronym for the Bible was, Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. The word of God has the tools that we need to survive, and by survive I mean so much more than just getting by day-to-day.

All this to say, the word of God has provided us with a way to sustain while here on earth, it has instructed us to live while we are still here but to look forward to what is to come. When we read the word we see the countless wonders of God. We come to know the magnitude of God’s love for us, knowing that someone loves me enough to continuously pursue my heart and send His son as a sacrifice lights up my world. None of this will be known without the word of God. That is why it is so important for us to read Gods word and dive into it, because it is through His word that we gain an understanding of who He is. It is through God’s word that He is able to light up our lives.

Reflection/Prayer Time

Has God lit up you life? How? Take the time to thank God for His word and thank Him that in the midst of darkness He brings light, and that He is constantly lighting up our life with His love and goodness. Take the time to praise God for all He’s done and more than that just who He is.

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 319!

Day 298: Act on the Word

James 1:22-25

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.  For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.

Growing up my mom could always tell when we weren’t listening to her. It was less about how we reacted to what she was saying and more about how we acted based on what she was saying. When we acted in a way that we were not supposed to or did something and it went wrong she would always say it was because we weren’t listening, and I’d say, about 100% of the time she was right. She would say, “Everything I’m saying to you, goes in one ear and out the other.” Meaning, we acted like we never heard a word she said.

I share this because I believe that it is important for us as Christians to do more than just hear the word. We must act on it, we must do what it says. Living like Christ is more than just reading the bible, it’s living it out. We are walking, breathing bibles. How can we call ourselves Christians if we are not living by the word of God. We cannot have the word go in one ear and out the other, we must be doers of the word. We read the bible, but that’s not enough. Atheists read the bible. We must allow the word of God to take root in us, we must allow it to influence the way we live. Hearing the word of God is great, but how are we going to put it into action. The bible isn’t just some fun book to read, although it can be (read the old testament), it is a life instruction manual. It tells us how to live, and how to love. The word of God is everything we need to know how to live.

Too often we act as if reading the bible is enough. We read every morning, we pray and we’re good, we’ve spent our time with God for the day. It is so much more than that. We take the word of God with us wherever we go because it is in us. It has take root and manifested within us. We do not sit Jesus on a shelf once we are done with Him that’s not how it works. God is with us in every moment of our lives. He’s right there. We cannot read the word of God and not allow it to take root in us and change the way we live. We cannot forget the word of God as if it has no impact on us. We must be a doer who acts not a hearer who forgets.

All this to say, the word of God is meant to be lived. It is meant to influence the way we live. We cannot be just hearers of the word, we must be doers as well.

Reflection

1. Are you a hearer and a doer of the word
2. Have you had a moment in your life when you thought that reading the bible and hearing the word was enough?
3. At what point did you decide to be a doer of the word?

Prayer Time

Allow you answers to the above questions guide your prayer today. Take the time to search yourself and submit your heart to the Lord. Take the time to talk to God about allowing His word to influence the way you live.

If you’ve never made the decision to live for Christ, or you want to rededicate your life. If you want to be brought into this magnificent promise of eternity, now is the time to make that decision. If that’s you if you want to make that decision, 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. I pray that you shine your  light on me and bring me out of the darkness and into your light. I love you Lord. 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 so much. If you made the decision to follow Christ today, congratulations, this is the best decision you will ever make. Do not be afraid to reach out and get plugged into a church. Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 299!

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

2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

1 John 2:6

the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.

Ephesians 5:1-2

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.

As this series comes to a close, today we are going to discuss what this entire series is about in the first place. It’s about our living, how we lives and does it imitate Christ. Coming to Christ means changing the way we live, and this is not a change that we can make on our own. We become a new creature when we give our lives to Christ, everything that we used to do that kept us separate from Him is gone. The life we used to live that was not pleasing to Him, yeah that’s gone too. We are a completely new creation. We are born again, we have a clean slate, and it’s like we get another chance at life, this time to do it right. It’s beautiful. I love the idea of being born again, because a newborn baby is so pure, so righteous, so clueless, and as that child grows they learn, from their parents how to live, what is right and wrong. Their parents raise them the best way they know how. However as humans we are born into sin. So when we give our lives to Christ it’s like coming into life all over again. We are so pure, so full of faith, and passion for the Lord. Through Christ we are adopted into the body of Christ. We have accepted Him as our Lord and Savior and from that point on God raises us to be more like Him every day of our lives. He raises us to live like Christ, He gives us an example, Jesus, and a guide, the Holy Spirit. He raises us like a parent raises a child from birth. The only difference is, God never stops raising us. He’s constantly pouring into us. Revealing Himself to us. Teaching us about who He is, how we are to live and love. It’s a beautiful life. God literally teaches us how to live well.

