Category Archives: Spiritual Growth

The Loving Kindness of our God

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“The Lord will command his loving kindness in the daytime, and in the night his song shall be with me …” Psalm 42:8

At night you can sleep in peace because you know God is already working things out for tomorrow. The Lord actually commands His loving kindness to be accomplished, so you will receive all His blessings. He commands it. He is ext ending His loving kindness towards you. This is His promise and you can rest in His promises. Look for it, His loving kindness will show up visibly. Deut.28:8 says, “the Lord shall command the blessings upon thee in thy storehouses and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and He shall bless thee.”

“It has been said, “Blessed is the night, for it reveals the stars to us,” we can also say, “Blessed is sorrow, for it reveals God’s comfort.” A flood once washed away a man’s home and mill, taking with it everything he owned in the world. He stood at the scene of his great loss, brokenhearted and discouraged. Yet after the waters had subsided, he saw something shining in the riverbanks that the flood had washed bare. “It looks like gold,” he said. And it was gold. The storm that had impoverished him made him rich. So often it is like that at times in our life.” (taken from Streams in the Desert)

“I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou Lord, only maketh me dwell in safety.” Psalms 4:8

The Path: Look with great expectation for God’s loving kindness; He has already extended it towards you.

Take the Path of Life

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“Show me the path of life…” Psalm 16:11

God knows exactly what is going on in your world.  He has provided everything you need to live during these times; and actually He has provided a way for you to live in peace even during times of trouble.

Find the path of life, the peace of God.  Once you find the path of life, stay there, don’t let your heart be troubled.  Stop allowing yourself stray off the path, lost and fearful.

You have a choice; you simple stay on the path. You have a choice daily; so don’t allow your circumstances to be in charge. You have been given the choice and you can choose peace over fear, anxiety, and stress. You can choose faith over fear; it is that simple. When you choose faith over fear you just choose life instead of death. When you choose peace over anxiety and stress you have again chosen life. The enemy wants to convince you that everything is hopeless, but the God of all peace wants you to know that you have a choice, He says in Deut. 30:15-16, (paraphrased) “Choose life and you shall live.”

It is a choice of life over death, it is that important of a choice. Think about your last doctor’s visit. If you have a heart condition he made it very clear how harmful certain things like too much sugar and salt are to your health. It is hard to keep yourself from eating these things, but, for your health’s sake you can do it. Everyday that you overcome the temptation not to eat those things that are harming your body you feel a difference. You feel stronger and have more energy.

Did you know that worry and fear are more harmful to our body than too much sugar and salt? That is why Jesus said, “Stop allowing yourself to be agitated and disturbed; and do not permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated, cowardly and unsettled.” I repeat, just stop allowing it; you do have a choice, choose the path of life and walk on it. Choose the peace of Jesus daily and you shall live.

Are Your Feelings Affecting your Focus?

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13.  I remain confident of this:  I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.  14.  Wait for the Lord;  be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.
Psalm 27: 13-14

Do you believe that scripture? If not, what is it you are focusing on?

When we set our hearts on the goodness of the Lord we carry His presence into every situation. No matter what the circumstances are we must focus on the goodness of the Lord. If we look at our circumstances and ‘give in to our feelings’ we will sink into the circumstance.

David knew he could not let his circumstances dictate his feelings ; he had to keep his eyes on the Lord.  He said, “I would have fainted if I had not expected to see the goodness of the Lord.”  He did not always have a perfect day; his days were actually very hard, so hard that he said he would have fainted if he had pondered on how bad things were.  David discovered how to overcome the bad days; he set his heart and his expectations on seeing the salvation of the Lord. He set his sights high; he set his sights and expectations on the salvation of the Lord. He expected to see God’s deliverance and salvation in each situation he faced.

For in the day of trouble He will hide me in His shelter; in the secret place of His tent will He hide me; He will set me high upon a rock (Psalm 27:5).

What are you giving into today that is pulling you away from expecting to see the Goodness of the Lord?

Finding a Safe Place

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  “Create in me a pure heart, Oh god and renew a right spirit within me.”  Psalm 51:10

There was a time in my life that I needed a safe place for God to do open heart surgery. My heart was broken and as hard as I tried, I could not recover. During that time, well-meaning friends said things like, “Can’t you snap out of it and just get over it?” No, it wasn’t that easy. I needed someone safe to understand what I was going through- to listen to how I was hurting and help me release the pain. I cried out for a miracle and God heard my cry, He created in me a pure heart and renewed a right spirit within me.

My healing didn’t happen overnight; it lasted for two years. At the end, I asked the Lord, “Why did it take so long?” The Lord told me I had taken the long journey so I could minister the shorter journey to others and help them find a safe place for their healing.

For the next few weeks you will be on a “journey of healing.” Each day as you read the devotionals you will be looking at your past to identify wounds that have not been healed. Unhealed wounds are painful and very sensitive, and they can affect how you feel about yourself.

Once your heart is healed, you will be free from the fear of rejection and you will be able to love others unconditionally, regardless of their mistakes and shortcomings. Unconditional love never fails, and it turns a home into a haven.

Heavenly Father,
As Your Word says, “Create in me a clean and pure heart, and renew a right spirit within me.”

You Are Chosen and Have Purpose

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“He hath chosen us in Him…” Eph 1:4

Have you ever thought about what it really means to be chosen by God?  Do you remember an event or a series of events when it became clear that you were chosen?  Did you feel God’s sovereign hand protecting and guiding you?

You have been chosen to be God’s child so you can be His representative on the earth. Paul said in Ephesians 1:5, that He planned for us to be adopted and revealed as His own children. This is our identity and purpose in one verse.

Once you discover your identity and God’s specific purpose for your life, you will no longer get all tangled up in the world around you.  He has chosen you to carry His peaceful plan into a world of chaos and confusion.  Represent Him, speak what He says, and carry His peace into every situation.

The world can not produce peace.  Your presence should bring peace and order into the world around you.  You walk in a very special purpose and calling.  Let that calling shine to others around you.

“Grace be to you, and peace, from our Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.” Eph1:3.