Saturday... Accept this gift. Yes accept it.

It is so easy to lament over lost opportunities. Paul writing to the church of Corinth says in 6:1 (NLT), "As God's partners, we beg you not to accept this marvelous gift of kindness and then ignore it." The NIV puts it this way, "As God's co-workers we urge you not to receive God's grace in vain."

Our God is such a good God. Each morning we need to wake up with a thankful heart for all that God has done and is doing for us and through us.

Now over in Psalm 137:1 (NLT) it says, "Beside the rivers of Babylon, we sat and wept as we thought about Jerusalem." You see, God had given his Children, chance after chance to follow Him but now they have been captured and their home Jerusalem had been destroyed.

God gives us so much each day and we really need to be thankful. Again Paul says in 2 Corinthians 6:1-2, "As God's partners, we beg you not to accept this marvelous gift of God's kindness and then ignore it. For God says, 'At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you.' (Isaiah 49:8) Indeed the 'right time' is now. Today is the day of salvation."

God is so good to us. Over and over God is so good to us. If we stop and think about what we have gone through in these past few years we can see how God has been so kind to us. Even in our despair and in our griping He continued ti give us over and over His grace, His unmerited favor. As Isaiah reminded his people, God heard them and He helped them and the same has been true of us.

And as the NIV puts it, "As God's co-workers we urge you not to receive God's grace in vain." Nothing that has happened did not first go through God's grace to turn it from something bad into something that can be good if we realize it was for our good and thank Him for it and let Him use it.

So let's not waist what God is doing in our lives. Verses 1 & 2 in the NIRV says, "We work together with God. So we are asking you not to receive God's grace and then do nothing with it. He says, 'When I had mercy on you, I heard you. On the day I saved you, I helped you.' (Isaiah 49:8) I tell you, now is the time God has mercy. Now is the day He saves." Yes, yes! #todaysbeginning

Comments

Tuesday... It is so worth it. It really is!

Tuesday... It is so worth it. It really is! Look at this, Proverbs 5:21-23 (CEV) says, "The Lord sees everything, and he watches us closely. Sinners are trapped and caught by their own evil deeds. They get lost and die because of their foolishness and lack of self-control." That is true of so many. Now look at this, Luke 15:1-7 says, "Tax collectors and sinners were all crowding around to listen to Jesus. So the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law of Moses started grumbling, 'This man is friendly with sinners. He even eats with them.' Then Jesus told them this story: If any of you has 100 sheep, and one of them gets lost, what will you do? Won't you leave the 99 in the field and go look for the lost sheep until you find it? And when you find it, you will put it on your shoulder and carry it home. Then you will call in your friends and neighbors and say, 'Let's celebrate! I've found my lost sheep.' Jesus said, 'In the same way there is mo...

Friday... Yes, we need them. We really do

Psalm 8:3-4 (NLT), "When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers - the moon and the stars you set in place - what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them?" Friday... Yes, we need them. We really do. No, not the fact that I can go out my front door and look out at night at the marvels of the sky. I can do that and it is amazing and it takes my breath away each time I see it. Yes, that is a fact but the reality of who did that and the wisdom and the faith that I have to believe that and to marvel that the one who did that cares about me makes such a difference in how I live my life. Yes, God really does. That is so wonderful for us to believe. And that is why faith and wisdom are so important. Now whatever belief you have at how that marvel happened must also be believed through faith. And the sad thing to me is that more and more people have been taught that there is no God and therefore he did not have a h...

Monday... Three ifs and two thens. They go together!

Monday... Three ifs and two thens. They go together! They really do. And this is what caught my attention this morning as I was reading Proverbs 2. Verse 1 (NRSVUE) says, "My child, if you accept my words and treasure my commands within you." Verse 3 (NIV), "Indeed i f you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, Verse 4, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, Verse 5, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God." And verses 9-11, " Then you will understand what is right and just and fair - every good path. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you." There will always be some effort we must do, some ifs for the thens to be realized in our lives. So many of us want to understand without the ifs. But the thens are so worth, so very worth the effort. Verses 5-6 in the Ampli...

Todays Beginning

Search This Blog