As we grow in Him, our lives begin to change to fit His will, not the other way around. Sometimes in life we will find moments where we are tempted to pick and choose what parts of the bible are “for us” and what parts are not. With that being said, some things are very hard to swallow, However, we must commit ourselves to following Christ with every part of our being. Every part of our lives must be wrapped up in Christ. There is no part of us or our lives that should be separate from Him. 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. We start to give up those things that we thought we needed and wanted and we begin to latch onto the goodness of Christ. We begin to live like Him. We begin to see the world through the eyes of Christ. That my friends is living well.

All this to say, as long as we abide in Christ and walk like Him, allowing the word of God to penetrate our hearts and take root, we are living well. (Run-on sentences for days) Life is beautiful, and when we live abiding in Christ we are overtaken by the beauty of this amazing life.

Response/Prayer Time

Take the time to respond in whatever way you feel led. Have a conversation with God, thank Him that He is a God of second chances and that He raises us to be the people He wants us to be.

I love you so much and I hope you have an amazing day or evening! Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 290!

Day 264: Our Way

Genesis 15:2-5

But Abram replied, “O Sovereign Lord, what good are all your blessings when I don’t even have a son? Since you’ve given me no children, Eliezer of Damascus, a servant in my household, will inherit all my wealth. You have given me no descendants of my own, so one of my servants will be my heir.” Then the Lord said to him, “No, your servant will not be your heir, for you will have a son of your own who will be your heir.” Then the Lord took Abram outside and said to him, “Look up into the sky and count the stars if you can. That’s how many descendants you will have!”

Genesis 16:1-5

Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had not been able to bear children for him. But she had an Egyptian servant named Hagar. So Sarai said to Abram, “The Lord has prevented me from having children. Go and sleep with my servant. Perhaps I can have children through her.” And Abram agreed with Sarai’s proposal. So Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian servant and gave her to Abram as a wife. (This happened ten years after Abram had settled in the land of Canaan.) So Abram had sexual relations with Hagar, and she became pregnant. But when Hagar knew she was pregnant, she began to treat her mistress, Sarai, with contempt. Then Sarai said to Abram, “This is all your fault! I put my servant into your arms, but now that she’s pregnant she treats me with contempt. The Lord will show who’s wrong—you or me!”

Genesis 18:10-15

Then one of them said, “I will return to you about this time next year, and your wife, Sarah, will have a son!” Sarah was listening to this conversation from the tent. Abraham and Sarah were both very old by this time, and Sarah was long past the age of having children. So she laughed silently to herself and said, “How could a worn-out woman like me enjoy such pleasure, especially when my master—my husband—is also so old?” Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh? Why did she say, ‘Can an old woman like me have a baby?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return about this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.” Sarah was afraid, so she denied it, saying, “I didn’t laugh.” But the Lord said, “No, you did laugh.”

Genesis 21:1-5

The Lord kept his word and did for Sarah exactly what he had promised. She became pregnant, and she gave birth to a son for Abraham in his old age. This happened at just the time God had said it would. And Abraham named their son Isaac. Eight days after Isaac was born, Abraham circumcised him as God had commanded. Abraham was 100 years old when Isaac was born.

For some reason we sometimes think we know more than God. For whatever reason we think we know more than the all knowing, living God. We somehow think that we are smarter and that we know what’s best. You ever decide to do God’s job for Him because He’s not moving fast enough or He’s not doing what you want Him to do? I know I have, I can only speak for myself, but sometimes I can get impatient with God. Sometimes I decide that my way, my plan, and my ideas are better than His. I end up looking like an idiot in the end.

I feel like someone who can relate to this is Sarah, or Sarai, she was still Sarai when these passages started (God likes to change names). However in this familiar story, Abram is told by God that he would be the father of many nations. Abram was past childbearing age and so was Sarai, so his concern was, I don’t have a child who will be my heir? God then promised him that he will have an heir, and numerous descendants, countless descendants.

Stop right here, you ever worry about something and God is like, ‘don’t trip I got it handled’? That’s basically what God is doing here, He’s like Abram, you don't have any kids now, but you will have a plethora of descendants and they will outnumber the stars in the sky. God never told him when that heir would come, but He told him that it will. We may not know when God is going to do something but we must have faith that ‘s He’s doing it.

Moving on to the next passage when sarai decides that she’s tired of waiting on God to give her a child. In other words she takes matters into her own hands. Sarai is getting old, way past child bearing age, So she’s like Abram, sleep with my maid Hagar, so you can have a child, and we can have a child through her. Let’s stop right there. In her eyes Sarai was doing what was right, she was doing the only thing she thought possible. A common mistake we make when we exclude God from the equation. She didn’t want Abram to go on without an heir so she decided to find a way to give it to him. Most likely in her eyes she was being a good wife. Abram agreed with her, despite what God had already told Abram, he agreed with his wife, instead of standing on God’s word. It’s not stated how long it’s been since Abram received the promise from God, but I get the sense that he is tired of waiting. I think we all know what it’s like to be in both Abram and Sarai’s position. We try to do what right not realizing that it’s not what God wants. It doesn’t come from a place of malice or anything like that, we just want things to go right, but we do it our way, not God’s way and it never works out. We see that in the passage when Hagar begins to act towards Sarai with contempt because she is having and has had Abram’s child, Ishmael. His first child might I add. God is not a God of confusion.

When waiting on God, and looking at a situation that seems impossible we begin to doubt the power of God. Sarah, (her name has changed) hears that she will be pregnant within a year. This is a message from God sent through a visitor. When Sarah hears this she laughs, and she’s basically doubting what God is saying. Like, ‘yeah sure an old worn out woman and an old man are going to have a child. Yeah God, sure, you’re funny.’  But God proposes the question if there is anything too hard for Him. I’ve been in positions where I have felt like not even God could help this mess. Everytime He has proven me wrong. But when we think about it, no there is nothing too hard for God, nothing. He makes the impossible possible. We’re talking about the same man that created the entire universe.

Then God does exactly what He said He was going to do. He said Abraham and Sarah would have a child and his name will be Isaac. Isaac could only come from Sarah and Abraham, so no matter how many maids Sarah got to sleep with Abraham none of them would have been Isaac.

All this to say, we have a way that we think is right and there is a way that is even better than ours. God has a plan for all of us and it may take time to come to fruition but when it does, all the waiting will be worth it. We do not know more than God. It’s easy to take matters into our own hands because we think we know what we’re doing, but when we compare our knowledge to God’s we literally have no idea what He has in store for us. Trust God’s way, it’s so much better and easier in the long run.

Reflection

1. Have you ever had a moment when you decided that God is taking too long so you decide to take matters into your own hands?
2. Have you ever felt like something was too hard for God?
3. Have you ever tried to do God’s job for Him?
4. What have you found about trying to do things your way versus god’s way?

Prayer Time  

Allow your answers to the above questions guide your prayer. Talk to God about what we discussed today and have a conversation with Him.

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 265!

Day 259: Know It All?

1 Corinthians 8:1-3

Now regarding your question about food that has been offered to idols. Yes, we know that “we all have knowledge” about this issue. But while knowledge makes us feel important, it is love that strengthens the church.  Anyone who claims to know all the answers doesn’t really know very much.  But the person who loves God is the one whom God recognizes.

Knowledge is one thing, it makes us feel important and smart. However it is not everything. Knowledge does not take the place of love. I love this scripture because it points out the fact that we sometimes think we know it all. We sometimes think that having knowledge of who God is and the word of God takes the place of having an actual relationship with Him. We use our knowledge of the word to make ourselves superior to others.

For example, I’ve talked to many atheists who have read the bible back and forth, some of them even went to seminary or have degrees in theology. Yet they do not know the love of God. I have had people try to use their knowledge of God’s word to try to convince me that He isn’t real. Crazy right? I would always end up saying, you know so much, but you know nothing at all. Meaning they were very smart and versed in all things theology, but the love of God cannot be found in theology books. They read the bible not as spiritual food but as a way to enhance their own intelligence.

I can quote a scripture from remembrance, and tell you where to go in the bible for certain things. I can give you assurance that I know what I’m talking about, I went to theology school, I’ve read the books passed the classes. I can tell the Hebrew meanings of things, but at the end of the day, does it really matter if I cannot tell you about my relationship with God. Does it matter if I cannot tell you about the love of God and how His word is like a love letter to us, His children? Does it really matter how intelligent I am and well versed I am in the bible if it has taken no root in me? It doesn’t  love is much more powerful than my knowledge. My knowledge can only go so far. I can read as many theology books, attend a million conferences, get a Phd in theology but if I don’t have a relationship with God I have nothing. If I am not walking and living in love what am I doing? I don’t think God cares if I can quote a thousand scriptures off the top of my head (I’ can’t) if I am not living by what it says.

I think sometimes we get caught up in the aspect of wanting to know everything about God. Wanting to know the history of the bible, and definitions. We want to know more, but if that want or desire for knowledge is driven by the need to feel and look important it’s useless. There are things to know about God that cannot be found in a book. There are things we can only understand through the Word of God, revelations given to us directly through and by Him. We grow in our faith because we are drawn closer to the Lord everyday that we wake up, we pray because it is how we communicate with our heavenly Father, it is how we keep the relationship going. Having a relationship with God is built on more than just knowledge, it’s built on love, and through this love we find strength. It’s like saying that a relationship is more than just sex, or physical stuff. There are layers to the person we are in a relationship with, and the more we know about them the more we fall in love with them. I mean eventually if we are in a relationship with someone just for the physical stuff it’ll burn out pretty quick. What I’m saying is, we can have all the knowledge in the world but we’ll always want more. Living our lives or basing our relationship with God solely upon what we know will burn out eventually. We will always want more, we will never be satisfied with what God has given us, because that desire to want more knowledge is constantly burning within us.

All this to say, we don’t know it all and that’s actually more than okay. It’s good. In our lack of knowledge we find that we draw closer to god because we want to know Him. Not because we want to boast about how much we know about Him. Knowing God and knowing of God are two completely different things.

Response/Prayer Time

Respond in whatever way you feel led. Whatever spoke to you most about today respond to that and then pray about it. Have an honest conversation with God. Allow him to search your heart and check your motives.

I love you and Hope you have an amazing day or evening! Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 260!

Day 256: People's Opinions

Proverbs 29:25

It is dangerous to be concerned with what others think of you, but if you trust the Lord, you are safe. (GNT)

One of the greatest lessons God has taught me is to be confident in who I am and who He has made me to be. He has allowed me or taught me to see myself the way He sees me. To love myself. He has taught me not to view myself through the filter of my peers. He has made me who I am and I am not subject to succumb to the opinions of others. We are not made to live in the shadow of someone’s opinions. Opinions didn’t make us, so they most definitely do not have the power to break us. I have found freedom in not caring about what others think. That was something that held me back for a very long time in every area of my. The grave fear of, “What will people think?” “What will people say?” The more I thought about that, the more it destroyed me, because one thing my mom always taught us is, no matter what, people will always have an opinion. People will always have something to say. Then she would follow it up by saying something like, “it’s a good thing you aren’t living for their acceptance. Ever since I was a little girl my parents have taught me that the only person I have to please is God, that I am not here to please anyone, not even them. Those statements would not resonate with me until later in my life but I have grasped the concept of it.

I believe that God wants us to be confident people, and He does not want us to be held captive by what people think of us. Honestly speaking, we are often concerned with how people view us, especially as Christians. We act a certain way around certain people so they don’t think we are bad people or bad Christians. However when we are more concerned with how God views us, we are much happier with ourselves and our lives. There’s so much joy in living our lives solely for God. There’s a certain type of joy that cannot be tainted when we truly grasp the meaning of being free in christ. When we just accept ourselves the way God made us and love every part of who we are, we tend to love others more. When we treat ourselves well we tend to treat others well. When we are confident in who we are we want to build up others. It’s like a domino effect. When we all learn to be ourselves, and fully devote ourselves to God, the world will be a much happier place. People will love each other because they love themselves.

I have found, very recently that all the confidence, all the strength and belief in myself I will ever need I can and have found in God. It was only when I drew closer to the Lord that I figured out how to focus on Him and not others. What I mean is that for so long I cared about how people viewed me, and when I fully immersed myself into the word of God, and fully devoted myself and my life to Christ, that is when all of my insecurities and cares for what others thought of me disappeared. Basically what I’m saying is I live a carefree life because I live a Christ-like life. It’s crazy how that works. Living in the world could not give me the type of freedom that I have now. And it feels good, not caring feels so good. I’m just going through life happy and free, it’s great!

All this to say, live the life god has given you and not care about what others think of you. The only person you have to please is God. Don’t allow the opinions of others dictate who you are and how you view yourself. God made you who you are for a reason. People’s opinions either elevate you or tear you down, you have to choose which ones are meant for your life.

Reflection

1. Are you often caught up in the opinions of others?
2. Are you viewing yourself through God’s eyes or the eyes of your peers or neighbors?
3. Do you believe that there is freedom from that in Christ?
4. Can you agree that all this confidence and freedom is found in the Lord?

Prayer Time

Allow your answers to the above questions guide your prayer. Talk to God about what we discussed today, as Him to help you see you, the way He sees you.

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 257!

Day 253: The Word Goes Out

Isaiah 55:10-11

“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven  and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

This has become one of my favorite scriptures, it’s so profound. God’s like, I’m not sending my word out for nothing, I’m sending it for a purpose. I love biblical analogies, especially this. The word of God going out is compared to when rain or snow falls upon the Earth. When it rains, the Earth is replenished, it gets the water it is needed to live. Meaning the rain provides food for people, it allows plants to sprout, it brings a harvest for the planters. The rain isn’t for nothing. There is a purpose for the rain and the snow and that purpose is always fulfilled.  I’m not sure if you’re a person who likes the rain, but I do. But more than the rain I love the moments after it, the smell in the air, the quality of the air. The rainbows in the sky. It’s all so beautiful and it feels beautiful. There’s nothing quite like it. The aftermath of a rainy week is beyond beautiful, it can be breathtaking. The result of rain is nothing less than beautiful. That is the result of God’s word.

The word of God goes out with a purpose and that purpose is always fulfilled. God sends His word out to feed the nations. He sends it out to replenish the Earth, God’s word does something that nothing else can do, it saves lives. The word of God is like the rain, it gives life to those who have been stripped of their abilities to live a life fully free of condemnation. The aftermath of it is beautiful, let’s take the life of Jesus into consideration. John 1:1 says, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. As Christians we believe that this scripture is speaking of Jesus as the word of God. Saying that the word became flesh and came to earth to save us. Jesus came to save the world He was the rain we needed. We needed Jesus because we were in a spiritual drought and the only chance of living was through Him. Through the life that He would pour out onto us. The only way of growth was through Him, the only way we could get out of the drought we were in was to drink of the living water.

The thing about the rain is that not many of us enjoy it. Sometimes there are floods and in the meantime, it’s pretty bad. Earlier this year, California was struck by floods, so many floods. People had to deal with their towns flooding. People were evacuated, there was millions of dollars in damages. Power outages were happening, people even lost their lives. But in the end it ended being great for California, because it brought us out of a six year drought. Rivers, and dams that were dry for years, or had been drying up over those six years are now filled with water. So while we thought it was bad it all turned out for our good. The aftermath of it all was beautiful. I bring this up because when Jesus was on earth many people rejected Him, they didn’t believe He was who He said He was. In fact this was one of the reasons they planned to kill Him. However it wasn’t until He died that people realized that He was the true Messiah. It wasn’t until He gave up His life that people realized who He was. The aftermath was beautiful as many people came to know Christ and believe in Him. People today are still coming to Christ because we know of His life, death, and resurrection. The result of the life He lived, the word He brought to life, and His actions upon that cross and throughout HIs ministry is still very evident today. We are still reaping from the seed Jesus sowed 2500 years ago. Jesus had to give up His life to save all of us. He wasn’t satisfied with just a few, He had to make sure that salvation would reach everyone. I’m pretty sure if we got to sit down and talk to Jesus about what those moment were like He wouldn’t say that it was fun, or that He enjoyed it. However, I imagine that He would say it was necessary.

All this to say, God’s word goes out and does what it is meant to do. Sometimes it isn’t always easy like when the disciples went to bring the Good News to the people. They were beat, put in jail, forced and thrown (literally) out of cities, and killed. But through all of this, the word of God never stops, it never returns void. Through all of this the message always came through. There is always a purpose for the word of god.

Response/Prayer Time

Take the time to respond in whatever way you feel led. Discuss with a friend what we talked about today. Have a conversation with God, Whatever is on your heart today, talk to Him about it. Remember that praying is just having 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 254! It’ll be a special recap.  

Day 252: Compassion from the Lord

Isaiah 55:7

Let the wicked change their ways and banish the very thought of doing wrong. Let them turn to the Lord that he may have mercy on them. Yes, turn to our God, for he will forgive generously. (NLT)

let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts;let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.(ESV)

I wanted to give two different translations because one breaks the scripture down in layman's terms while the other uses the word compassion. That’s what I want to discuss today, the compassion of God. But first let’s define the word itself.  

Compassion-a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering.

The ESV translations describes this compassion as mercy, so let’s define that as well.

Mercy-compassionate or kindly forbearance shown toward an offender, an enemy, or other person in one's power; compassion, pity, or benevolence; an act of kindness, compassion, or favor:

The door of forgiveness is always open. I started out with a vocabulary lesson because I need you to grasp this. I need you to understand, how God’s mercy has led us to where we are today. In the Scripture He is telling us that the door of forgiveness is always open. That when we turn to the Lord He will have mercy on us, or he will show compassion towards us. He’s saying turn to me from your wicked ways and I will have compassion on you.

I love that God says, all we have to do is turn from our wicked ways and He will have compassion on us and pardon us. He’s not telling us to be perfect or anything like that, He’s saying turn from your wicked ways, and I’ll handle the rest. When I look at the definition of compassion I am immediately drawn to the part of the passage that says, “Accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate suffering”. So when I think of compassion, I think of how amazing God is, He doesn’t want us to suffer, so He will pardon our sin so that we will not have to. I’m not sure if you know but living a life of sin, or a life away from God is a life of struggle. Sin carries such misfortune and shame. We as a people were  stricken by this misfortune since the fall (in Genesis when Adam and Eve ate the fruit from the forbidden tree). God looks at us, His children and He cannot help to watch us suffer. Rather than watch us suffer He is stricken by the strong desire to alleviate our suffering, to put an end to our pain. All we have to do is turn from our wicked ways. What that means is turning from the very things that are killing us, turning from the things that causes our soul to struggle and toil within us. Until we turn from our wicked ways we will continue to suffer. However we do not have to. Sometimes we choose to suffer because we feel like we need to be punished. That’s the exact opposite of grace. I have come across people who feel that they deserve to suffer. Shame has gotten a hold of their heart and they feel that they are not worthy of compassion. They feel like they have to suffer their time to make it up to God. Shame and guilt has no home in our hearts. God does not desire for us to walk through life carrying the burden of guilt and shame. As a matter of fact He tells us to give those burdens to Him. When He said that He didn’t mean half of the burdens He meant all of them. We are not meant to carry some burdens. We’ll easily give Him the burden of worry, the burden of pain, but why is it so hard to let go of our guilt and shame? We act as if God cannot handle them when it’s really us who cannot handle it. So why not turn away from our wicked ways and give all of those burdens over to God.. No matter what you have done in your past, it is not God’s will that you continue to suffer.

All this to say, do not allow yourself to be condemned. KNow that the door of forgiven is always open, god wants to forgive us because He does not want us to suffer. We are not meant to suffer because of our past, if we’re going to suffer at least let it be about something in the present day and time. The compassion of God is beautiful and we cannot help but to be moved by it. He loves us so much. He wants us to live a life free of suffering and that means free of sin, so He will pour out His grace upon us, pardoning us, and allowing His compassion to spill out all over us. It’s compassion that got us where we are today. Without it we would continue to suffer in our sin and never knowing what life really is. We are not overcome by sin because Jesus overcame sin.

Response/Prayer Time

Continue this conversation and discussion. Respond in whatever way you feel led. Have a conversation with God, thank Him for His grace and mercy and walk with Him all the days of your life. Take the time to talk to and have a conversation with god. Pray in whatever way you feel led. If you feel the need to turn away from your wicked ways. If you’d like to give your life to Christ, I’d like to give you the opportunity to do so right now.

your life to Him.

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, know that all the angels in heaven are rejoicing! Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 253!